Genesis 29:32-35

29:32 So Leah became pregnant ¹  and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, ²  for she said, “The Lord has looked with pity on my oppressed condition. ³  Surely my husband will love me now.”

29:33 She became pregnant again and had another son. She said, “Because the Lord heard that I was unloved, ⁴  he gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon. ⁵ 

29:34 She became pregnant again and had another son. She said, “Now this time my husband will show me affection, ⁶  because I have given birth to three sons for him.” That is why he was named Levi. ⁷ 

29:35 She became pregnant again and had another son. She said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” That is why she named him Judah. ⁸  Then she stopped having children.

Psalms 35:24

35:24 Vindicate me by your justice, O Lord my God!

Do not let them gloat ⁹  over me!

Psalms 43:1

Psalm 43 ¹⁰ 

43:1 Vindicate me, O God!

Fight for me ¹¹  against an ungodly nation!

Deliver me ¹²  from deceitful and evil men! ¹³ 

Lamentations 3:59

3:59 You have seen the wrong done to me, O Lord;

pronounce judgment on my behalf! ¹⁴ 

[29:32]  ¹ tn Or “Leah conceived” (also in vv. 33, 34, 35).

[29:32]  ² sn The name Reuben (רְאוּבֵן, rÿ’uven) means “look, a son.”

[29:32]  ³ tn Heb “looked on my affliction.”

[29:33]  ⁴ tn Heb “hated.” See the note on the word “unloved” in v. 31.

[29:33]  ⁵ sn The name Simeon (שִׁמְעוֹן, shim’on) is derived from the verbal root שָׁמַע (shama’) and means “hearing.” The name is appropriate since it is reminder that the Lord “heard” about Leah’s unloved condition and responded with pity.

[29:34]  ⁶ tn Heb “will be joined to me.”

[29:34]  ⁷ sn The name Levi (לֵוִי, levi), the precise meaning of which is debated, was appropriate because it sounds like the verb לָוָה (lavah, “to join”), used in the statement recorded earlier in the verse.

[29:35]  ⁸ sn The name Judah (יְהוּדָה, yÿhudah) means “he will be praised” and reflects the sentiment Leah expresses in the statement recorded earlier in the verse. For further discussion see W. F. Albright, “The Names ‘Israel’ and ‘Judah’ with an Excursus on the Etymology of Todah and Torah,” JBL 46 (1927): 151-85; and A. R. Millard, “The Meaning of the Name Judah,” ZAW 86 (1974): 216-18.

[35:24]  ⁹ tn Heb “rejoice.”

[43:1]  ¹⁰ sn Psalm 43. Many medieval Hebrew mss combine Psalm 43 and Psalm 42 into one psalm. Psalm 43 is the only psalm in Book 2 of the Psalter (Psalms 42-72) that does not have a heading, suggesting that it was originally the third and concluding section of Psalm 42. Ps 43:5 is identical to the refrain in Ps 42:11 and almost identical to the refrain in Ps 42:5.

[43:1]  ¹¹ tn Or “argue my case.”

[43:1]  ¹² tn The imperfect here expresses a request or wish. Note the imperatives in the first half of the verse. See also v. 3.

[43:1]  ¹³ tn Heb “from the deceitful and evil man.” The Hebrew text uses the singular form “man” in a collective sense, as the reference to a “nation” in the parallel line indicates.

[3:59]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “Please judge my judgment.”