Psalms 11:5

11:5 The Lord approves of the godly,

but he hates the wicked and those who love to do violence.

Psalms 18:48

18:48 He delivers me from my enemies;

you snatch me away from those who attack me;

you rescue me from violent men.

Psalms 52:2

52:2 Your tongue carries out your destructive plans;

it is as effective as a sharp razor, O deceiver. 10 

Psalms 86:14

86:14 O God, arrogant men attack me; 11 

a gang 12  of ruthless men, who do not respect you, seek my life. 13 

Psalms 140:1

Psalm 140 14 

For the music director; a psalm of David.

140:1 O Lord, rescue me from wicked men! 15 

Protect me from violent men, 16 

Psalms 140:4

140:4 O Lord, shelter me from the power 17  of the wicked!

Protect me from violent men,

who plan to knock me over. 18 

Psalms 140:11

140:11 A slanderer 19  will not endure on 20  the earth;

calamity will hunt down a violent man and strike him down. 21 


tn Heb “examines,” the same verb used in v. 4b. But here it is used in a metonymic sense of “examine and approve” (see Jer 20:12).

tn The singular form is used here in a collective or representative sense. Note the plural form “pure (of heart)” in v. 2.

tn Heb “his [very] being.” A נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “being, soul”) is also attributed to the Lord in Isa 1:14, where a suffixed form of the noun appears as the subject of the verb “hate.” Both there and here the term is used of the seat of one’s emotions and passions.

sn He hates the wicked. The Lord “hates” the wicked in the sense that he despises their wicked character and deeds, and actively opposes and judges them for their wickedness. See Ps 5:5.

tn Heb “the wicked [one] and the lover of violence.” The singular form is used here in a collective or representative sense. Note the plural form רְשָׁעִים (rÿshaim, “wicked [ones]”) in vv. 2 and 6.

tn Heb “[the one who] delivers me.” 2 Sam 22:49 reads “and [the one who] brings me out.”

tn Heb “lifts me up.” In light of the preceding and following references to deliverance, the verb רום probably here refers to being rescued from danger (see Ps 9:13). However, it could mean “exalt, elevate” here, indicating that the Lord has given the psalmist victory over his enemies and forced them to acknowledge the psalmist’s superiority (cf. NIV, NRSV).

tn Heb “from those who rise against me.”

tn Heb “destruction your tongue devises.”

10 tn Heb “like a sharpened razor, doer of deceit.” The masculine participle עָשָׂה (’asah) is understood as a substantival vocative, addressed to the powerful man.

11 tn Heb “rise up against me.”

12 tn Or “assembly.”

13 tn Heb “seek my life and do not set you before them.” See Ps 54:3.

14 sn Psalm 140. The psalmist asks God to deliver him from his deadly enemies, calls judgment down upon them, and affirms his confidence in God’s justice.

15 tn Heb “from a wicked man.” The Hebrew uses the singular in a representative or collective sense (note the plural verbs in v. 2).

16 tn Heb “a man of violent acts.” The Hebrew uses the singular in a representative or collective sense (note the plural verbs in v. 2).

17 tn Heb “hands.”

18 tn Heb “to push down my steps.”

19 tn Heb “a man of a tongue.”

20 tn Heb “be established in.”

21 tn Heb “for blows.” The Hebrew noun מַדְחֵפֹה (madkhefoh, “blow”) occurs only here in the OT.