Psalms 55:12-15

55:12 Indeed, ¹  it is not an enemy who insults me,

or else I could bear it;

it is not one who hates me who arrogantly taunts me, ² 

or else I could hide from him.

55:13 But it is you, ³  a man like me, ⁴ 

my close friend in whom I confided. ⁵ 

55:14 We would share personal thoughts with each other; ⁶ 

in God’s temple we would walk together among the crowd.

55:15 May death destroy them! ⁷ 

May they go down alive into Sheol! ⁸ 

For evil is in their dwelling place and in their midst.

Psalms 69:22-28

69:22 May their dining table become a trap before them!

May it be a snare for that group of friends! ⁹ 

69:23 May their eyes be blinded! ¹⁰ 

Make them shake violently! ¹¹ 

69:24 Pour out your judgment ¹²  on them!

May your raging anger ¹³  overtake them!

69:25 May their camp become desolate,

their tents uninhabited! ¹⁴ 

69:26 For they harass ¹⁵  the one whom you discipline; ¹⁶ 

they spread the news about the suffering of those whom you punish. ¹⁷ 

69:27 Hold them accountable for all their sins! ¹⁸ 

Do not vindicate them! ¹⁹ 

69:28 May their names be deleted from the scroll of the living! ²⁰ 

Do not let their names be listed with the godly! ²¹ 

Psalms 109:6-15

109:6 ²² Appoint an evil man to testify against him! ²³ 

May an accuser stand ²⁴  at his right side!

109:7 When he is judged, he will be found ²⁵  guilty! ²⁶ 

Then his prayer will be regarded as sinful.

109:8 May his days be few! ²⁷ 

May another take his job! ²⁸ 

109:9 May his children ²⁹  be fatherless,

and his wife a widow!

109:10 May his children ³⁰  roam around begging,

asking for handouts as they leave their ruined home! ³¹ 

109:11 May the creditor seize ³²  all he owns!

May strangers loot his property! ³³ 

109:12 May no one show him kindness! ³⁴ 

May no one have compassion ³⁵  on his fatherless children!

109:13 May his descendants ³⁶  be cut off! ³⁷ 

May the memory of them be wiped out by the time the next generation arrives! ³⁸ 

109:14 May his ancestors’ ³⁹  sins be remembered by the Lord!

May his mother’s sin not be forgotten! ⁴⁰ 

109:15 May the Lord be constantly aware of them, ⁴¹ 

and cut off the memory of his children ⁴²  from the earth!

Matthew 27:5

27:5 So ⁴³  Judas threw the silver coins into the temple and left. Then he went out and hanged himself.

John 17:12

17:12 When I was with them I kept them safe ⁴⁴  and watched over them ⁴⁵  in your name ⁴⁶  that you have given me. Not one ⁴⁷  of them was lost except the one destined for destruction, ⁴⁸  so that the scripture could be fulfilled. ⁴⁹ 

Acts 1:16-25

1:16 “Brothers, ⁵⁰  the scripture had to be fulfilled that the Holy Spirit foretold through ⁵¹  David concerning Judas – who became the guide for those who arrested Jesus – 1:17 for he was counted as one of us and received a share in this ministry.” ⁵²  1:18 (Now this man Judas ⁵³  acquired a field with the reward of his unjust deed, ⁵⁴  and falling headfirst ⁵⁵  he burst open in the middle and all his intestines ⁵⁶  gushed out. 1:19 This ⁵⁷  became known to all who lived in Jerusalem, so that in their own language ⁵⁸  they called that field ⁵⁹  Hakeldama, that is, “Field of Blood.”) 1:20 “For it is written in the book of Psalms, ‘Let his house become deserted, ⁶⁰  and let there be no one to live in it,’ ⁶¹  and ‘Let another take his position of responsibility.’ ⁶²  1:21 Thus one of the men ⁶³  who have accompanied us during all the time the Lord Jesus associated with ⁶⁴  us, 1:22 beginning from his baptism by John until the day he ⁶⁵  was taken up from us – one of these must become a witness of his resurrection together with us.” 1:23 So they ⁶⁶  proposed two candidates: ⁶⁷  Joseph called Barsabbas (also called Justus) and Matthias. 1:24 Then they prayed, ⁶⁸  “Lord, you know the hearts of all. Show us which one of these two you have chosen 1:25 to assume the task ⁶⁹  of this service ⁷⁰  and apostleship from which Judas turned aside ⁷¹  to go to his own place.” ⁷² 

Acts 1:2

1:2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, ⁷³  after he had given orders ⁷⁴  by ⁷⁵  the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen.

