25:9 May he show 1 the humble what is right! 2
May he teach 3 the humble his way!
10:5 He is secure at all times. 4
He has no regard for your commands; 5
he disdains all his enemies. 6
18:30 The one true God acts in a faithful manner; 7
the Lord’s promise 8 is reliable; 9
he is a shield to all who take shelter 10 in him.
37:7 Wait patiently for the Lord! 11
Wait confidently 12 for him!
Do not fret over the apparent success of a sinner, 13
a man who carries out wicked schemes!
37:34 Rely 14 on the Lord! Obey his commands! 15
Then he will permit you 16 to possess the land;
you will see the demise of evil men. 17
64:3 They 18 sharpen their tongues like a sword;
they aim their arrow, a slanderous charge, 19
1 tn The prefixed verbal form is jussive; the psalmist expresses his prayer.
2 tn Heb “may he guide the humble into justice.” The Hebrew term עֲנָוִים (’anavim, “humble”) usually refers to the oppressed, but in this context, where the psalmist confesses his sin and asks for moral guidance, it apparently refers to sinners who humble themselves before God and seek deliverance from their sinful condition.
3 tn The prefixed verbal form is interpreted as a jussive (it stands parallel to the jussive form, “may he guide”).
4 tn Heb “they are firm, his ways, at every time.” The verb חַיִל (khayil, “be firm, be strong”) occurs only here and in Job 20:21, where it has the sense “endure.”
5 tc Heb “[on a] height, your judgments from before him.” If the MT is retained, then the idea may be that God’s “judgments” are high above (i.e., not recognized) by the wicked man. However, the syntax is awkward. The translation assumes an emendation of מָרוֹם (marom, “height”) to סָרוּ (saru, “[your judgments] are turned aside”), the final mem (ם) being dittographic (note the initial mem on the immediately following word [מִשְׁפָּטֶיךָ, mishÿfatekha, “your judgments”). “Judgments” probably refers here to God’s laws or commands, rather than his judicial decisions or acts of judgment.
6 tn Heb “all his enemies, he snorts against them.” This may picture the wicked man defiantly challenging his enemies because he is confident of success. Another option is to take יָפִיחַ (yafiakh) from the root יָפַח (yafakh, “to testify”) and translate “he testifies against all his enemies,” implying that he gets the upper hand over them in legal battles. The noun יָפֵחַ (yafeakh, “witness”) is attested in biblical Hebrew (see Prov 6:19; 12:17; 14:5, 25; 19:5, 9, and Hab 2:3). The verb, however, is not clearly attested.
7 tn Heb “[As for] the God, his way is blameless.” The term הָאֵל (ha’el, “the God”) stands as a nominative (or genitive) absolute in apposition to the resumptive pronominal suffix on “way.” The prefixed article emphasizes his distinctiveness as the one true God (cf. Deut 33:26). God’s “way” in this context refers to his protective and salvific acts in fulfillment of his promise (see also Deut 32:4; Pss 67:2; 77:13 [note vv. 11-12, 14]; 103:7; 138:5; 145:17).
8 sn The
9 tn Heb “the word of the
10 sn Take shelter. See the note on the word “shelter” in v. 2.
10 tn Heb “Be quiet before the
11 tc The Hebrew text has וְהִתְחוֹלֵל (vÿhitkholel, Hitpolel of חִיל, khil, “writhe with fear, suffer”) but this idea fits awkwardly here. The text should be changed to וְתוֹחֵל (vÿtokhel; Hiphil of יָחַל, yakhal, “wait”). It appears that the Hebrew text is the product of dittography: (1) the initial וה (vav-he) is accidentally repeated from the preceding word (יְהוָה, yÿhvah) and (2) the final lamed (ל) is accidentally repeated (note the preceding lamed and the initial lamed on the following form, לו).
12 tn Heb “over one who causes his way to be successful.”
13 tn Or “wait.”
14 tn Heb “keep his way.” The
15 tn Heb “and he will lift you up.” The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) is best taken here as a result clause following the imperatives in the preceding lines.
16 tn Heb “when evil men are cut off you will see.”
16 tn Heb “who.” A new sentence was started here in the translation for stylistic reasons.
17 tn Heb “a bitter word.”