Psalms 44:14

44:14 You made us ¹  an object of ridicule ²  among the nations;

foreigners treat us with contempt. ³ 

Psalms 69:21

69:21 They put bitter poison ⁴  into my food,

and to quench my thirst they give me vinegar to drink. ⁵ 

Psalms 83:2

83:2 For look, your enemies are making a commotion;

those who hate you are hostile. ⁶ 

Psalms 110:7

110:7 From the stream along the road he drinks;

then he lifts up his head. ⁷ 

Psalms 119:160

119:160 Your instructions are totally reliable;

all your just regulations endure. ⁸ 

Psalms 140:9

140:9 As for the heads of those who surround me –

may the harm done by ⁹  their lips overwhelm them!

Psalms 22:7

22:7 All who see me taunt ¹⁰  me;

they mock me ¹¹  and shake their heads. ¹² 

Psalms 68:21

68:21 Indeed God strikes the heads of his enemies,

the hairy foreheads of those who persist in rebellion. ¹³ 

Psalms 110:6

110:6 He executes judgment ¹⁴  against ¹⁵  the nations;

he fills the valleys with corpses; ¹⁶ 

he shatters their heads over the vast battlefield. ¹⁷ 

Psalms 137:6

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. ¹⁸ 

Psalms 141:5

141:5 May the godly strike me in love and correct me!

May my head not refuse ¹⁹  choice oil! ²⁰ 

Indeed, my prayer is a witness against their evil deeds. ²¹ 

[44:14]  ¹ tn The prefixed verbal form is a preterite (without vav [ו] consecutive).

[44:14]  ² tn Heb “a proverb,” or “[the subject of] a mocking song.”

[44:14]  ³ tn Heb “a shaking of the head among the peoples.” Shaking the head was a derisive gesture (see Jer 18:16; Lam 2:15).

[69:21]  ⁴ tn According to BDB 912 s.v. II רֹאשׁ the term can mean “a bitter and poisonous plant.”

[69:21]  ⁵ sn John 19:28-30 appears to understand Jesus’ experience on the cross as a fulfillment of this passage (or Ps 22:15). See the study note on the word “thirsty” in John 19:28.

[83:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “lift up [their] head[s].” The phrase “lift up [the] head” here means “to threaten; to be hostile,” as in Judg 8:28.

[110:7]  ¹⁰ tn Here the expression “lifts up the head” refers to the renewed physical strength and emotional vigor (see Ps 3:3) provided by the refreshing water. For another example of a victorious warrior being energized by water in the aftermath of battle, see Judg 15:18-19 (see also 1 Sam 30:11-12, where the setting is different, however).

[119:160]  ¹³ tn Heb “the head of your word is truth, and forever [is] all your just regulation.” The term “head” is used here of the “sum total” of God’s instructions.

[140:9]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “harm of their lips.” The genitive here indicates the source or agent of the harm.

[22:7]  ¹⁹ tn Or “scoff at, deride, mock.”

[22:7]  ²⁰ tn Heb “they separate with a lip.” Apparently this refers to their verbal taunting.

[22:7]  ²¹ sn Shake their heads. Apparently this refers to a taunting gesture. See also Job 16:4; Ps 109:25; Lam 2:15.

[68:21]  ²² tn Heb “the hairy forehead of the one who walks about in his guilt.” The singular is representative.

[110:6]  ²⁵ tn The imperfect verbal forms in vv. 6-7 are understood here as descriptive-dramatic or as generalizing, though they could be taken as future.

[110:6]  ²⁶ tn Or “among.”

[110:6]  ²⁷ tn Heb “he fills [with] corpses,” but one expects a double accusative here. The translation assumes an emendation to גְוִיּוֹת גֵאָיוֹת(בִּ) מִלֵּא or מִלֵּא גֵאָיוֹת גְּוִיוֹת (for a similar construction see Ezek 32:5). In the former case גֵאָיוֹת(ge’ayot) has accidentally dropped from the text due to homoioteleuton; in the latter case it has dropped out due to homoioarcton.

[110:6]  ²⁸ tn Heb “he strikes [the verb is מָחַץ (makhats), translated “strikes down” in v. 5] head[s] over a great land.” The Hebrew term רַבָּה (rabbah, “great”) is here used of distance or spatial measurement (see 1 Sam 26:13).

[137:6]  ²⁸ tn Heb “if I do not lift up Jerusalem over the top of my joy.”

[141:5]  ³¹ tn The form יָנִי (yaniy) appears to be derived from the verbal root נוּא (nu’). Another option is to emend the form to יְנָא (yÿna’), a Piel from נָאָה (na’ah), and translate “may choice oil not adorn my head” (see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 [WBC], 271). In this case, choice oil, like delicacies in v. 4, symbolize the pleasures of sin.

[141:5]  ³² sn May my head not refuse choice oil. The psalmist compares the constructive criticism of the godly (see the previous line) to having refreshing olive oil poured over one’s head.

[141:5]  ³³ tc Heb “for still, and my prayer [is] against their evil deeds.” The syntax of the Hebrew text is difficult; the sequence -כִּי־עוֹד וּ (kiy-’od u-, “for still and”) occurs only here. The translation assumes an emendation to כִּי עֵד תְפלָּתִי (“indeed a witness [is] my prayer”). The psalmist’s lament about the evil actions of sinful men (see v. 4) testifies against the wicked in the divine court.