Psalms 28:4-9

Context

28:4 Pay them back for their evil deeds!

Pay them back for what they do!

Punish them!¹

28:5 For they do not understand the Lord’s actions,

or the way he carries out justice.²

The Lord³ will permanently demolish them.⁴

28:6 The Lord deserves praise,⁵

for he has heard my plea for mercy!⁶

28:7 The Lord strengthens and protects me;⁷

I trust in him with all my heart.⁸

I am rescued⁹ and my heart is full of joy;¹⁰

I will sing to him in gratitude.¹¹

28:8 The Lord strengthens his people;¹²

he protects and delivers his chosen king.¹³

28:9 Deliver your people!

Empower¹⁴ the nation that belongs to you!¹⁵

Care for them like a shepherd and carry them in your arms¹⁶ at all times!¹⁷

[28:4] ¹tn Heb “Give to them according to their work, and according to the evil of their deeds. According to the work of their hands give to them. Return their due to them.” The highly repetitive style reflects the psalmist’s agitated emotional state and draws attention to his yearning for justice.

[28:5] ²tn Heb “or the work of his hands.” In this context “the Lord’s actions” and “the work of his hands” probably refer to the way he carries out justice by vindicating the godly and punishing the wicked. (Note the final line of the verse, which refers to divine judgment. See also Ps 92:4-7.) Evil men do not “understand” God’s just ways; they fail to realize he will protect the innocent. Consequently they seek to harm the godly, as if they believe they will never be held accountable for their actions.

[28:5] ³tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord, who is referred to in the two immediately preceding lines) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[28:5] ⁴tn Heb “will tear them down and not rebuild them.” The ungodly are compared to a structure that is permanently demolished.

[28:6] ⁵tn Heb “blessed [be] the Lord.”

[28:6] ⁶sn He has heard my plea for mercy. The psalmist’s mood abruptly changes at this point, because the Lord responded positively to his petition and assured him that he would deliver him.

[28:7] ⁷tn Heb “The Lord [is] my strength and my shield.”

[28:7] ⁸tn Heb “in him my heart trusts.”

[28:7] ⁹tn Or “I am helped.”

[28:7] ¹⁰tn Heb “and my heart exults.”

[28:7] ¹¹tn Heb “and from my song I will thank him.” As pointed in the Hebrew text, מִשִּׁירִי (mishiri) appears to be “from my song,” but the preposition “from” never occurs elsewhere with the verb “to thank” (Hiphil of יָדָה, yadah). Perhaps משׁיר is a noun form meaning “song.” If so, it can be taken as an adverbial accusative, “and [with] my song I will thank him.” See P. C. Craigie, Psalms 1-50 (WBC), 236.

[28:8] ¹²tn Heb “the Lord [is] strength to them” (or perhaps, “to him”). The form לָמוֹ (lamo, “to them/him”) is probably a corruption of an original לְעַמוֹ (lÿ’amo, “to his people”; see P. C. Craigie, Psalms 1-50 [WBC], 236), perhaps due to quiescence of the letter ayin (ע; see P. McCarter, Textual Criticism [GBS], 55). Note the reference to the Lord’s “people” in the next verse.

[28:8] ¹³tn Heb “he [is] a refuge of help for his anointed one.” The noun מָשִׁיחַ (mashiakh, “anointed one”) refers to the Davidic king, who perhaps speaks as representative of the nation in this psalm. See Pss 2:2; 18:50; 20:6; 84:9; 89:38, 51; 132:10, 17.

[28:9] ¹⁴tn Or “bless.”

[28:9] ¹⁵tn Heb “your inheritance.” The parallelism (note “your people”) indicates that Israel is in view.

[28:9] ¹⁶tn Heb “shepherd them and lift them up.”

[28:9] ¹⁷tn Or “forever.”