Psalms 1:1-3

Book 1
(Psalms 1-41)

Psalm 1 ¹ 

1:1 How blessed ²  is the one ³  who does not follow ⁴  the advice ⁵  of the wicked, ⁶ 

or stand in the pathway ⁷  with sinners,

or sit in the assembly ⁸  of scoffers! ⁹ 

1:2 Instead ¹⁰  he finds pleasure in obeying the Lord’s commands; ¹¹ 

he meditates on ¹²  his commands ¹³  day and night.

1:3 He is like ¹⁴  a tree planted by flowing streams; ¹⁵ 

it ¹⁶  yields ¹⁷  its fruit at the proper time, ¹⁸ 

and its leaves never fall off. ¹⁹ 

He succeeds in everything he attempts. ²⁰ 

Psalms 32:1-2

Psalm 32 ²¹ 

By David; a well-written song. ²² 

32:1 How blessed ²³  is the one whose rebellious acts are forgiven, ²⁴ 

whose sin is pardoned! ²⁵ 

32:2 How blessed is the one ²⁶  whose wrongdoing the Lord does not punish, ²⁷ 

in whose spirit there is no deceit. ²⁸ 

Psalms 112:1

Psalm 112 ²⁹ 

112:1 Praise the Lord!

How blessed is the one ³⁰  who obeys ³¹  the Lord,

who takes great delight in keeping his commands. ³² 

Psalms 128:1

Psalm 128 ³³ 

A song of ascents. ³⁴ 

128:1 How blessed is every one of the Lord’s loyal followers, ³⁵ 

each one who keeps his commands! ³⁶ 

Matthew 5:3-12

5:3 “Blessed ³⁷  are the poor in spirit, ³⁸  for the kingdom of heaven belongs ³⁹  to them.

5:4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. ⁴⁰ 

5:5 “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger ⁴¹  and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.

5:7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

5:8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the children ⁴²  of God.

5:10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to them.

5:11 “Blessed are you when people ⁴³  insult you and persecute you and say all kinds of evil things about you falsely ⁴⁴  on account of me. 5:12 Rejoice and be glad because your reward is great in heaven, for they persecuted the prophets before you in the same way.

Luke 11:28

11:28 But he replied, ⁴⁵  “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey ⁴⁶  it!”

John 13:17

13:17 If you understand ⁴⁷  these things, you will be blessed if you do them.

James 1:25

1:25 But the one who peers into the perfect law of liberty and fixes his attention there, ⁴⁸  and does not become a forgetful listener but one who lives it out – he ⁴⁹  will be blessed in what he does. ⁵⁰ 

Revelation 22:14

22:14 Blessed are those who wash their robes so they can have access ⁵¹  to the tree of life and can enter into the city by the gates.

[1:1]  ¹ sn Psalm 1. In this wisdom psalm the author advises his audience to reject the lifestyle of the wicked and to be loyal to God. The psalmist contrasts the destiny of the wicked with that of the righteous, emphasizing that the wicked are eventually destroyed while the godly prosper under the Lord’s protective care.

[1:1]  ² tn The Hebrew noun is an abstract plural. The word often refers metonymically to the happiness that God-given security and prosperity produce (see v. 3; Pss 2:12; 34:9; 41:1; 65:4; 84:12; 89:15; 106:3; 112:1; 127:5; 128:1; 144:15).

[1:1]  ³ tn Heb “[Oh] the happiness [of] the man.” Hebrew wisdom literature often assumes and reflects the male-oriented perspective of ancient Israelite society. The principle of the psalm is certainly applicable to all people, regardless of their gender or age. To facilitate modern application, we translate the gender and age specific “man” with the more neutral “one.” (Generic “he” is employed in vv. 2-3). Since the godly man described in the psalm is representative of followers of God (note the plural form צַדִּיקִים [tsadiqim, “righteous, godly”] in vv. 5-6), one could translate the collective singular with the plural “those” both here and in vv. 2-3, where singular pronouns and verbal forms are utilized in the Hebrew text (cf. NRSV). However, here the singular form may emphasize that godly individuals are usually outnumbered by the wicked. Retaining the singular allows the translation to retain this emphasis.

[1:1]  ⁴ tn Heb “walk in.” The three perfect verbal forms in v. 1 refer in this context to characteristic behavior. The sequence “walk–stand–sit” envisions a progression from relatively casual association with the wicked to complete identification with them.

[1:1]  ⁵ tn The Hebrew noun translated “advice” most often refers to the “counsel” or “advice” one receives from others. To “walk in the advice of the wicked” means to allow their evil advice to impact and determine one’s behavior.

