Psalms 20:1

Psalm 20 ¹ 

For the music director; a psalm of David.

20:1 May the Lord answer ²  you ³  when you are in trouble; ⁴ 

may the God of Jacob ⁵  make you secure!

Psalms 30:1

Psalm 30 ⁶ 

A psalm – a song used at the dedication of the temple; ⁷  by David.

30:1 I will praise you, O Lord, for you lifted me up, ⁸ 

and did not allow my enemies to gloat ⁹  over me.

Psalms 129:8

129:8 Those who pass by will not say, ¹⁰ 

“May you experience the Lord’s blessing!

We pronounce a blessing on you in the name of the Lord.”

[20:1]  ¹ sn Psalm 20. The people pray for the king’s success in battle. When the king declares his assurance that the Lord will answer the people’s prayer, they affirm their confidence in God’s enablement.

[20:1]  ² tn The prefixed verbal forms here and in vv. 1b-5 are interpreted as jussives of prayer (cf. NEB, NIV, NRSV). Another option is to understand them as imperfects, “the Lord will answer,” etc. In this case the people declare their confidence that the Lord will intervene on behalf of the king and extend to him his favor.

[20:1]  ³ sn May the Lord answer you. The people address the king as they pray to the Lord.

[20:1]  ⁴ tn Heb “in a day of trouble.”

[20:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “the name of the God of Jacob.” God’s “name” refers metonymically to his very person and to the divine characteristics suggested by his name, in this case “God of Jacob,” which highlights his relationship to Israel.

[30:1]  ⁶ sn Psalm 30. The author thanks the Lord for delivering him from death and urges others to join him in praise. The psalmist experienced divine discipline for a brief time, but when he cried out for help the Lord intervened and restored his favor.

[30:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “a song of the dedication of the house.” The referent of “house” is unclear. It is possible that David wrote this psalm for the dedication ceremony of Solomon’s temple. Another possibility is that the psalm was used on the occasion of the dedication of the second temple following the return from exile, or on the occasion of the rededication of the temple in Maccabean times.

[30:1]  ⁸ tn Elsewhere the verb דָּלָה (dalah) is used of drawing water from a well (Exod 2:16, 19; Prov 20:5). The psalmist was trapped in the pit leading to Sheol (see v. 3), but the Lord hoisted him up. The Piel stem is used here, perhaps suggesting special exertion on the Lord’s part.

[30:1]  ⁹ tn Or “rejoice.”

[129:8]  ¹¹ tn The perfect verbal form is used for rhetorical effect; it describes an anticipated development as if it were already reality.