Genesis 39:9

39:9 There is no one greater in this household than I am. He has withheld nothing from me except you because you are his wife. So how could I do ¹  such a great evil and sin against God?”

Psalms 119:104

119:104 Your precepts give me discernment.

Therefore I hate all deceitful actions. ² 

Psalms 119:1

Psalm 119 ³ 

א (Alef)

119:1 How blessed are those whose actions are blameless, ⁴ 

who obey ⁵  the law of the Lord.

Psalms 3:1

Psalm 3 ⁶ 

A psalm of David, written when he fled from his son Absalom. ⁷ 

3:1 Lord, how ⁸  numerous are my enemies!

Many attack me. ⁹ 

[39:9]  ¹ tn The nuance of potential imperfect fits this context.

[119:104]  ² tn Heb “every false path.”

[119:1]  ³ sn Psalm 119. The psalmist celebrates God’s law and the guidance it provides his people. He expresses his desire to know God’s law thoroughly so that he might experience the blessings that come to those who obey it. This lengthy psalm exhibits an elaborate acrostic pattern. The psalm is divided into twenty-two sections (corresponding to the letters of the Hebrew alphabet), each of which is comprised of eight verses. Each of the verses in the first section (vv. 1-8) begins with the letter alef (א), the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet. This pattern continues throughout the psalm as each new section highlights a successive letter of the alphabet. Each verse in section two (vv. 9-16) begins with the second letter of the alphabet, each verse in section three (vv. 17-24) with the third letter, etc. This rigid pattern creates a sense of order and completeness and may have facilitated memorization.

[119:1]  ⁴ tn Heb “[Oh] the happiness of those who are blameless of way.”

[119:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “walk in.”

[3:1]  ⁶ 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).

[3:1]  ⁷ 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).

[3:1]  ⁸ tn The Hebrew term מָה (mah, “how”) is used here as an adverbial exclamation (see BDB 553 s.v.).

[3:1]  ⁹ tn Heb “many rise up against me.”