Psalms 17:11

17:11 They attack me, now they surround me; ¹ 

they intend to throw me to the ground. ² 

Psalms 18:9

18:9 He made the sky sink ³  as he descended;

a thick cloud was under his feet.

Psalms 49:4

49:4 I will learn a song that imparts wisdom;

I will then sing my insightful song to the accompaniment of a harp. ⁴ 

Psalms 71:2

71:2 Vindicate me by rescuing me! ⁵ 

Listen to me! ⁶  Deliver me! ⁷ 

Psalms 73:2

73:2 But as for me, my feet almost slipped;

my feet almost slid out from under me. ⁸ 

Psalms 88:2

88:2 Listen to my prayer! ⁹ 

Pay attention ¹⁰  to my cry for help!

Psalms 102:11

102:11 My days are coming to an end, ¹¹ 

and I am withered like grass.

Psalms 119:36

119:36 Give me a desire for your rules, ¹² 

rather than for wealth gained unjustly. ¹³ 

Psalms 119:51

119:51 Arrogant people do nothing but scoff at me. ¹⁴ 

Yet I do not turn aside from your law.

Psalms 136:12

136:12 with a strong hand and an outstretched arm,

for his loyal love endures,

Psalms 144:5

144:5 O Lord, make the sky sink ¹⁵  and come down! ¹⁶ 

Touch the mountains and make them smolder! ¹⁷ 

[17:11]  ¹ tc Heb “our steps, now they surround me.” The Kethib (consonantal text) has “surround me,” while the Qere (marginal reading) has “surround us,” harmonizing the pronoun to the preceding “our steps.” The first person plural pronoun does not fit the context, where the psalmist speaks as an individual. In the preceding verses the psalmist uses a first person singular verbal or pronominal form twenty times. For this reason it is preferable to emend “our steps” to אִשְּׁרוּנִי (’ishÿruni, “they attack me”) from the verbal root אָשֻׁר (’ashur, “march, stride, track”).

[17:11]  ² tn Heb “their eyes they set to bend down in the ground.”

[18:9]  ³ tn The Hebrew verb נָטָה (natah) can carry the sense “[cause to] bend, bow down.” For example, Gen 49:15 pictures Issachar as a donkey that “bends” its shoulder or back under a burden. Here the Lord causes the sky, pictured as a dome or vault, to sink down as he descends in the storm.

[49:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “I will turn my ear to a wise saying, I will open [i.e., “reveal; explain”] my insightful saying with a harp.” In the first line the psalmist speaks as a pupil who learns a song of wisdom from a sage. This suggests that the resulting insightful song derives from another source, perhaps God himself. Elsewhere the Hebrew word pair חִידָה/מָשָׁל (mashal/khidah) refers to a taunt song (Hab 2:6), a parable (Ezek 17:2), lessons from history (Ps 78:2), and proverbial sayings (Prov 1:6). Here it appears to refer to the insightful song that follows, which reflects on the mortality of humankind and the ultimate inability of riches to prevent the inevitable – death. Another option is that the word pair refers more specifically to the closely related proverbial sayings of vv. 12, 20 (note the use of the verb מָשָׁל, mashal, “to be like” in both verses). In this case the psalmist first hears the sayings and then explains (Heb “opens”) their significance (see vv. 5-11, 13-19).

[71:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “in your vindication rescue me and deliver me.” Ps 31:1 omits “and deliver me.”

[71:2]  ⁸ tn Heb “turn toward me your ear.”

[71:2]  ⁹ tn Ps 31:2 adds “quickly” before “deliver.”

[73:2]  ⁹ tn The Hebrew verb normally means “to pour out,” but here it must have the nuance “to slide.”

[88:2]  ¹¹ tn Heb “may my prayer come before you.” The prefixed verbal form is understood as a jussive, indicating the psalmist’s desire or prayer.

[88:2]  ¹² tn Heb “turn your ear.”

[102:11]  ¹³ tn Heb “my days [are] like an extended [or “lengthening”] shadow,” that is, like a late afternoon shadow made by the descending sun that will soon be swallowed up by complete darkness.

[119:36]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “turn my heart to your rules.”

[119:36]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “and not unjust gain.”

[119:51]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “scoff at me to excess.”

[144:5]  ¹⁹ tn The Hebrew verb נָטָה (natah) can carry the sense “to [cause to] bend; to [cause to] bow down.” For example, Gen 49:15 pictures Issachar as a donkey that “bends” its shoulder or back under a burden. Here the Lord causes the sky, pictured as a dome or vault, to sink down as he descends in the storm. See Ps 18:9.

[144:5]  ²⁰ tn Heb “so you might come down.” The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) conjunctive indicates purpose after the preceding imperative. The same type of construction is utilized in v. 6.

[144:5]  ²¹ tn Heb “so they might smolder.” The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) conjunctive indicates purpose after the preceding imperative.