Psalms 107:20

107:20 He sent them an assuring word ¹  and healed them;

he rescued them from the pits where they were trapped. ² 

Psalms 119:16

119:16 I find delight ³  in your statutes;

I do not forget your instructions. ⁴ 

Psalms 119:49

ז (Zayin)

119:49 Remember your word to your servant,

for you have given me hope.

Psalms 119:67

119:67 Before I was afflicted I used to stray off, ⁵ 

but now I keep your instructions. ⁶ 

Psalms 119:89

ל (Lamed)

119:89 O Lord, your instructions endure;

they stand secure in heaven. ⁷ 

Psalms 119:107

119:107 I am suffering terribly.

O Lord, revive me with your word! ⁸ 

Psalms 147:15

147:15 He ⁹  sends his command through the earth; ¹⁰ 

swiftly his order reaches its destination. ¹¹ 

Psalms 147:19

147:19 He proclaims his word to Jacob,

his statutes and regulations to Israel.

[107:20]  ¹ tn Heb “he sent his word.” This probably refers to an oracle of assurance which announced his intention to intervene (see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 [WBC], 59).

[107:20]  ² tn Heb “he rescued from their traps.” The Hebrew word שְׁחִית (shekhit, “trap”) occurs only here and in Lam 4:20, where it refers to a trap or pit in which one is captured. Because of the rarity of the term and the absence of an object with the verb “rescued,” some prefer to emend the text of Ps 107:20, reading מִשַׁחַת חַיָּתָם (mishakhat khayyatam, “[he rescued] their lives from the pit”). Note also NIV “from the grave,” which interprets the “pit” as Sheol or the grave.

[119:16]  ³ tn The imperfects in this verse emphasize the attitude the psalmist maintains toward God’s law. Another option is to translate with the future tense, “I will find delight…I will not forget.”

[119:16]  ⁴ tn Heb “your word.” Many medieval Hebrew mss as well as the LXX read the plural here.

[119:67]  ⁵ tn Heb “before I suffered, I was straying off.”

[119:67]  ⁶ tn Heb “your word.”

[119:89]  ⁷ tn Heb “Forever, O Lord, your word stands firm in heaven,” or “Forever, O Lord, [is] your word; it stands firm in heaven.” The translation assumes that “your word” refers here to the body of divine instructions contained in the law (note the frequent references to the law in vv. 92-96). See vv. 9, 16-17, 57, 101, 105, 130, 139 and 160-61. The reference in v. 86 to God’s law being faithful favors this interpretation. Another option is that “your word” refers to God’s assuring word of promise, mentioned in vv. 25, 28, 42, 65, 74, 81, 107, 114, 147 and 169. In this case one might translate, “O Lord, your promise is reliable, it stands firm in heaven.”

[119:107]  ⁹ tn Heb “according to your word.”

[147:15]  ¹¹ tn Heb “the one who.”

[147:15]  ¹² tn Heb “the one who sends his word, the earth.” The Hebrew term אֶרֶץ (’erets, “earth”) is an adverbial accusative; one must supply a preposition before it (such as “through” or “to”) in the English translation.

[147:15]  ¹³ tn Heb “swiftly his word runs.”