2:2 The kings of the earth 1 form a united front; 2
the rulers collaborate 3
against the Lord and his anointed king. 4
2:6 “I myself 5 have installed 6 my king
on Zion, my holy hill.”
89:20 I have discovered David, my servant.
With my holy oil I have anointed him as king. 7
A well-written song 9 by Ethan the Ezrachite.
89:1 I will sing continually 10 about the Lord’s faithful deeds;
to future generations I will proclaim your faithfulness. 11
2:10 So now, you kings, do what is wise; 12
you rulers of the earth, submit to correction! 13
2:2 The kings of the earth 14 form a united front; 15
the rulers collaborate 16
against the Lord and his anointed king. 17
A psalm of David.
23:1 The Lord is my shepherd, 19
I lack nothing. 20
23:2 He takes me to lush pastures, 21
he leads me to refreshing water. 22
For the music director, to be accompanied by stringed instruments, according to the sheminith style; 24 a psalm of David.
6:1 Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger!
Do not discipline me in your raging fury! 25
4:27 “For indeed both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, assembled together in this city against 26 your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, 27
1 sn The expression kings of the earth refers somewhat hyperbolically to the kings who had been conquered by and were subject to the Davidic king.
2 tn Or “take their stand.” The Hebrew imperfect verbal form describes their action as underway.
3 tn Or “conspire together.” The verbal form is a Niphal from יָסַד (yasad). BDB 413-14 s.v. יָסַד defines the verb as “establish, found,” but HALOT 417 s.v. II יסד proposes a homonym meaning “get together, conspire” (an alternate form of סוּד, sud).
4 tn Heb “and against his anointed one.” The Davidic king is the referent (see vv. 6-7).
5 tn The first person pronoun appears before the first person verbal form for emphasis, reflected in the translation by “myself.”
6 tn Or perhaps “consecrated.”
7 tn The words “as king” are supplied in the translation for clarification, indicating that a royal anointing is in view.
8 sn Psalm 89. The psalmist praises God as the sovereign creator of the world. He recalls God’s covenant with David, but then laments that the promises of the covenant remain unrealized. The covenant promised the Davidic king military victories, but the king has now been subjected to humiliating defeat.
9 tn The meaning of the Hebrew term מַשְׂכִּיל (maskil) is uncertain. See the note on the phrase “well-written song” in the superscription of Ps 88.
10 tn Or “forever.”
11 tn Heb “to a generation and a generation I will make known your faithfulness with my mouth.”
12 sn The speaker here is either the psalmist or the Davidic king, who now addresses the rebellious kings.
13 tn The Niphal has here a tolerative nuance; the kings are urged to submit themselves to the advice being offered.
14 sn The expression kings of the earth refers somewhat hyperbolically to the kings who had been conquered by and were subject to the Davidic king.
15 tn Or “take their stand.” The Hebrew imperfect verbal form describes their action as underway.
16 tn Or “conspire together.” The verbal form is a Niphal from יָסַד (yasad). BDB 413-14 s.v. יָסַד defines the verb as “establish, found,” but HALOT 417 s.v. II יסד proposes a homonym meaning “get together, conspire” (an alternate form of סוּד, sud).
17 tn Heb “and against his anointed one.” The Davidic king is the referent (see vv. 6-7).
18 sn Psalm 23. In vv. 1-4 the psalmist pictures the Lord as a shepherd who provides for his needs and protects him from danger. The psalmist declares, “The Lord is my shepherd,” and then extends and develops that metaphor, speaking as if he were a sheep. In vv. 5-6 the metaphor changes as the psalmist depicts a great royal banquet hosted by the Lord. The psalmist is a guest of honor and recipient of divine favor, who enjoys unlimited access to the divine palace and the divine presence.
19 sn The LORD is my shepherd. The opening metaphor suggests the psalmist is assuming the role of a sheep. In vv. 1b-4 the psalmist extends the metaphor and explains exactly how the LORD is like a shepherd to him. At the surface level the language can be understood in terms of a shepherd’s relationship to his sheep. The translation of vv. 1-4 reflects this level. But, of course, each statement also points to an underlying reality.
20 tn The imperfect verbal form is best understood as generalizing; the psalmist highlights his typical or ongoing experience as a result of having the LORD as his shepherd (habitual present use). The next verse explains more specifically what he means by this statement.
21 tn Heb “he makes me lie down in lush pastures.” The Hiphil verb יַרְבִּיצֵנִי (yarbitseniy) has a causative-modal nuance here (see IBHS 445-46 §27.5 on this use of the Hiphil), meaning “allows me to lie down” (see also Jer 33:12). The point is that the shepherd takes the sheep to lush pastures and lets them eat and rest there. Both imperfect verbal forms in v. 2 are generalizing and highlight the psalmist’s typical experience.
22 tn Both genitives in v. 2 indicate an attribute of the noun they modify: דֶּשֶׁא (deshe’) characterizes the pastures as “lush” (i.e., rich with vegetation), while מְנֻחוֹת (mÿnukhot) probably characterizes the water as refreshing. In this case the plural indicates an abstract quality. Some take מְנֻחוֹת in the sense of “still, calm” (i.e., as describing calm pools in contrast to dangerous torrents) but it is unlikely that such a pastoral scene is in view. Shepherds usually watered their sheep at wells (see Gen 29:2-3; Exod 2:16-19). Another option is to take מְנֻחוֹת as “resting places” and to translate, “water of/at the resting places” (i.e., a genitive of location; see IBHS 147-48 §9.5.2e).
23 sn Psalm 6. The psalmist begs the Lord to withdraw his anger and spare his life. Having received a positive response to his prayer, the psalmist then confronts his enemies and describes how they retreat.
24 tn The meaning of the Hebrew term שְׁמִינִית (shÿminit, “sheminith”) is uncertain; perhaps it refers to a particular style of music. See 1 Chr 15:21.
25 sn The implication is that the psalmist has sinned, causing God to discipline him by bringing a life-threatening illness upon him (see vv. 2-7).
26 sn The application of Ps 2:1-2 is that Jews and Gentiles are opposing Jesus. The surprise of the application is that Jews are now found among the enemies of God’s plan.
27 sn A wordplay on “Christ,” v. 26, which means “one who has been anointed.”