Psalms 59:1

Psalm 59 ¹ 

For the music director; according to the al-tashcheth style; ²  a prayer ³  of David, written when Saul sent men to surround his house and murder him. ⁴ 

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

Protect me ⁵  from those who attack me! ⁶ 

Psalms 125:3

125:3 Indeed, ⁷  the scepter of a wicked king ⁸  will not settle ⁹ 

upon the allotted land of the godly.

Otherwise the godly might

do what is wrong. ¹⁰ 

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

[59:1]  ² 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]  ³ 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]  ⁴ tn Heb “when Saul sent and they watched his house in order to kill him.”

[59:1]  ⁵ tn Or “make me secure”; Heb “set me on high.”

[59:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “from those who raise themselves up [against] me.”

[125:3]  ⁷ tn Or “for.”

[125:3]  ⁸ tn Heb “a scepter of wickedness.” The “scepter” symbolizes royal authority; when collocated with “wickedness” the phrase refers to an oppressive foreign conqueror.

[125:3]  ⁹ tn Or “rest.”

[125:3]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “so that the godly might not stretch out their hands in wrongdoing.” A wicked king who sets a sinful example can have an adverse moral and ethical effect on the people he rules.