Acts 2:3

2:3 And tongues spreading out like a fire ⁷⁶  appeared to them and came to rest on each one of them.

[55:12]  ¹ tn Or “for.”

[55:12]  ² tn Heb “[who] magnifies against me.” See Pss 35:26; 38:16.

[55:13]  ³ sn It is you. The psalmist addresses the apparent ringleader of the opposition, an individual who was once his friend.

[55:13]  ⁴ tn Heb “a man according to my value,” i.e., “a person such as I.”

[55:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “my close friend, one known by me.”

[55:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “who together we would make counsel sweet.” The imperfect verbal forms here and in the next line draw attention to the ongoing nature of the actions (the so-called customary use of the imperfect). Their relationship was characterized by such intimacy and friendship. See IBHS 502-3 §31.2b.

[55:15]  ⁷ tc The meaning of the MT is unclear. The Kethib (consonantal text) reads יַשִּׁימָוֶת עָלֵימוֹ (yashimavet ’alemo, “May devastation [be] upon them!”). The proposed noun יַשִּׁימָוֶת occurs only here and perhaps in the place name Beth-Jeshimoth in Num 33:49. The Qere (marginal text) has יַשִּׁי מָוֶת עָלֵימוֹ (yashi mavet ’alemo). The verbal form יַשִּׁי is apparently an alternate form of יַשִּׁיא (yashi’), a Hiphil imperfect from נָשַׁא (nasha’, “deceive”). In this case one might read “death will come deceptively upon them.” This reading has the advantage of reading מָוֶת (mavet, “death”) which forms a natural parallel with “Sheol” in the next line. The present translation is based on the following reconstruction of the text: יְשִׁמֵּם מָוֶת (yeshimmem mavet). The verb assumed in the reconstruction is a Hiphil jussive third masculine singular from שָׁמַם (shamam, “be desolate”) with a third masculine plural pronominal suffix attached. This reconstruction assumes that (1) haplography has occurred in the traditional text (the original sequence of three mems [מ] was lost with only one mem remaining), resulting in the fusion of originally distinct forms in the Kethib, and (2) that עָלֵימוֹ (’alemo, “upon them”) is a later scribal addition attempting to make sense of a garbled and corrupt text. The preposition עַל (’al) does occur with the verb שָׁמַם (shamam), but in such cases the expression means “be appalled at/because of” (see Jer 49:20; 50:45). If one were to retain the prepositional phrase here, one would have to read the text as follows: יַשִּׁים מָוֶת עָלֵימוֹ (yashim mavet ’alemo, “Death will be appalled at them”). The idea seems odd, to say the least. Death is not collocated with this verb elsewhere.

[55:15]  ⁸ sn Go down alive. This curse imagines a swift and sudden death for the psalmist’s enemies.

[69:22]  ⁹ tc Heb “and to the friends for a snare.” The plural of שָׁלוֹם (shalom, “peace”) is used in Ps 55:20 of one’s “friends.” If the reading of the MT is retained here, the term depicts the psalmist’s enemies as a close-knit group of friends who are bound together by their hatred for the psalmist. Some prefer to revocalize the text as וּלְשִׁלּוּמִים (ulÿshillumim, “and for retribution”). In this case the noun stands parallel to פַּח (pakh, “trap”) and מוֹקֵשׁ (moqesh, “snare”), and one might translate, “may their dining table become a trap before them, [a means of] retribution and a snare” (cf. NIV).

[69:23]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “may their eyes be darkened from seeing.”

[69:23]  ¹¹ tn Heb “make their hips shake continually.”

[69:24]  ¹² tn Heb “anger.” “Anger” here refers metonymically to divine judgment, which is the practical effect of God’s anger.

[69:24]  ¹³ tn Heb “the rage of your anger.” The phrase “rage of your anger” employs an appositional genitive. Synonyms are joined in a construct relationship to emphasize the single idea. For a detailed discussion of the grammatical point with numerous examples, see Y. Avishur, “Pairs of Synonymous Words in the Construct State (and in Appositional Hendiadys) in Biblical Hebrew,” Semitics 2 (1971), 17-81.

[69:25]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “in their tents may there not be one who dwells.”

[69:26]  ¹⁵ tn Or “persecute”; Heb “chase.”

[69:26]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “for you, the one whom you strike, they chase.”

[69:26]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “they announce the pain of your wounded ones” (i.e., “the ones whom you wounded,” as the parallel line makes clear).

[69:27]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “place sin upon their sin.”

[69:27]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “let them not come into your vindication.”

[69:28]  ²⁰ tn Heb “let them be wiped out of the scroll of the living.”

[69:28]  ²¹ tn Heb “and with the godly let them not be written.”

