Psalms 39:13

39:13 Turn your angry gaze away from me, so I can be happy

before I pass away. ¹ 

Psalms 119:67

119:67 Before I was afflicted I used to stray off, ² 

but now I keep your instructions. ³ 

Psalms 5:5

5:5 Arrogant people cannot stand in your presence; ⁴ 

you hate ⁵  all who behave wickedly. ⁶ 

Psalms 58:9

58:9 Before the kindling is even placed under your pots, ⁷ 

he ⁸  will sweep it away along with both the raw and cooked meat. ⁹ 

Psalms 90:2

90:2 Even before the mountains came into existence, ¹⁰ 

or you brought the world into being, ¹¹ 

you were the eternal God. ¹² 

[39:13]  ¹ tn Heb “Gaze away from me and I will smile before I go and am not.” The precise identification of the initial verb form (הָשַׁע, hasha’) is uncertain. It could be from the root שָׁעָע (sha’a’, “smear”), but “your eyes” would be the expected object in this case (see Isa 6:10). The verb may be an otherwise unattested Hiphil form of שָׁעָה (sha’ah, “to gaze”) meaning “cause your gaze to be.” Some prefer to emend the form to the Qal שְׁעֵה (shÿ’eh, “gaze”; see Job 14:6). If one does read a form of the verb “to gaze,” the angry divine “gaze” of discipline would seem to be in view (see vv. 10-11). For a similar expression of this sentiment see Job 10:20-21.

[119:67]  ² tn Heb “before I suffered, I was straying off.”

[119:67]  ³ tn Heb “your word.”

[5:5]  ³ tn Heb “before your eyes.”

[5:5]  ⁴ sn You hate. The Lord “hates” the wicked in the sense that he despises their wicked character and deeds and actively opposes and judges them for their wickedness. See Ps 11:5.

[5:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “all the workers of wickedness.”

[58:9]  ⁴ tn Heb “before your pots perceive thorns.”

[58:9]  ⁵ tn Apparently God (v. 6) is the subject of the verb here.

[58:9]  ⁶ tn Heb “like living, like burning anger he will sweep it away.” The meaning of the text is unclear. The translation assumes that within the cooking metaphor (see the previous line) חַי (khay, “living”) refers here to raw meat (as in 1 Sam 2:15, where it modifies בָּשָׂר, basar, “flesh”) and that חָרוּן (kharun; which always refers to God’s “burning anger” elsewhere) here refers to food that is cooked. The pronominal suffix on the verb “sweep away” apparently refers back to the “thorns” of the preceding line. The image depicts swift and sudden judgment. Before the fire has been adequately kindled and all the meat cooked, the winds of judgment will sweep away everything in their path.

[90:2]  ⁵ tn Heb “were born.”

[90:2]  ⁶ tn Heb “and you gave birth to the earth and world.” The Polel verbal form in the Hebrew text pictures God giving birth to the world. The LXX and some other ancient textual witnesses assume a polal (passive) verbal form here. In this case the earth becomes the subject of the verb and the verb is understood as third feminine singular rather than second masculine singular.

[90:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “and from everlasting to everlasting you [are] God.” Instead of אֵל (’el, “God”) the LXX reads אַל (’al, “not”) and joins the negative particle to the following verse, making the verb תָּשֵׁב (tashev) a jussive. In this case v. 3a reads as a prayer, “do not turn man back to a low place.” However, taking תָּשֵׁב as a jussive is problematic in light of the following following wayyiqtol form וַתֹּאמֶר (vato’mer, “and you said/say”).