69:30 I will sing praises to God’s name! 1
I will magnify him as I give him thanks! 2
69:31 That will please the Lord more than an ox or a bull
with horns and hooves.
69:32 The oppressed look on – let them rejoice!
You who seek God, 3 may you be encouraged! 4
69:33 For the Lord listens to the needy;
he does not despise his captive people. 5
69:34 Let the heavens and the earth praise him,
along with the seas and everything that swims in them!
69:35 For God will deliver Zion
and rebuild the cities of Judah,
and his people 6 will again live in them and possess Zion. 7
69:36 The descendants of his servants will inherit it,
and those who are loyal to him 8 will live in it. 9
1 tn Heb “I will praise the name of God with a song.”
2 tn Heb “I will magnify him with thanks.”
3 sn You who seek God refers to those who seek to have a relationship with God by obeying and worshiping him (see Ps 53:2).
4 tn Heb “may your heart[s] live.” See Ps 22:26.
5 tn Heb “his prisoners he does not despise.”
6 tn Heb “they”; the referent (God’s people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
7 tn Heb “it.” The third feminine singular pronominal suffix probably refers to “Zion” (see Pss 48:12; 102:14); thus the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
8 tn Heb “the lovers of his name.” The phrase refers to those who are loyal to God (cf. v. 35). See Pss 5:11; 119:132; Isa 56:6.
9 sn Verses 35-36 appear to be an addition to the psalm from the time of the exile. The earlier lament reflects an individual’s situation, while these verses seem to reflect a communal application of it.