Psalms 34:12

34:12 Do you want to really live? ¹ 

Would you love to live a long, happy life? ² 

Psalms 37:19

37:19 They will not be ashamed when hard times come; ³ 

when famine comes they will have enough to eat. ⁴ 

Psalms 50:15

50:15 Pray to me when you are in trouble! ⁵ 

I will deliver you, and you will honor me!” ⁶ 

Psalms 78:42

78:42 They did not remember what he had done, ⁷ 

how he delivered them from the enemy, ⁸ 

Psalms 90:12

90:12 So teach us to consider our mortality, ⁹ 

so that we might live wisely. ¹⁰ 

Psalms 94:13

94:13 in order to protect him from times of trouble, ¹¹ 

until the wicked are destroyed. ¹² 

[34:12]  ¹ tn Heb “Who is the man who desires life?” The rhetorical question is used to grab the audience’s attention. “Life” probably refers here to quality of life, not just physical existence or even duration of life. See the following line.

[34:12]  ² tn Heb “[Who] loves days to see good?”

[37:19]  ³ tn Heb “in a time of trouble.”

[37:19]  ⁴ tn Heb “in days of famine they will be satisfied.”

[50:15]  ⁵ tn Heb “call [to] me in a day of trouble.”

[50:15]  ⁶ sn In vv. 7-15 the Lord makes it clear that he was not rebuking Israel because they had failed to offer sacrifices (v. 8a). On the contrary, they had been faithful in doing so (v. 8b). However, their understanding of the essence of their relationship with God was confused. Apparently they believed that he needed/desired such sacrifices and that offering them would ensure their prosperity. But the Lord owns all the animals of the world and did not need Israel’s meager sacrifices (vv. 9-13). Other aspects of the relationship were more important to the Lord. He desired Israel to be thankful for his blessings (v. 14a), to demonstrate gratitude for his intervention by repaying the vows they made to him (v. 14b), and to acknowledge their absolute dependence on him (v. 15a). Rather than viewing their sacrifices as somehow essential to God’s well-being, they needed to understand their dependence on him.

[78:42]  ⁷ tn Heb “his hand,” symbolizing his saving activity and strength, as the next line makes clear.

[78:42]  ⁸ tn Heb “[the] day [in] which he ransomed them from [the] enemy.”

[90:12]  ⁹ tn Heb “to number our days,” that is, to be aware of how few they really are.

[90:12]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and we will bring a heart of wisdom.” After the imperative of the preceding line, the prefixed verbal form with the conjunction indicates purpose/result. The Hebrew term “heart” here refers to the center of one’s thoughts, volition, and moral character.

[94:13]  ¹¹ tn Heb “to give him rest from the days of trouble.”

[94:13]  ¹² tn Heb “until a pit is dug for the wicked.”