Psalms 109:18-31

109:18 He made cursing a way of life, ¹ 

so curses poured into his stomach like water

and seeped into his bones like oil. ² 

109:19 May a curse attach itself to him, like a garment one puts on, ³ 

or a belt ⁴  one wears continually!

109:20 May the Lord repay my accusers in this way, ⁵ 

those who say evil things about ⁶  me! ⁷ 

109:21 O sovereign Lord,

intervene on my behalf for the sake of your reputation! ⁸ 

Because your loyal love is good, deliver me!

109:22 For I am oppressed and needy,

and my heart beats violently within me. ⁹ 

109:23 I am fading away like a shadow at the end of the day; ¹⁰ 

I am shaken off like a locust.

109:24 I am so starved my knees shake; ¹¹ 

I have turned into skin and bones. ¹² 

109:25 I am disdained by them. ¹³ 

When they see me, they shake their heads. ¹⁴ 

109:26 Help me, O Lord my God!

Because you are faithful to me, deliver me! ¹⁵ 

109:27 Then they will realize ¹⁶  this is your work, ¹⁷ 

and that you, Lord, have accomplished it.

109:28 They curse, but you will bless. ¹⁸ 

When they attack, they will be humiliated, ¹⁹ 

but your servant will rejoice.

109:29 My accusers will be covered ²⁰  with shame,

and draped in humiliation as if it were a robe.

109:30 I will thank the Lord profusely, ²¹ 

in the middle of a crowd ²²  I will praise him,

109:31 because he stands at the right hand of the needy,

to deliver him from those who threaten ²³  his life.

[109:18]  ¹ tn Heb “he put on a curse as [if it were] his garment.”

[109:18]  ² tn Heb “and it came like water into his inner being, and like oil into his bones.” This may refer to this individual’s appetite for cursing. For him cursing was as refreshing as drinking water or massaging oneself with oil. Another option is that the destructive effects of a curse are in view. In this case a destructive curse invades his very being, like water or oil. Some who interpret the verse this way prefer to repoint the vav (ו) on “it came” to a conjunctive vav and interpret the prefixed verb as a jussive, “may it come!”

[109:19]  ³ tn Heb “may it be for him like a garment one puts on.”

[109:19]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew noun מֵזַח (mezakh, “belt; waistband”) occurs only here in the OT. The form apparently occurs in Isa 23:10 as well, but an emendation is necessary there.

[109:20]  ⁵ tn Heb “[may] this [be] the repayment to my accusers from the Lord.”

[109:20]  ⁶ tn Or “against.”

[109:20]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “being; soul”) with a pronominal suffix is often equivalent to a pronoun, especially in poetry (see BDB 660 s.v. נֶפֶשׁ 4.a).

[109:21]  ⁸ tn Heb “but you, Lord, Master, do with me for the sake of your name.” Here “name” stands metonymically for God’s reputation.

[109:22]  ⁹ tc The verb in the Hebrew text (חָלַל, khalal) appears to be a Qal form from the root חלל meaning “pierced; wounded.” However, the Qal of this root is otherwise unattested. The translation assumes an emendation to יָחִיל (yakhil), a Qal imperfect from חוּל (khul, “tremble”) or to חֹלַל (kholal), a polal perfect from חוּל (khul). See Ps 55:4, which reads לִבִּי יָחִיל בְּקִרְבִּי (libbiy yakhil bÿqirbbiy, “my heart trembles [i.e., “beats violently”] within me”).

[109:23]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “like a shadow when it is extended I go.” He is like a late afternoon shadow made by the descending sun that will soon be swallowed up by complete darkness. See Ps 102:11.

[109:24]  ¹¹ tn Heb “my knees stagger from fasting.”

[109:24]  ¹² tn Heb “and my flesh is lean away from fatness [i.e., “lean so as not to be fat”].”

[109:25]  ¹³ tn Heb “as for me, I am a reproach to them.”

[109:25]  ¹⁴ sn They shake their heads. Apparently shaking the head was a taunting gesture. See also Job 16:4; Ps 22:7; Lam 2:15.

[109:26]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “deliver me according to your faithfulness.”

[109:27]  ¹⁶ tn After the preceding imperative, the prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) conjunctive indicates purpose or result.

[109:27]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “that your hand [is] this.”

[109:28]  ¹⁸ tn Another option is to translate the imperfect as a prayer/request (“may you bless”).

[109:28]  ¹⁹ tn The verbal sequence is perfect + prefixed form with vav (ו) consecutive. Since the psalmist seems to be anticipating the demise of his enemies, he may be using these forms rhetorically to describe the enemies’ defeat as if it were already accomplished. Some emend the text to קָמוּ יֵבֹשׁוּ (qamu yevoshu, “may those who attack me be humiliated”). See L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 75.

[109:29]  ²⁰ tn Heb “clothed.” Another option is to translate the prefixed verbal forms in this line and the next as jussives (“may my accusers be covered with shame”).

[109:30]  ²¹ tn Heb “I will thank the Lord very much with my mouth.”

[109:30]  ²² tn Heb “many.”

[109:31]  ²³ tn Heb “judge.”