Psalms 1:6

1:6 Certainly ¹  the Lord guards the way of the godly, ² 

but the way of the wicked ends in destruction. ³ 

Psalms 9:3

9:3 When my enemies turn back,

they trip and are defeated ⁴  before you.

Psalms 10:16

10:16 The Lord rules forever! ⁵ 

The nations are driven out of his land. ⁶ 

Psalms 21:10

21:10 You destroy their offspring ⁷  from the earth,

their descendants ⁸  from among the human race. ⁹ 

Psalms 31:12

31:12 I am forgotten, like a dead man no one thinks about; ¹⁰ 

I am regarded as worthless, like a broken jar. ¹¹ 

Psalms 73:27

73:27 Yes, ¹²  look! Those far from you ¹³  die;

you destroy everyone who is unfaithful to you. ¹⁴ 

Psalms 80:16

80:16 It is burned ¹⁵  and cut down.

They die because you are displeased with them. ¹⁶ 

Psalms 83:17

83:17 May they be humiliated and continually terrified! ¹⁷ 

May they die in shame! ¹⁸ 

Psalms 146:4

146:4 Their life’s breath departs, they return to the ground;

on that day their plans die. ¹⁹ 

[1:6]  ¹ tn The translation understands כי as asseverative. Another option is to translate “for,” understanding v. 6 as a theological explanation for vv. 3-5, which contrasts the respective destinies of the godly and the wicked.

[1:6]  ² tn Heb “the Lord knows the way of the righteous.” To “know a way” means, in its most basic sense, “to recognize/acknowledge a pathway, route, or prescribed way of life” (see Josh 3:4; Job 21:14; Ps 67:2; Isa 42:16; Jer 5:4-5). Here it could refer to the Lord recognizing the behavior of the godly and, by metonymy, rewarding their godliness with security and prosperity (resulting in the translation, “the Lord rewards the behavior of the godly”). The present translation takes the verb in the sense of “mark out” (cf. Job 23:10), which metonymically could mean “watch over, protect, guard.” In this case the “way of the godly” is not their behavior, but their course of life or destiny; a translation reflecting this would be “the Lord protects the lives of the godly” or “the Lord watches over the destiny of the godly” (cf. NEB, NIV, NRSV). The Hebrew active participle יוֹדֵעַ (yodea’, “knows”) has here a characteristic durative force.

[1:6]  ³ tn Heb “but the way of the wicked perishes.” The “way of the wicked” may refer to their course of life (Ps 146:9; Prov 4:19; Jer 12:1) or their sinful behavior (Prov 12:26; 15:9). The Hebrew imperfect verbal form probably describes here what typically happens, though one could take the form as indicating what will happen (“will perish”).

[9:3]  ⁴ tn Or “perish”; or “die.” The imperfect verbal forms in this line either emphasize what typically happens or describe vividly the aftermath of a recent battle in which the Lord defeated the psalmist’s enemies.

[10:16]  ⁷ tn Heb “the Lord is king forever and ever.”

[10:16]  ⁸ tn Or “the nations perish from his land.” The perfect verb form may express what is typical or it may express rhetorically the psalmist’s certitude that God’s deliverance is “as good as done.”

[21:10]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “fruit.” The next line makes it clear that offspring is in view.

[21:10]  ¹¹ tn Heb “seed.”

[21:10]  ¹² tn Heb “sons of man.”

[31:12]  ¹³ tn Heb “I am forgotten, like a dead man, from [the] heart.” The “heart” is here viewed as the center of one’s thoughts.

[31:12]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “I am like a broken jar.” One throws away a broken jar without a second thought because it is considered worthless and useless.

[73:27]  ¹⁶ tn Or “for.”

[73:27]  ¹⁷ sn The following line defines the phrase far from you in a spiritual sense. Those “far” from God are those who are unfaithful and disloyal to him.

[73:27]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “everyone who commits adultery from you.”

[80:16]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “burned with fire.”

[80:16]  ²⁰ tn Heb “because of the rebuke of your face they perish.”

[83:17]  ²² tn Heb “and may they be terrified to perpetuity.” The Hebrew expression עֲדֵי־עַד (’adey-’ad, “to perpetuity”) can mean “forevermore” (see Pss 92:7; 132:12, 14), but here it may be used hyperbolically, for the psalmist asks that the experience of judgment might lead the nations to recognize (v. 18) and even to seek (v. 16) God.

[83:17]  ²³ tn Heb “may they be ashamed and perish.” The four prefixed verbal forms in this verse are understood as jussives. The psalmist concludes his prayer with an imprecation, calling severe judgment down on his enemies. The strong language of the imprecation seems to run contrary to the positive outcome of divine judgment envisioned in v. 16b. Perhaps the language of v. 17 is overstated for effect. Another option is that v. 16b expresses an ideal, while the strong imprecation of vv. 17-18 anticipates reality. It would be nice if the defeated nations actually pursued a relationship with God, but if judgment does not bring them to that point, the psalmist asks that they be annihilated so that they might at least be forced to acknowledge God’s power.

[146:4]  ²⁵ tn Heb “his spirit goes out, it returns to his ground; in that day his plans die.” The singular refers to the representative man mentioned in v. 3b.