Psalms 44:21-26

44:21 would not God discover it,

for he knows ¹  one’s thoughts? ² 

44:22 Yet because of you ³  we are killed all day long;

we are treated like ⁴  sheep at the slaughtering block. ⁵ 

44:23 Rouse yourself! Why do you sleep, O Lord?

Wake up! ⁶  Do not reject us forever!

44:24 Why do you look the other way, ⁷ 

and ignore ⁸  the way we are oppressed and mistreated? ⁹ 

44:25 For we lie in the dirt,

with our bellies pressed to the ground. ¹⁰ 

44:26 Rise up and help us!

Rescue us ¹¹  because of your loyal love!

[44:21]  ¹ tn The active participle describes what is characteristically true.

[44:21]  ² tn Heb “would not God search out this, for he knows the hidden things of [the] heart?” The expression “search out” is used metonymically here, referring to discovery, the intended effect of a search. The “heart” (i.e., mind) is here viewed as the seat of one’s thoughts. The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Of course he would!” The point seems to be this: There is no way the Israelites who are the speakers in the psalm would reject God and turn to another god, for the omniscient God would easily discover such a sin.

[44:22]  ³ tn The statement “because of you” (1) may simply indicate that God is the cause of the Israelites’ defeat (see vv. 9-14, where the nation’s situation is attributed directly to God’s activity, and cf. NEB, NRSV), or (2) it may suggest they suffer because of their allegiance to God (see Ps 69:7 and Jer 15:15). In this case one should translate, “for your sake” (cf. NASB, NIV). The citation of this verse in Rom 8:36 follows the LXX (Ps 43:23 LXX), where the Greek term ἕνεκεν (Jeneken; LXX ἕνεκα) may likewise mean “because of” or “for the sake of” (BDAG 334 s.v. ἕνεκα 1).

[44:22]  ⁴ tn Or “regarded as.”

[44:22]  ⁵ tn Heb “like sheep of slaughtering,” that is, sheep destined for slaughter.

[44:23]  ⁶ sn Wake up! See Ps 35:23.

[44:24]  ⁷ tn Heb “Why do you hide your face?” The idiom “hide the face” can mean “ignore” (see Pss 10:11; 13:1; 51:9) or carry the stronger idea of “reject” (see Pss 30:7; 88:14).

[44:24]  ⁸ tn Or “forget.”

[44:24]  ⁹ tn Heb “our oppression and our affliction.”

[44:25]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “for our being/life sinks down to the dirt, our belly clings to the earth.” The suffixed form of נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “being, life”) is often equivalent to a pronoun in poetic texts.

[44:26]  ¹¹ tn Or “redeem us.” See Pss 25:22; 26:11; 69:18; 119:134.