Psalms 3:7

3:7 Rise up, ¹  Lord!

Deliver me, my God!

Yes, ²  you will strike ³  all my enemies on the jaw;

you will break the teeth ⁴  of the wicked. ⁵ 

Psalms 13:1

Psalm 13 ⁶ 

For the music director; a psalm of David.

13:1 How long, Lord, will you continue to ignore me? ⁷ 

How long will you pay no attention to me? ⁸ 

Psalms 16:4

16:4 their troubles multiply,

they desire other gods. ⁹ 

I will not pour out drink offerings of blood to their gods, ¹⁰ 

nor will I make vows in the name of their gods. ¹¹ 

Psalms 31:23

31:23 Love the Lord, all you faithful followers ¹²  of his!

The Lord protects those who have integrity,

but he pays back in full the one who acts arrogantly. ¹³ 

Psalms 37:28

37:28 For the Lord promotes ¹⁴  justice,

and never abandons ¹⁵  his faithful followers.

They are permanently secure, ¹⁶ 

but the children ¹⁷  of evil men are wiped out. ¹⁸ 

Psalms 53:2

53:2 God looks down from heaven ¹⁹  at the human race, ²⁰ 

to see if there is anyone who is wise ²¹  and seeks God. ²² 

Psalms 59:1

Psalm 59 ²³ 

For the music director; according to the al-tashcheth style; ²⁴  a prayer ²⁵  of David, written when Saul sent men to surround his house and murder him. ²⁶ 

59:1 Deliver me from my enemies, my God!

Protect me ²⁷  from those who attack me! ²⁸ 

Psalms 84:3

84:3 Even the birds find a home there,

and the swallow ²⁹  builds a nest,

where she can protect her young ³⁰ 

near your altars, O Lord who rules over all,

my king and my God.

Psalms 104:35

104:35 May sinners disappear ³¹  from the earth,

and the wicked vanish!

Praise the Lord, O my soul!

Praise the Lord!

Psalms 106:7

106:7 Our ancestors in Egypt failed to appreciate your miraculous deeds,

they failed to remember your many acts of loyal love,

and they rebelled at the sea, by the Red Sea. ³² 

Psalms 127:5

127:5 How blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them!

They will not be put to shame ³³  when they confront ³⁴  enemies at the city gate.

Psalms 133:3--134:1

133:3 It is like the dew of Hermon, ³⁵ 

which flows down upon the hills of Zion. ³⁶ 

Indeed ³⁷  that is where the Lord has decreed

a blessing will be available – eternal life. ³⁸ 

Psalm 134 ³⁹ 

A song of ascents. ⁴⁰ 

134:1 Attention! ⁴¹  Praise the Lord,

all you servants of the Lord,

who serve ⁴²  in the Lord’s temple during the night.

Psalms 137:6-7

137:6 May my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth,

if I do not remember you,

and do not give Jerusalem priority

over whatever gives me the most joy. ⁴³ 

137:7 Remember, O Lord, what the Edomites did

on the day Jerusalem fell. ⁴⁴ 

They said, “Tear it down, tear it down, ⁴⁵ 

right to its very foundation!”

Psalms 138:2

138:2 I will bow down toward your holy temple,

and give thanks to your name,

because of your loyal love and faithfulness,

for you have exalted your promise above the entire sky. ⁴⁶ 

Psalms 142:7

142:7 Free me ⁴⁷  from prison,

that I may give thanks to your name.

Because of me the godly will assemble, ⁴⁸ 

for you will vindicate me. ⁴⁹ 

[3:7]  ¹ tn In v. 2 the psalmist describes his enemies as those who “confront” him (קָמִים [qamim], literally, “rise up against him”). Now, using the same verbal root (קוּם, qum) he asks the Lord to rise up (קוּמָה, qumah) in his defense.

[3:7]  ² tn Elsewhere in the psalms the particle כִּי (ki), when collocated with a perfect verbal form and subordinated to a preceding imperative directed to God, almost always has an explanatory or causal force (“for, because”) and introduces a motivating argument for why God should respond positively to the request (see Pss 5:10; 6:2; 12:1; 16:1; 41:4; 55:9; 56:1; 57:1; 60:2; 69:1; 74:20; 119:94; 123:3; 142:6; 143:8). (On three occasions the כִּי is recitative after a verb of perception [“see/know that,” see Pss 4:3; 25:19; 119:159]). If כִּי is taken as explanatory here, then the psalmist is arguing that God should deliver him now because that is what God characteristically does. However, such a motivating argument is not used in the passages cited above. The motivating argument usually focuses on the nature of the psalmist’s dilemma or the fact that he trusts in the Lord. For this reason it is unlikely that כִּי has its normal force here. Most scholars understand the particle כִּי as having an asseverative (emphasizing) function here (“indeed, yes”; NEB leaves the particle untranslated).

