Psalms 18:24

18:24 The Lord rewarded me for my godly deeds; ¹ 

he took notice of my blameless behavior. ² 

Psalms 22:16

22:16 Yes, ³  wild dogs surround me –

a gang of evil men crowd around me;

like a lion they pin my hands and feet. ⁴ 

Psalms 28:2

28:2 Hear my plea for mercy when I cry out to you for help,

when I lift my hands ⁵  toward your holy temple! ⁶ 

Psalms 144:1

Psalm 144 ⁷ 

By David.

144:1 The Lord, my protector, ⁸  deserves praise ⁹  –

the one who trains my hands for battle, ¹⁰ 

and my fingers for war,

[18:24]  ¹ tn Heb “according to my righteousness.”

[18:24]  ² tn Heb “according to the purity of my hands before his eyes.” 2 Sam 22:25 reads “according to my purity before his eyes.” The verbal repetition (compare vv. 20 and 24) sets off vv. 20-24 as a distinct sub-unit within the psalm.

[22:16]  ³ tn Or “for.”

[22:16]  ⁴ tn Heb “like a lion, my hands and my feet.” This reading is often emended because it is grammatically awkward, but perhaps its awkwardness is by rhetorical design. Its broken syntax may be intended to convey the panic and terror felt by the psalmist. The psalmist may envision a lion pinning the hands and feet of its victim to the ground with its paws (a scene depicted in ancient Near Eastern art), or a lion biting the hands and feet. The line has been traditionally translated, “they pierce my hands and feet,” and then taken as foreshadowing the crucifixion of Christ. Though Jesus does appropriate the language of this psalm while on the cross (compare v. 1 with Matt 27:46 and Mark 15:34), the NT does not cite this verse in describing the death of Jesus. (It does refer to vv. 7-8 and 18, however. See Matt 27:35, 39, 43; Mark 15:24, 29; Luke 23:34; John 19:23-24.) If one were to insist on an emendation of כָּאֲרִי (ka’ariy, “like a lion”) to a verb, the most likely verbal root would be כָּרָה (karah, “dig”; see the LXX). In this context this verb could refer to the gnawing and tearing of wild dogs (cf. NCV, TEV, CEV). The ancient Greek version produced by Symmachus reads “bind” here, perhaps understanding a verbal root כרך, which is attested in later Hebrew and Aramaic and means “to encircle, entwine, embrace” (see HALOT 497-98 s.v. כרך and Jastrow 668 s.v. כָּרַךְ). Neither one of these proposed verbs can yield a meaning “bore, pierce.”

[28:2]  ⁵ sn I lift my hands. Lifting one’s hands toward God was a gesture of prayer.

[28:2]  ⁶ tn The Hebrew term דְּבִיר (dÿvir, “temple”) actually refers to the most holy place within the sanctuary.

[144:1]  ⁷ sn Psalm 144. The psalmist expresses his confidence in God, asks for a mighty display of divine intervention in an upcoming battle, and anticipates God’s rich blessings on the nation in the aftermath of military victory.

[144:1]  ⁸ tn Heb “my rocky summit.” The Lord is compared to a rocky summit where one can find protection from enemies. See Ps 18:2.

[144:1]  ⁹ tn Heb “blessed [be] the Lord, my rocky summit.”

[144:1]  ¹⁰ sn The one who trains my hands for battle. The psalmist attributes his skill with weapons to divine enablement (see Ps 18:34). Egyptian reliefs picture gods teaching the king how to shoot a bow. See O. Keel, The Symbolism of the Biblical World, 265.