[109:6]  ²² sn In vv. 6-19 the psalmist calls on God to judge his enemies severely. Some attribute this curse-list to the psalmist’s enemies rather than the psalmist. In this case one should paraphrase v. 6: “They say about me, ‘Appoint an evil man, etc.’” Those supporting this line of interpretation point out that vv. 2-5 and 20 refer to the enemies’ attack on the psalmist being a verbal one. Furthermore in vv. 1-5, 20 the psalmist speaks of his enemies in the plural, while vv. 6-19 refer to an individual. This use of the singular in vv. 6-19 could be readily explained if this is the psalmist’s enemies’ curse on him. However, it is much more natural to understand vv. 6-19 as the psalmist’s prayer against his enemies. There is no introductory quotation formula in v. 6 to indicate that the psalmist is quoting anyone, and the statement “may the Lord repay my accusers in this way” in v. 20 most naturally appears to be a fitting conclusion to the prayer in vv. 6-19. But what about the use of the singular in vv. 6-19? Often in the psalms the psalmist will describe his enemies as a group, but then speak of them as an individual as well, as if viewing his adversaries collectively as one powerful foe. See, for example, Ps 7, where the psalmist uses both the plural (vv. 1, 6) and the singular (vv. 2, 4-5) in referring to enemies. Perhaps by using the singular in such cases, the psalmist wants to single out each enemy for individual attention, or perhaps he has one especially hostile enemy in mind who epitomizes the opposition of the whole group. This may well be the case in Ps 109. Perhaps we should understand the singular throughout vv. 6-19 in the sense of “each and every one.” For a lengthy and well-reasoned defense of the opposite view – that vv. 6-19 are a quotation of what the enemies said about the psalmist – see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 72-73.

[109:6]  ²³ tn Heb “appoint against him an evil [man].”

[109:6]  ²⁴ tn The prefixed verbal form is taken as a jussive here (note the imperative in the preceding line).

[109:7]  ²⁵ tn The prefixed verbal form could be taken as a jussive, but the use of the imperfect form in the following line suggests that v. 7 anticipates the outcome of the accusation envisioned in v. 6.

[109:7]  ²⁶ tn Heb “he will go out [as] a criminal” (that is, guilty).

[109:8]  ²⁷ tn The prefixed verbal forms (except those with vav [ו] consecutive) in vv. 8-20 are taken as jussives of prayer. Note the distinct jussive forms used in vv. 12-13, 15, 19.

[109:8]  ²⁸ tn The Hebrew noun פְּקֻדָּה (pÿquddah) can mean “charge” or “office,” though BDB 824 s.v. suggests that here it refers to his possessions.

[109:9]  ²⁹ tn Or “sons.”

[109:10]  ³⁰ tn Or “sons.”

[109:10]  ³¹ tn Heb “and roaming, may his children roam and beg, and seek from their ruins.” Some, following the LXX, emend the term וְדָרְשׁוּ (vÿdoreshu, “and seek”) to יְגֹרְשׁוּ (yÿgoreshu; a Pual jussive, “may they be driven away” [see Job 30:5; cf. NIV, NRSV]), but דָּרַשׁ (darash) nicely parallels שִׁאֵלוּ (shi’elu, “and beg”) in the preceding line.

[109:11]  ³² tn Heb “lay snares for” (see Ps 38:12).

[109:11]  ³³ tn Heb “the product of his labor.”

[109:12]  ³⁴ tn Heb “may there not be for him one who extends loyal love.”

[109:12]  ³⁵ tn Perhaps this refers to being generous (see Ps 37:21).

[109:13]  ³⁶ tn Or “offspring.”

[109:13]  ³⁷ sn On the expression cut off see Ps 37:28.

[109:13]  ³⁸ tn Heb “in another generation may their name be wiped out.”

[109:14]  ³⁹ tn Or “fathers’ sins.”

[109:14]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “not be wiped out.”

[109:15]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “may they [that is, the sins mentioned in v. 14] be before the Lord continually.”

[109:15]  ⁴² tn Heb “their memory.” The plural pronominal suffix probably refers back to the children mentioned in v. 13, and for clarity this has been specified in the translation.

[27:5]  ⁴³ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the leaders’ response to Judas.

[17:12]  ⁴⁴ tn Or “I protected them”; Grk “I kept them.”

[17:12]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “and guarded them.”

[17:12]  ⁴⁶ tn Or “by your name.”

[17:12]  ⁴⁷ tn Grk And not one.” The conjunction καί (kai, “and”) has not been translated here in keeping with the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences.

[17:12]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “the son of destruction” (a Semitic idiom for one appointed for destruction; here it is a reference to Judas).

