68:11 The Lord speaks; 1
many, many women spread the good news. 2
68:2 As smoke is driven away by the wind, so you drive them away. 3
As wax melts before fire,
so the wicked are destroyed before God.
A psalm of David, written when he fled from his son Absalom. 5
3:1 Lord, how 6 numerous are my enemies!
Many attack me. 7
1 tn Heb “gives a word.” Perhaps this refers to a divine royal decree or battle cry.
2 tn Heb “the ones spreading the good news [are] a large army.” The participle translated “the ones spreading the good news” is a feminine plural form. Apparently the good news here is the announcement that enemy kings have been defeated (see v. 12).
3 tn Heb “as smoke is scattered, you scatter [them].”
4 sn Psalm 3. The psalmist acknowledges that he is confronted by many enemies (vv. 1-2). But, alluding to a divine oracle he has received (vv. 4-5), he affirms his confidence in God’s ability to protect him (vv. 3, 6) and requests that God make his promise a reality (vv. 7-8).
5 sn According to Jewish tradition, David offered this prayer when he was forced to flee from Jerusalem during his son Absalom’s attempted coup (see 2 Sam 15:13-17).
6 tn The Hebrew term מָה (mah, “how”) is used here as an adverbial exclamation (see BDB 553 s.v.).
7 tn Heb “many rise up against me.”