[3:7]  ³ tn If the particle כִּי (ki) is taken as explanatory, then the perfect verbal forms in v. 7b would describe God’s characteristic behavior. However, as pointed out in the preceding note on the word “yes,” the particle probably has an asseverative force here. If so, the perfects may be taken as indicating rhetorically the psalmist’s certitude and confidence that God will intervene. The psalmist is so confident of God’s positive response to his prayer, he can describe God’s assault on his enemies as if it had already happened. Such confidence is consistent with the mood of the psalm, as expressed before (vv. 3-6) and after this (v. 8). Another option is to take the perfects as precative, expressing a wish or request (“Strike all my enemies on the jaw, break the teeth of the wicked”). See IBHS 494-95 §30.5.4c, d. However, not all grammarians are convinced that the perfect is used as a precative in biblical Hebrew.

[3:7]  ⁴ sn The expression break the teeth may envision violent hand-to hand combat, though it is possible that the enemies are pictured here as a dangerous animal (see Job 29:17).

[3:7]  ⁵ tn In the psalms the Hebrew term רְשָׁעִים (rÿsha’im, “wicked”) describes people who are proud, practical atheists (Ps 10:2, 4, 11) who hate God’s commands, commit sinful deeds, speak lies and slander (Ps 50:16-20), and cheat others (Ps 37:21). They oppose God and his people.

[13:1]  ⁶ sn Psalm 13. The psalmist, who is close to death, desperately pleads for God’s deliverance and affirms his trust in God’s faithfulness.

[13:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “will you forget me continually.”

[13:1]  ⁸ tn Heb “will you hide your face from me.”

[16:4]  ¹¹ tn Heb “their troubles multiply, another, they pay a dowry.” The meaning of the text is unclear. The Hebrew term עַצְּבוֹתָם (’atsÿvotam, “troubles”) appears to be a plural form of עַצֶּבֶת (’atsÿvet, “pain, wound”; see Job 9:28; Ps 147:3). Because idolatry appears to be in view (see v. 4b), some prefer to emend the noun to עַצְּבִים (’atsÿvim, “idols”). “Troubles” may be a wordplay on “idols” or a later alteration designed to emphasize that idolatry leads to trouble. The singular form אחר (“another”) is syntactically problematic here. Perhaps the form should be emended to a plural אֲחֵרִים (’akherim, “others”). (The final mem [ם] could have been lost by haplography; note the mem [מ] at the beginning of the next word.) In this case it might be taken as an abbreviated form of the well-attested phrase אֱלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים (’elohim ’akherim, “other gods”). (In Isa 42:8 the singular form אַחַר (’akher, “another”) is used of another god.) The verb מָהַר (mahar) appears in the Qal stem; the only other use of a Qal verbal form of a root מָהַר is in Exod 22:15, where the denominative verb מָהֹר (mahor, “purchase [a wife]”) appears; cf. the related noun מֹהַר (mohar, “bride money, purchase price for a wife”). If that verb is understood here, then the idolaters are pictured as eager bridegrooms paying the price to acquire the object of their desire. Another option is to emend the verb to a Piel and translate, “hurry (after).”

[16:4]  ¹² tn Heb “I will not pour out their drink offerings of blood.” The third masculine plural suffix would appear to refer back to the people/leaders mentioned in v. 3. However, if we emend אֲחֵר (’akher, “another”) to the plural אֲחֵרִים (’akherim, “other [gods]”) in v. 4, the suffix can be understood as referring to these gods – “the drink offerings [made to] them.” The next line favors this interpretation. Perhaps this refers to some type of pagan cultic ritual. Elsewhere wine is the prescribed content of drink offerings.

[16:4]  ¹³ tn Heb “and I will not lift up their names upon my lips.” The expression “lift up the name” probably refers here to swearing an oath in the name of deity (see Exod 20:7; Deut 5:11). If so, the third masculine plural suffix on “names” likely refers to the pagan gods, not the people/leaders. See the preceding note.

[31:23]  ¹⁶ tn A “faithful follower” (חָסִיד, khasid) is one who does what is right in God’s eyes and remains faithful to God (see Pss 4:3; 12:1; 16:10; 31:23; 37:28; 86:2; 97:10).

[31:23]  ¹⁷ tn The participial forms in the second and third lines characterize the Lord as one who typically protects the faithful and judges the proud.

[37:28]  ²¹ tn Heb “loves.” The verb “loves” is here metonymic; the Lord’s commitment to principles of justice causes him to actively promote these principles as he governs the world. The active participle describes characteristic behavior.

[37:28]  ²² tn The imperfect verbal form draws attention to this generalizing statement.

