Psalms 109:28

109:28 They curse, but you will bless. ¹ 

When they attack, they will be humiliated, ² 

but your servant will rejoice.

Proverbs 26:2

26:2 Like a fluttering bird or like a flying swallow,

so a curse without cause ³  does not come to rest. ⁴ 

Matthew 5:44

5:44 But I say to you, love your enemy and ⁵  pray for those who persecute you,

Luke 6:22

6:22 “Blessed are you when people ⁶  hate you, and when they exclude you and insult you and reject you as evil ⁷  on account of the Son of Man!

[109:28]  ¹ tn Another option is to translate the imperfect as a prayer/request (“may you bless”).

[109:28]  ² tn The verbal sequence is perfect + prefixed form with vav (ו) consecutive. Since the psalmist seems to be anticipating the demise of his enemies, he may be using these forms rhetorically to describe the enemies’ defeat as if it were already accomplished. Some emend the text to קָמוּ יֵבֹשׁוּ (qamu yevoshu, “may those who attack me be humiliated”). See L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 75.

[26:2]  ³ tn Heb “causeless curse” (KJV similar) describes an undeserved curse (cf. NIV, NRSV). The Hebrew word translated “causeless” is the adverb from ָחנַן (khanan); it means “without cause; gratuitous.”

[26:2]  ⁴ tc The MT has the negative with the verb “to enter; to come” to mean “will not come” (לֹא תָבֹא, lo’ tavo’). This is interpreted to mean “will not come to rest” or “will not come home.” Some commentators have taken the Qere reading of לוֹ (lo) instead, and read it as “will come home to him.” This is also a little difficult; but it gives the idea that an undeserved curse will come [back] to him [who gave it]. Just as a bird will fly around and eventually come home, so will the undeserved curse return on the one who gave it. This is plausible; but there is no referent for the suffix, making it syntactically difficult.

[5:44]  ⁵ tc Most mss ([D] L [W] Θ Ë¹³ 33 Ï lat) read “bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who mistreat you,” before “those who persecute you.” But this is surely a motivated reading, importing the longer form of this aphorism from Luke 6:27-28. The shorter text is found in א B ˹ pc sa, as well as several fathers and versional witnesses.

[6:22]  ⁶ tn This is a generic use of ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo"), referring to both males and females.

[6:22]  ⁷ tn Or “disdain you”; Grk “cast out your name as evil.” The word “name” is used here as a figure of speech to refer to the person as a whole.