Psalms 17:6

17:6 I call to you for you will answer me, O God.

Listen to me! ¹ 

Hear what I say! ² 

Psalms 18:44

18:44 When they hear of my exploits, they submit to me. ³ 

Foreigners are powerless ⁴  before me;

Psalms 40:6

40:6 Receiving sacrifices and offerings are not your primary concern. ⁵ 

You make that quite clear to me! ⁶ 

You do not ask for burnt sacrifices and sin offerings.

Psalms 45:10

45:10 Listen, O princess! ⁷ 

Observe and pay attention! ⁸ 

Forget your homeland ⁹  and your family! ¹⁰ 

Psalms 58:4

58:4 Their venom is like that of a snake, ¹¹ 

like a deaf serpent ¹²  that does not hear, ¹³ 

Psalms 78:1

Psalm 78 ¹⁴ 

A well-written song ¹⁵  by Asaph.

78:1 Pay attention, my people, to my instruction!

Listen to the words I speak! ¹⁶ 

Psalms 86:1

Psalm 86 ¹⁷ 

A prayer of David.

86:1 Listen ¹⁸  O Lord! Answer me!

For I am oppressed and needy.

Psalms 92:11

92:11 I gloat in triumph over those who tried to ambush me; ¹⁹ 

I hear the defeated cries of the evil foes who attacked me. ²⁰ 

Psalms 94:9

94:9 Does the one who makes the human ear not hear?

Does the one who forms the human eye not see? ²¹ 

Psalms 135:17

135:17 and ears, but cannot hear.

Indeed, they cannot breathe. ²² 

[17:6]  ¹ tn Heb “Turn your ear toward me.”

[17:6]  ² tn Heb “my word.”

[18:44]  ³ tn Heb “at a report of an ear they submit to me.” The report of the psalmist’s exploits is so impressive that those who hear it submit to his rulership without putting up a fight.

[18:44]  ⁴ tn For the meaning “be weak, powerless” for כָּחַשׁ (kakhash), see Ps 109:24. The next line (see v. 45a), in which “foreigners” are also mentioned, favors this interpretation. Another option is to translate “cower in fear” (see Deut 33:29; Pss 66:3; 81:15; cf. NIV “cringe”; NRSV “came cringing”).

[40:6]  ⁵ tn Heb “sacrifice and offering you do not desire.” The statement is exaggerated for the sake of emphasis (see Ps 51:16 as well). God is pleased with sacrifices, but his first priority is obedience and loyalty (see 1 Sam 15:22). Sacrifices and offerings apart from genuine allegiance are meaningless (see Isa 1:11-20).

[40:6]  ⁶ tn Heb “ears you hollowed out for me.” The meaning of this odd expression is debated (this is the only collocation of “hollowed out” and “ears” in the OT). It may have been an idiomatic expression referring to making a point clear to a listener. The LXX has “but a body you have prepared for me,” a reading which is followed in Heb 10:5.

[45:10]  ⁷ tn Heb “daughter.” The Hebrew noun בת (“daughter”) can sometimes refer to a young woman in a general sense (see H. Haag, TDOT 2:334).

[45:10]  ⁸ tn Heb “see and turn your ear.” The verb רָאָה (ra’ah, “see”) is used here of mental observation.

[45:10]  ⁹ tn Heb “your people.” This reference to the “people” of the princess suggests she was a foreigner. Perhaps the marriage was arranged as part of a political alliance between Israel (or Judah) and a neighboring state. The translation “your homeland” reflects such a situation.

[45:10]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and the house of your father.”

[58:4]  ⁹ tn Heb “[there is] venom to them according to the likeness of venom of a snake.”

[58:4]  ¹⁰ tn Or perhaps “cobra” (cf. NASB, NIV). Other suggested species of snakes are “asp” (NEB) and “adder” (NRSV).

[58:4]  ¹¹ tn Heb “[that] stops up its ear.” The apparent Hiphil jussive verbal form should be understood as a Qal imperfect with “i” theme vowel (see GKC 168 §63.n).

[78:1]  ¹¹ sn Psalm 78. The author of this lengthy didactic psalm rehearses Israel’s history. He praises God for his power, goodness and patience, but also reminds his audience that sin angers God and prompts his judgment. In the conclusion to the psalm the author elevates Jerusalem as God’s chosen city and David as his chosen king.

[78:1]  ¹² tn The meaning of the Hebrew term מַשְׂכִּיל (maskil) is uncertain. See the note on the phrase “well-written song” in the superscription of Ps 74.

[78:1]  ¹³ tn Heb “Turn your ear to the words of my mouth.”

[86:1]  ¹³ sn Psalm 86. The psalmist appeals to God’s mercy as he asks for deliverance from his enemies.

[86:1]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “turn your ear.”

[92:11]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “my eye gazes upon those who watch me [with evil intent].” See also Pss 5:8; 27:11; 56:2. The form שׁוּרָי (shuray) should be emended to שׁוֹרְרָי (shorÿray).

[92:11]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “those who rise up against me, evil [foes], my ears hear.”

[94:9]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “The one who plants an ear, does he not hear? The one who forms an eye, does he not see?”

[135:17]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “indeed, there is not breath in their mouth.” For the collocation אַף אֵין (’af ’en, “indeed, there is not”) see Isa 41:26. Another option is to take אַף as “nose” (see Ps 115:6), in which case one might translate, “a nose, [but] they have no breath in their mouths.”