[1:1]  ⁶ tn In the psalms the Hebrew term רְשָׁעִים (rÿsha’im, “wicked”) describes people who are proud, practical atheists (Ps 10:2, 4, 11) who hate God’s commands, commit sinful deeds, speak lies and slander (Ps 50:16-20), and cheat others (Ps 37:21).

[1:1]  ⁷ tn “Pathway” here refers to the lifestyle of sinners. To “stand in the pathway of/with sinners” means to closely associate with them in their sinful behavior.

[1:1]  ⁸ tn Here the Hebrew term מוֹשַׁב (moshav), although often translated “seat” (cf. NEB, NIV), appears to refer to the whole assembly of evildoers. The word also carries the semantic nuance “assembly” in Ps 107:32, where it is in synonymous parallelism with קָהָל (qahal, “assembly”).

[1:1]  ⁹ tn The Hebrew word refers to arrogant individuals (Prov 21:24) who love conflict (Prov 22:10) and vociferously reject wisdom and correction (Prov 1:22; 9:7-8; 13:1; 15:12). To “sit in the assembly” of such people means to completely identify with them in their proud, sinful plans and behavior.

[1:2]  ¹⁰ tn Here the Hebrew expression כִּי־אִם (ki-’im, “instead”) introduces a contrast between the sinful behavior depicted in v. 1 and the godly lifestyle described in v. 2.

[1:2]  ¹¹ tn Heb “his delight [is] in the law of the Lord.” In light of the following line, which focuses on studying the Lord’s law, one might translate, “he finds pleasure in studying the Lord’s commands.” However, even if one translates the line this way, it is important to recognize that mere study and intellectual awareness are not ultimately what bring divine favor. Study of the law is metonymic here for the correct attitudes and behavior that should result from an awareness of and commitment to God’s moral will; thus “obeying” has been used in the translation rather than “studying.”

[1:2]  ¹² tn The Hebrew imperfect verbal form draws attention to the characteristic behavior described here and lends support to the hyperbolic adverbial phrase “day and night.” The verb הָגָה (hagag) means “to recite quietly; to meditate” and refers metonymically to intense study and reflection.

[1:2]  ¹³ tn Or “his law.”

[1:3]  ¹⁴ tn The Hebrew perfect verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here carries the same characteristic force as the imperfect in the preceding verse. According to the psalmist, the one who studies and obeys God’s commands typically prospers.

[1:3]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “channels of water.”

[1:3]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “which.”

[1:3]  ¹⁷ tn The Hebrew imperfect verbal forms in v. 3 draw attention to the typical nature of the actions/states they describe.

[1:3]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “in its season.”

[1:3]  ¹⁹ tn Or “fade”; “wither.”

[1:3]  ²⁰ tn Heb “and all which he does prospers”; or “and all which he does he causes to prosper.” (The simile of the tree does not extend to this line.) It is not certain if the Hiphil verbal form (יַצְלִיחַ, yatsliakh) is intransitive-exhibitive (“prospers”) or causative (“causes to prosper”) here. If the verb is intransitive, then כֹּל (kol, “all, everything”) is the subject. If the verb is causative, then the godly individual or the Lord himself is the subject and כֹּל is the object. The wording is reminiscent of Josh 1:8, where the Lord tells Joshua: “This law scroll must not leave your lips! You must memorize it day and night so you can carefully obey all that is written in it. Then you will prosper (literally, “cause your way to prosper”) and be successful.”

[32:1]  ²¹ sn Psalm 32. The psalmist recalls the agony he experienced prior to confessing his sins and affirms that true happiness comes when one’s sins are forgiven. He then urges others not to be stubborn, but to turn to God while forgiveness is available, for God extends his mercy to the repentant, while the wicked experience nothing but sorrow.

[32:1]  ²² tn The meaning of the Hebrew term מַשְׂכִּיל (maskil) is uncertain. The word is derived from a verb meaning “to be prudent; to be wise.” Various options are: “a contemplative song,” “a song imparting moral wisdom,” or “a skillful [i.e., well-written] song.” The term occurs in the superscriptions of Pss 32, 42, 44, 45, 52-55, 74, 78, 88, 89, and 142, as well as in Ps 47:7.

[32:1]  ²³ tn The Hebrew noun is an abstract plural. The word often refers metonymically to the happiness that God-given security and prosperity produce (see Pss 1:1, 3; 2:12; 34:9; 41:1; 65:4; 84:12; 89:15; 106:3; 112:1; 127:5; 128:1; 144:15). Here it refers to the relief that one experiences when one’s sins are forgiven.