[37:28]  ²³ tn Or “protected forever.”

[37:28]  ²⁴ tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”

[37:28]  ²⁵ tn Or “cut off”; or “removed.” The perfect verbal forms in v. 28b state general truths.

[53:2]  ²⁶ sn The picture of the Lord looking down from heaven draws attention to his sovereignty over the world.

[53:2]  ²⁷ tn Heb “upon the sons of man.”

[53:2]  ²⁸ tn Or “acts wisely.” The Hiphil is exhibitive.

[53:2]  ²⁹ tn That is, who seeks to have a relationship with God by obeying and worshiping him.

[59:1]  ³¹ sn Psalm 59. The psalmist calls down judgment on his foreign enemies, whom he compares to ravenous wild dogs.

[59:1]  ³² tn Heb “do not destroy.” Perhaps this refers to a particular style of music, a tune title, or a musical instrument. These words also appear in the superscription to Pss 57-58, 75.

[59:1]  ³³ tn The precise meaning of the Hebrew word מִכְתָּם (miktam), which also appears in the heading to Pss 16, 56-58, 60 is uncertain. HALOT 582-83 s.v. defines it as “inscription.”

[59:1]  ³⁴ tn Heb “when Saul sent and they watched his house in order to kill him.”

[59:1]  ³⁵ tn Or “make me secure”; Heb “set me on high.”

[59:1]  ³⁶ tn Heb “from those who raise themselves up [against] me.”

[84:3]  ³⁶ tn The word translated “swallow” occurs only here and in Prov 26:2.

[84:3]  ³⁷ tn Heb “even a bird finds a home, and a swallow a nest for herself, [in] which she places her young.”

[104:35]  ⁴¹ tn Or “be destroyed.”

[106:7]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “Reed Sea” (also in vv. 9, 22). “Reed Sea” (or “Sea of Reeds”) is a more accurate rendering of the Hebrew expression יָם סוּף (yam suf), traditionally translated “Red Sea.” See the note on the term “Red Sea” in Exod 13:18.

[127:5]  ⁵¹ tn Being “put to shame” is here metonymic for being defeated, probably in a legal context, as the reference to the city gate suggests. One could be humiliated (Ps 69:12) or deprived of justice (Amos 5:12) at the gate, but with strong sons to defend the family interests this was less likely to happen.

[127:5]  ⁵² tn Heb “speak with.”

[133:3]  ⁵⁶ sn Hermon refers to Mount Hermon, located north of Israel.

[133:3]  ⁵⁷ sn The hills of Zion are those surrounding Zion (see Pss 87:1; 125:2). The psalmist does not intend to suggest that the dew from Mt. Hermon in the distant north actually flows down upon Zion. His point is that the same kind of heavy dew that replenishes Hermon may also be seen on Zion’s hills. See A. Cohen, Psalms (SoBB), 439. “Dew” here symbolizes divine blessing, as the next line suggests.

[133:3]  ⁵⁸ tn Or “for.”

[133:3]  ⁵⁹ tn Heb “there the Lord has commanded the blessing, life forever.”

[134:1]  ⁶¹ sn Psalm 134. The psalmist calls on the temple servants to praise God (vv. 1-2). They in turn pronounce a blessing on the psalmist (v. 3).

[134:1]  ⁶² sn The precise significance of this title, which appears in Pss 120-134, is unclear. Perhaps worshipers recited these psalms when they ascended the road to Jerusalem to celebrate annual religious festivals. For a discussion of their background see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 219-21.

[134:1]  ⁶³ tn Heb “Look!”

[134:1]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “stand.”

[137:6]  ⁶⁶ tn Heb “if I do not lift up Jerusalem over the top of my joy.”

[137:7]  ⁷¹ tn Heb “remember, O Lord, against the sons of Edom, the day of Jerusalem.”

[137:7]  ⁷² tn Heb “lay [it] bare, lay [it] bare.”

[138:2]  ⁷⁶ tc The MT reads, “for you have made great over all your name your word.” If retained, this must mean that God's mighty intervention, in fulfillment of his word of promise, surpassed anything he had done prior to this. However, the statement is odd and several emendations have been proposed. Some read, “for you have exalted over everything your name and your word,” while others suggest, “for you have exalted over all the heavens your name and your word.” The translation assumes an emendation of “your name” to “your heavens” (a construction that appears in Pss 8:3 and 144:5). The point is that God has been faithful to his promise and the reliability of that promise is apparent to all. For a fuller discussion of these options, see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 244.

[142:7]  ⁸¹ tn Heb “bring out my life.”

[142:7]  ⁸² tn Or “gather around.”

[142:7]  ⁸³ tn The Hebrew idiom גָּמַל עַל (gamal ’al) means “to repay,” here in a positive sense.