[17:12]  ⁴⁹ sn A possible allusion to Ps 41:9 or Prov 24:22 LXX. The exact passage is not specified here, but in John 13:18, Ps 41:9 is explicitly quoted by Jesus with reference to the traitor, suggesting that this is the passage to which Jesus refers here. The previous mention of Ps 41:9 in John 13:18 probably explains why the author felt no need for an explanatory parenthetical note here. It is also possible that the passage referred to here is Prov 24:22 LXX, where in the Greek text the phrase “son of destruction” appears.

[1:16]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “Men brothers.” In light of the compound phrase ἄνδρες ἀδελφοί (andre" adelfoi, “Men brothers”) Peter’s words are best understood as directly addressed to the males present, possibly referring specifically to the twelve (really ten at this point – eleven minus the speaker, Peter) mentioned by name in v. 13.

[1:16]  ⁵¹ tn Grk “foretold by the mouth of.”

[1:17]  ⁵² tn Or “and was chosen to have a share in this ministry.” The term λαγχάνω (lancanw) here and in 2 Pet 1:1 can be understood as referring to the process of divine choice and thus be translated, “was chosen to have.”

[1:18]  ⁵³ tn The referent of “this man” (Judas) was specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:18]  ⁵⁴ tn Traditionally, “with the reward of his wickedness.”

[1:18]  ⁵⁵ tn Traditionally, “falling headlong.”

[1:18]  ⁵⁶ tn Or “all his bowels.”

[1:19]  ⁵⁷ tn Grk “And this.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[1:19]  ⁵⁸ sn Their own language refers to Aramaic, the primary language spoken in Palestine in Jesus’ day.

[1:19]  ⁵⁹ tn Grk “that field was called.” The passive voice has been converted to active in the translation in keeping with contemporary English style.

[1:20]  ⁶⁰ tn Or “uninhabited” or “empty.”

[1:20]  ⁶¹ sn A quotation from Ps 69:25.

[1:20]  ⁶² tn Or “Let another take his office.”

[1:21]  ⁶³ tn The Greek term here is ἀνήρ (anhr), which only exceptionally is used in a generic sense of both males and females. In this context, where a successor to Judas is being chosen, only men were under consideration in the original historical context.

[1:21]  ⁶⁴ tn Grk “the Lord Jesus went in and out among us.” According to BDAG 294 s.v. εἰσέρχομαι 1.b.β, “ἐν παντὶ χρόνῳ ᾧ εἰσῆλθεν καὶ ἐξῆλθεν ἐφ᾿ ἡμᾶς went in and out among us = associated with us Ac 1:21.”

[1:22]  ⁶⁵ tn Here the pronoun “he” refers to Jesus.

[1:23]  ⁶⁶ tc Codex Bezae (D) and other Western witnesses have “he proposed,” referring to Peter, thus emphasizing his role above the other apostles. The Western text displays a conscious pattern of elevating Peter in Acts, and thus the singular verb here is a palpably motivated reading.

[1:23]  ⁶⁷ tn Grk “So they proposed two.” The word “candidates” was supplied in the text for clarity.

[1:24]  ⁶⁸ tn Grk “And praying, they said.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[1:25]  ⁶⁹ tn Grk “to take the place.”

[1:25]  ⁷⁰ tn Or “of this ministry.”

[1:25]  ⁷¹ tn Or “the task of this service and apostleship which Judas ceased to perform.”

[1:25]  ⁷² sn To go to his own place. This may well be a euphemism for Judas’ judged fate. He separated himself from them, and thus separated he would remain.

[1:2]  ⁷³ tn The words “to heaven” are not in the Greek text, but are supplied from v. 11. Several modern translations (NIV, NRSV) supply the words “to heaven” after “taken up” to specify the destination explicitly mentioned later in 1:11.

[1:2]  ⁷⁴ tn Or “commands.” Although some modern translations render ἐντειλάμενος (enteilameno") as “instructions” (NIV, NRSV), the word implies authority or official sanction (G. Schrenk, TDNT 2:545), so that a word like “orders” conveys the idea more effectively. The action of the temporal participle is antecedent (prior) to the action of the verb it modifies (“taken up”).

[1:2]  ⁷⁵ tn Or “through.”

[2:3]  ⁷⁶ tn Or “And divided tongues as of fire.” The precise meaning of διαμερίζομαι (diamerizomai) in Acts 2:3 is difficult to determine. The meaning could be “tongues as of fire dividing up one to each person,” but it is also possible that the individual tongues of fire were divided (“And divided tongues as of fire appeared”). The translation adopted in the text (“tongues spreading out like a fire”) attempts to be somewhat ambiguous.