Discovery BoxPsalms 3:1-2
ContextA psalm of David, written when he fled from his son Absalom. 2
3:1 Lord, how 3 numerous are my enemies!
Many attack me. 4
3:2 Many say about me,
“God will not deliver him.” 5 (Selah) 6
Psalms 22:12
Context22:12 Many bulls 7 surround me;
powerful bulls of Bashan 8 hem me in.
Psalms 22:16
Context22:16 Yes, 9 wild dogs surround me –
a gang of evil men crowd around me;
like a lion they pin my hands and feet. 10
Psalms 25:19
Context25:19 Watch my enemies, for they outnumber me;
they hate me and want to harm me. 11
Psalms 56:2
Context56:2 Those who anticipate my defeat 12 attack me all day long.
Indeed, 13 many are fighting against me, O Exalted One. 14
Psalms 118:10-12
Context118:10 All the nations surrounded me. 15
Indeed, in the name of the Lord 16 I pushed them away. 17
118:11 They surrounded me, yes, they surrounded me.
Indeed, in the name of the Lord I pushed them away.
118:12 They surrounded me like bees.
But they disappeared as quickly 18 as a fire among thorns. 19
Indeed, in the name of the Lord I pushed them away.
Matthew 24:9
Context24:9 “Then they will hand you over to be persecuted and will kill you. You will be hated by all the nations 20 because of my name. 21
Matthew 26:47
Context26:47 While he was still speaking, Judas, 22 one of the twelve, arrived. With him was a large crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent by the chief priests and elders of the people.
Acts 4:27
Context4:27 “For indeed both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, assembled together in this city against 23 your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, 24
[3:1] 1 sn Psalm 3. The psalmist acknowledges that he is confronted by many enemies (vv. 1-2). But, alluding to a divine oracle he has received (vv. 4-5), he affirms his confidence in God’s ability to protect him (vv. 3, 6) and requests that God make his promise a reality (vv. 7-8).
[3:1] 2 sn According to Jewish tradition, David offered this prayer when he was forced to flee from Jerusalem during his son Absalom’s attempted coup (see 2 Sam 15:13-17).
[3:1] 3 tn The Hebrew term מָה (mah, “how”) is used here as an adverbial exclamation (see BDB 553 s.v.).
[3:1] 4 tn Heb “many rise up against me.”
[3:2] 5 tn Heb “there is no deliverance for him in God.”
[3:2] 6 sn The function of the Hebrew term סֶלָה (selah), transliterated here “Selah,” is uncertain. It may be a musical direction of some kind.
[22:12] 7 sn The psalmist figuratively compares his enemies to dangerous bulls.
[22:12] 8 sn Bashan, located east of the Jordan River, was well-known for its cattle. See Ezek 39:18; Amos 4:1.
[22:16] 10 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.”
[25:19] 11 tn Heb “see my enemies for they are numerous, and [with] violent hatred they hate me.”
[56:2] 12 tn Heb “to those who watch me [with evil intent].” See also Pss 5:8; 27:11; 54:5; 59:10.
[56:2] 14 tn Some take the Hebrew term מָרוֹם (marom, “on high; above”) as an adverb modifying the preceding participle and translate, “proudly” (cf. NASB; NIV “in their pride”). The present translation assumes the term is a divine title here. The
[118:10] 15 sn The reference to an attack by the nations suggests the psalmist may have been a military leader.
[118:10] 16 tn In this context the phrase “in the name of the
[118:10] 17 tn Traditionally the verb has been derived from מוּל (mul, “to circumcise”) and translated “[I] cut [them] off” (see BDB 557-58 s.v. II מוּל). However, it is likely that this is a homonym meaning “to fend off” (see HALOT 556 s.v. II מול) or “to push away.” In this context, where the psalmist is reporting his past experience, the prefixed verbal form is best understood as a preterite. The phrase also occurs in vv. 11, 12.
[118:12] 18 tn Heb “were extinguished.”
[118:12] 19 tn The point seems to be that the hostility of the nations (v. 10) is short-lived, like a fire that quickly devours thorns and then burns out. Some, attempting to create a better parallel with the preceding line, emend דֹּעֲכוּ (do’akhu, “they were extinguished”) to בָּעֲרוּ (ba’aru, “they burned”). In this case the statement emphasizes their hostility.
[24:9] 20 tn Or “all the Gentiles” (the same Greek word may be translated “nations” or “Gentiles”).
[24:9] 21 sn See Matt 5:10-12; 1 Cor 1:25-31.
[26:47] 22 tn Grk “behold, Judas.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).
[4:27] 23 sn The application of Ps 2:1-2 is that Jews and Gentiles are opposing Jesus. The surprise of the application is that Jews are now found among the enemies of God’s plan.
[4:27] 24 sn A wordplay on “Christ,” v. 26, which means “one who has been anointed.”
