15:5 He does not charge interest when he lends his money. 1
He does not take bribes to testify against the innocent. 2
The one who lives like this 3 will never be upended.
62:2 He alone is my protector 4 and deliverer.
He is my refuge; 5 I will not be upended. 6
62:6 He alone is my protector 7 and deliverer.
He is my refuge; 8 I will not be upended. 9
A song of ascents. 11
125:1 Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion;
it cannot be upended and will endure forever.
125:2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem, 12
so the Lord surrounds his people,
now and forevermore.
1:5 For this reason 13 the wicked cannot withstand 14 judgment, 15
nor can sinners join the assembly of the godly. 16
1 sn He does not charge interest. Such an individual is truly generous, and not simply concerned with making a profit.
2 tn Heb “a bribe against the innocent he does not take.” For other texts condemning the practice of a judge or witness taking a bribe, see Exod 23:8; Deut 16:19; 27:25; 1 Sam 8:3; Ezek 22:12; Prov 17:23.
3 tn Heb “does these things.”
4 tn Heb “my high rocky summit.”
5 tn Or “my elevated place” (see Ps 18:2).
6 tn The Hebrew text adds רַבָּה (rabbah, “greatly”) at the end of the line. It is unusual for this adverb to follow a negated verb. Some see this as qualifying the assertion to some degree, but this would water down the affirmation too much (see v. 6b, where the adverb is omitted). If the adverb has a qualifying function, it would suggest that the psalmist might be upended, though not severely. This is inconsistent with the confident mood of the psalm. The adverb probably has an emphatic force here, “I will not be greatly upended” meaning “I will not be annihilated.”
7 tn Heb “my high rocky summit.”
8 tn Or “my elevated place” (see Ps 18:2).
9 sn The wording is identical to that of v. 2, except that רַבָּה (rabbah, “greatly”) does not appear in v. 6.
10 sn Psalm 125. The psalmist affirms his confidence in the Lord’s protection and justice.
11 sn The precise significance of this title, which appears in Pss 120-134, is unclear. Perhaps worshipers recited these psalms when they ascended the road to Jerusalem to celebrate annual religious festivals. For a discussion of their background see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 219-21.
12 map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
13 tn Or “Therefore.”
14 tn Heb “arise in,” but the verb is used metonymically here in the sense of “stand”; “endure,” as in 1 Sam 13:14 and Job 8:15. The negated Hebrew imperfect verbal form is here taken as indicating incapability or lack of potential, though one could understand the verb form as indicating what is typical (“do not withstand”) or what will happen (“will not withstand”).
15 tn Heb “the judgment.” The article indicates a judgment that is definite in the mind of the speaker. In the immediate context this probably does not refer to the “final judgment” described in later biblical revelation, but to a temporal/historical judgment which the author anticipates. Periodically during the OT period, God would come in judgment, removing the wicked from the scene, while preserving a godly remnant (see Gen 6-9; Ps 37; Hab 3).
16 tn Heb “and sinners in the assembly (or “circle”) of [the] godly.” The negative particle and verb from the preceding line are assumed by ellipsis here (“will not arise/stand”).