Psalms 35:1

Psalm 35 ¹ 

By David.

35:1 O Lord, fight ²  those who fight with me!

Attack those who attack me!

Psalms 43:1

Psalm 43 ³ 

43:1 Vindicate me, O God!

Fight for me ⁴  against an ungodly nation!

Deliver me ⁵  from deceitful and evil men! ⁶ 

Psalms 119:154

119:154 Fight for me ⁷  and defend me! ⁸ 

Revive me with your word!

Micah 7:9

7:9 I must endure ⁹  the Lord’s anger,

for I have sinned against him.

But then ¹⁰  he will defend my cause, ¹¹ 

and accomplish justice on my behalf.

He will lead me out into the light;

I will experience firsthand ¹²  his deliverance. ¹³ 

¹ sn Psalm 35. The author, who faces ruthless enemies who seek his life for no reason, begs the Lord to fight his battles for him and to vindicate him by annihilating his adversaries.

² tn Or “contend.”

³ sn Psalm 43. Many medieval Hebrew mss combine Psalm 43 and Psalm 42 into one psalm. Psalm 43 is the only psalm in Book 2 of the Psalter (Psalms 42-72) that does not have a heading, suggesting that it was originally the third and concluding section of Psalm 42. Ps 43:5 is identical to the refrain in Ps 42:11 and almost identical to the refrain in Ps 42:5.

⁴ tn Or “argue my case.”

⁵ tn The imperfect here expresses a request or wish. Note the imperatives in the first half of the verse. See also v. 3.

⁶ tn Heb “from the deceitful and evil man.” The Hebrew text uses the singular form “man” in a collective sense, as the reference to a “nation” in the parallel line indicates.

⁷ tn Or “argue my case.”

⁸ tn Heb “and redeem me.” The verb “redeem” casts the Lord in the role of a leader who protects members of his extended family in times of need and crisis (see Ps 19:14).

⁹ tn Heb “lift, bear.”

¹⁰ tn Heb “until.”

¹¹ tn Or “plead my case” (NASB and NIV both similar); NRSV “until he takes my side.”

¹² tn Heb “see.”

¹³ tn Or “justice, vindication.”