[32:1]  ²⁴ tn Heb “lifted up.”

[32:1]  ²⁵ tn Heb “covered over.”

[32:2]  ²⁶ tn Heb “man.” The word choice reflects the perspective of the psalmist, who is male. The principle of the psalm is certainly applicable to all people, regardless of their gender or age. To facilitate modern application, the gender and age specific “man” has been translated with the more neutral “one.”

[32:2]  ²⁷ tn Heb “blessed [is] the man to whom the Lord does not impute wrongdoing.”

[32:2]  ²⁸ sn In whose spirit there is no deceit. The point is not that the individual is sinless and pure. In this context, which focuses on confession and forgiveness of sin, the psalmist refers to one who refuses to deny or hide his sin, but instead honestly confesses it to God.

[112:1]  ²⁹ sn Psalm 112. This wisdom psalm lists some of the benefits of living a godly life. The psalm is an acrostic. After the introductory call to praise, every poetic line (twenty-two in all) begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

[112:1]  ³⁰ tn Heb “[Oh] the happiness [of] the man.” Hebrew wisdom literature often assumes and reflects the male-oriented perspective of ancient Israelite society. The individual is representative of a larger group, called the “godly” in vv. 3-4. The principle of the psalm is certainly applicable to all people, regardless of their gender. To facilitate modern application, we translate the gender specific “man” with the more neutral “one.” The generic masculine pronoun is used in the following verses.

[112:1]  ³¹ tn Heb “fears.”

[112:1]  ³² tn Heb “in his commands he delights very much.” The words “in keeping” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Taking delight in the law is metonymic here for obeying God’s moral will. See Ps 1:2.

[128:1]  ³³ sn Psalm 128. The psalmist observes that the godly individual has genuine happiness because the Lord rewards such a person with prosperity and numerous children.

[128:1]  ³⁴ sn The precise significance of this title, which appears in Pss 120-134, is unclear. Perhaps worshipers recited these psalms when they ascended the road to Jerusalem to celebrate annual religious festivals. For a discussion of their background see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 219-21.

[128:1]  ³⁵ tn Heb “every fearer of the Lord.”

[128:1]  ³⁶ tn Heb “the one who walks in his ways.”

[5:3]  ³⁷ sn The term Blessed introduces the first of several beatitudes promising blessing to those whom God cares for. They serve as an invitation to come into the grace God offers.

[5:3]  ³⁸ sn The poor in spirit is a reference to the “pious poor” for whom God especially cares. See Ps 14:6; 22:24; 25:16; 34:6; 40:17; 69:29.

[5:3]  ³⁹ sn The present tense (belongs) here is significant. Jesus makes the kingdom and its blessings currently available. This phrase is unlike the others in the list with the possessive pronoun being emphasized.

[5:4]  ⁴⁰ sn The promise they will be comforted is the first of several “reversals” noted in these promises. The beatitudes and the reversals that accompany them serve in the sermon as an invitation to enter into God’s care, because one can know God cares for those who turn to him.

[5:6]  ⁴¹ sn Those who hunger are people like the poor Jesus has already mentioned. The term has OT roots both in conjunction with the poor (Isa 32:6-7; 58:6-7, 9-10; Ezek 18:7, 16) or by itself (Ps 37:16-19; 107:9).

[5:9]  ⁴² tn Grk “sons,” though traditionally English versions have taken this as a generic reference to both males and females, hence “children” (cf. KJV, NAB, NRSV, NLT).

[5:11]  ⁴³ tn Grk “when they insult you.” The third person pronoun (here implied in the verb ὀνειδίσωσιν [ojneidiswsin]) has no specific referent, but refers to people in general.

[5:11]  ⁴⁴ tc Although ψευδόμενοι (yeudomenoi, “bearing witness falsely”) could be a motivated reading, clarifying that the disciples are unjustly persecuted, its lack in only D it sy^s Tert does not help its case. Since the Western text is known for numerous free alterations, without corroborative evidence the shorter reading must be judged as secondary.

[11:28]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “said.”

[11:28]  ⁴⁶ sn This is another reference to hearing and doing the word of God, which here describes Jesus’ teaching; see Luke 8:21.

[13:17]  ⁴⁷ tn Grk “If you know.”

[1:25]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “continues.”

[1:25]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “this one.”

[1:25]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “in his doing.”

[22:14]  ⁵¹ tn Grk “so that there will be to them authority over the tree of life.”