42:2 I thirst 1 for God,
for the living God.
I say, 2 “When will I be able to go and appear in God’s presence?” 3
A psalm of David, written when he was in the Judean wilderness. 5
63:1 O God, you are my God! I long for you! 6
My soul thirsts 7 for you,
my flesh yearns for you,
in a dry and parched 8 land where there is no water.
1 tn Or “my soul thirsts.”
2 tn The words “I say” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons and for clarification.
3 tn Heb “When will I go and appear [to] the face of God?” Some emend the Niphal verbal form אֵרָאֶה (’era’eh, “I will appear”) to a Qal אֶרְאֶה (’er’eh, “I will see”; see Gen 33:10), but the Niphal can be retained if one understands ellipsis of אֶת (’et) before “face” (see Exod 34:24; Deut 31:11).
4 sn Psalm 63. The psalmist expresses his intense desire to be in God’s presence and confidently affirms that God will judge his enemies.
5 sn According to the psalm superscription David wrote the psalm while in the “wilderness of Judah.” Perhaps this refers to the period described in 1 Sam 23-24 or to the incident mentioned in 2 Sam 15:23.
6 tn Or “I will seek you.”
7 tn Or “I thirst.”
8 tn Heb “faint” or “weary.” This may picture the land as “faint” or “weary,” or it may allude to the effect this dry desert has on those who are forced to live in it.