Psalms 1:5

1:5 For this reason ¹  the wicked cannot withstand ²  judgment, ³ 

nor can sinners join the assembly of the godly. ⁴ 

Psalms 14:3

14:3 Everyone rejects God; ⁵ 

they are all morally corrupt. ⁶ 

None of them does what is right, ⁷ 

not even one!

Psalms 53:3

53:3 Everyone rejects God; ⁸ 

they are all morally corrupt. ⁹ 

None of them does what is right, ¹⁰ 

not even one!

Psalms 75:10

75:10 God says, ¹¹ 

“I will bring down all the power of the wicked;

the godly will be victorious.” ¹² 

Psalms 86:8

86:8 None can compare to you among the gods, O Lord!

Your exploits are incomparable! ¹³ 

Psalms 119:1

Psalm 119 ¹⁴ 

א (Alef)

119:1 How blessed are those whose actions are blameless, ¹⁵ 

who obey ¹⁶  the law of the Lord.

Psalms 132:2

132:2 and how he made a vow to the Lord,

and swore an oath to the powerful ruler of Jacob. ¹⁷ 

Psalms 132:5

132:5 until I find a place for the Lord,

a fine dwelling place ¹⁸  for the powerful ruler of Jacob.” ¹⁹ 

[1:5]  ¹ tn Or “Therefore.”

[1:5]  ² tn Heb “arise in,” but the verb is used metonymically here in the sense of “stand”; “endure,” as in 1 Sam 13:14 and Job 8:15. The negated Hebrew imperfect verbal form is here taken as indicating incapability or lack of potential, though one could understand the verb form as indicating what is typical (“do not withstand”) or what will happen (“will not withstand”).

[1:5]  ³ tn Heb “the judgment.” The article indicates a judgment that is definite in the mind of the speaker. In the immediate context this probably does not refer to the “final judgment” described in later biblical revelation, but to a temporal/historical judgment which the author anticipates. Periodically during the OT period, God would come in judgment, removing the wicked from the scene, while preserving a godly remnant (see Gen 6-9; Ps 37; Hab 3).

[1:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “and sinners in the assembly (or “circle”) of [the] godly.” The negative particle and verb from the preceding line are assumed by ellipsis here (“will not arise/stand”).

[14:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “everyone turns aside.”

[14:3]  ⁶ tn Heb “together they are corrupt.”

[14:3]  ⁷ tn Heb “there is none that does good.”

[53:3]  ⁹ tn Heb “all of it turns away.” Ps 14:1 has הָכֹּל (hakkol) instead of כֻּלּוֹ, and סָר (sar, “turn aside”) instead of סָג (sag, “turn away”).

[53:3]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “together they are corrupt.”

[53:3]  ¹¹ tn Heb “there is none that does good.”

[75:10]  ¹³ tn The words “God says” are not in the Hebrew text. They are supplied in the translation to clarify that God speaks in v. 10.

[75:10]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and all the horns of the wicked I will cut off, the horns of the godly will be lifted up.” The imagery of the wild ox’s horn is once more utilized (see vv. 4-5).

[86:8]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “and there are none like your acts.”

[119:1]  ²¹ 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]  ²² tn Heb “[Oh] the happiness of those who are blameless of way.”

[119:1]  ²³ tn Heb “walk in.”

[132:2]  ²⁵ tn Heb “the powerful [one] of Jacob.”

[132:5]  ²⁹ tn The plural form of the noun may indicate degree or quality; David envisions a special dwelling place (see Pss 43:3; 46:4; 84:1).

[132:5]  ³⁰ tn Heb “the powerful [one] of Jacob.”