Psalms 116:5-19
Context116:5 The Lord is merciful and fair;
our God is compassionate.
116:6 The Lord protects 1 the untrained; 2
I was in serious trouble 3 and he delivered me.
116:7 Rest once more, my soul, 4
for the Lord has vindicated you. 5
116:8 Yes, 6 Lord, 7 you rescued my life from death,
and kept my feet from stumbling.
in the land 9 of the living.
116:10 I had faith when I said,
“I am severely oppressed.”
“All men are liars.”
116:12 How can I repay the Lord
for all his acts of kindness to me?
116:13 I will celebrate my deliverance, 11
and call on the name of the Lord.
116:14 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
before all his people.
116:15 The Lord values
the lives of his faithful followers. 12
116:16 Yes, Lord! I am indeed your servant;
I am your lowest slave. 13
You saved me from death. 14
116:17 I will present a thank offering to you,
and call on the name of the Lord.
116:18 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
before all his people,
116:19 in the courts of the Lord’s temple,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord!
[116:6] 1 tn Heb “guards.” The active participle indicates this is a characteristic of the
[116:6] 2 tn Or “the [morally] naive,” that is, the one who is young and still in the process of learning right from wrong and distinguishing wisdom from folly. See Ps 19:7.
[116:7] 4 tn Heb “return, my soul, to your place of rest.”
[116:7] 5 tn The Hebrew idiom גָּמַל עַל (gamal ’al) means “to repay,” here in a positive sense (cf. Ps 13:5).
[116:8] 7 tn “
[116:9] 8 tn Heb “walk before” (see Ps 56:13). On the meaning of the Hebrew idiom, see the notes at 2 Kgs 20:3/Isa 38:3.
[116:9] 9 tn Heb “lands, regions.”
[116:11] 10 tn Heb “I said in my haste.”
[116:13] 11 tn Heb “a cup of deliverance I will lift up.” Perhaps this alludes to a drink offering the psalmist will present as he thanks the
[116:15] 12 tn Heb “precious in the eyes of the
[116:16] 13 tn Heb “I am your servant, the son of your female servant.” The phrase “son of a female servant” (see also Ps 86:16) is used of a son born to a secondary wife or concubine (Exod 23:12). In some cases the child’s father is the master of the house (see Gen 21:10, 13; Judg 9:18). The use of the expression here certainly does not imply that the
[116:16] 14 tn Heb “you have loosed my bonds.” In this context the imagery refers to deliverance from death (see v. 3).