Psalms 7:5

7:5 may an enemy relentlessly chase ¹  me ²  and catch me; ³ 

may he trample me to death ⁴ 

and leave me lying dishonored in the dust. ⁵  (Selah)

Psalms 23:6

23:6 Surely your goodness and faithfulness ⁶  will pursue ⁷  me all my days, ⁸ 

and I will live in ⁹  the Lord’s house ¹⁰  for the rest of my life. ¹¹ 

Psalms 26:9

26:9 Do not sweep me away ¹²  with sinners,

or execute me along with violent people, ¹³ 

Psalms 27:1

Psalm 27 ¹⁴ 

By David.

27:1 The Lord delivers and vindicates me! ¹⁵ 

I fear no one! ¹⁶ 

The Lord protects my life!

I am afraid of no one! ¹⁷ 

Psalms 31:10

31:10 For my life nears its end in pain;

my years draw to a close as I groan. ¹⁸ 

My strength fails me because of ¹⁹  my sin,

and my bones become brittle. ²⁰ 

Psalms 42:8

42:8 By day the Lord decrees his loyal love, ²¹ 

and by night he gives me a song, ²² 

a prayer ²³  to the living God.

Psalms 64:1

Psalm 64 ²⁴ 

For the music director; a psalm of David.

64:1 Listen to me, ²⁵  O God, as I offer my lament!

Protect ²⁶  my life from the enemy’s terrifying attacks. ²⁷ 

Psalms 27:4

27:4 I have asked the Lord for one thing –

this is what I desire!

I want to live ²⁸  in the Lord’s house ²⁹  all the days of my life,

so I can gaze at the splendor ³⁰  of the Lord

and contemplate in his temple.

[7:5]  ¹ tn The vocalization of the verb form seems to be a mixture of Qal and Piel (see GKC 168 §63.n). The translation assumes the Piel, which would emphasize the repetitive nature of the action. The translation assumes the prefixed verbal form is a jussive. The psalmist is so certain that he is innocent of the sins mentioned in vv. 3-4, he pronounces an imprecation on himself for rhetorical effect.

[7:5]  ² tn Heb “my life.” The pronominal suffix attached to נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) is equivalent to a personal pronoun. See Ps 6:3.

[7:5]  ³ tn Heb “and may he overtake.” The prefixed verbal form is distinctly jussive. The object “me,” though unexpressed, is understood from the preceding statement.

[7:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “and may he trample down to the earth my life.”

[7:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “and my honor in the dust may he cause to dwell.” The prefixed verbal form is distinctly jussive. Some emend כְבוֹדִי (khÿvodiy, “my honor”) to כְבֵדִי (khÿvediy, “my liver” as the seat of life), but the term כְבוֹדִי (khÿvodiy) is to be retained since it probably refers to the psalmist’s dignity or honor.

[23:6]  ⁶ tn The noun חֶסֶד (khesed; v. 6) has been the subject of several monographs. G. R. Clark concludes that חֶסֶד “is not merely an attitude or an emotion; it is an emotion that leads to an activity beneficial to the recipient.” He explains that an act of חֶסֶד is “a beneficent action performed, in the context of a deep and enduring commitment between two persons or parties, by one who is able to render assistance to the needy party who in the circumstances is unable to help him- or herself.” (See G. R. Clark, The Word Hesed in the Hebrew Bible [JSOTSup], 267.) HALOT 336-37 s.v. defines the word as “loyalty,” or “faithfulness.” Other appropriate meanings might be “commitment” and “devotion.”

[23:6]  ⁷ tn The use of רָדַף (radaf, “pursue, chase”) with טוֹב וָחֶסֶד (tov vakhesed, “goodness and faithfulness”) as subject is ironic. This is the only place in the entire OT where either of these nouns appears as the subject of this verb רָדַף (radaf, “pursue”). This verb is often used to describe the hostile actions of enemies. One might expect the psalmist’s enemies (see v. 5) to chase him, but ironically God’s “goodness and faithfulness” (which are personified and stand by metonymy for God himself) pursue him instead. The word “pursue” is used outside of its normal context in an ironic manner and creates a unique, but pleasant word picture of God’s favor (or a kind God) “chasing down” the one whom he loves.

[23:6]  ⁸ tn Heb “all the days of my life.”

[23:6]  ⁹ tn The verb form וְשַׁבְתִּי (vÿshavtiy) is a Qal perfect (with vav [ו] consecutive), first common singular, from שׁוּב (shuv, “return”) and should be translated, “and I will return.” But this makes no sense when construed with the following phrase, “in the house of the Lord.” The term שׁוּב (shuv) appears only here with the following phrase בְּבֵית (bÿvet). The form should be emended to וְשִׁבְתִּי (vÿshivtiy; an infinitive construct from יָשַׁב, yashav, “live”) with pronominal suffix) or to וְיָשַׁבְתִּי (vÿyashavtiy; a Qal perfect with vav [ו] consecutive, first common singular, from ישׁב [see BHS, note c]). In either case one could then translate, “and I will live [in the house of the Lord].” The phrase “in the house” frequently follows the verb יָשַׁב in the OT.

[23:6]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the house of the Lord.” The phrase may be purely metaphorical here, referring to the royal palace where the royal host of v. 5 holds his banquet and lives. If one takes the phrase more literally, it would refer to the earthly tabernacle (if one accepts Davidic authorship) or the later temple (see Judg 19:18; 1 Sam 1:7, 24; 2 Sam 12:20; 1 Kgs 7:12, 40, 45, 51).

[23:6]  ¹¹ tn The phrase אֹרֶךְ יָמִים (’orekh yamim, “length of days”) is traditionally translated “forever.” However, this phrase, when used elsewhere of people, usually refers to a lengthy period of time, such as one’s lifetime, and does not mean “forever” in the sense of eternity. (Cf. Deut 30:20; Job 12:12; Ps 91:16; Prov 3:2, 16; Lam 5:20.) Furthermore, the parallel phrase “all the days of my life” suggests this more limited meaning. Psalm 21:4, where the phrase is followed by “forever and ever,” may be an exception, though the juxtaposition of the phrases may be an example of intensification, where the second phrase goes beyond the limits of the first, rather than synonymity. Even if one takes both expressions as referring to eternal life, the language is part of the king’s hyperbolic description of the Lord’s blessings and should not be taken literally.

[26:9]  ¹¹ tn Heb “do not gather up my life with.”

[26:9]  ¹² tn Heb “or with men of bloodshed my life.” The verb is supplied; it is understood by ellipsis (see the preceding line).

[27:1]  ¹⁶ sn Psalm 27. The author is confident of the Lord’s protection and asks the Lord to vindicate him.

[27:1]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “the Lord [is] my light and my deliverance.” “Light” is often used as a metaphor for deliverance and the life/blessings it brings. See Pss 37:6; 97:11; 112:4; Isa 49:6; 51:4; Mic 7:8. Another option is that “light” refers here to divine guidance (see Ps 43:3).

[27:1]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “Whom shall I fear?” The rhetorical question anticipates the answer, “No one!”

[27:1]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “Of whom shall I be afraid?” The rhetorical question anticipates the answer, “No one!”

[31:10]  ²¹ tn Heb “and my years in groaning.”

[31:10]  ²² tn Heb “stumbles in.”

[31:10]  ²³ tn Heb “grow weak.”

[42:8]  ²⁶ sn The psalmist believes that the Lord has not abandoned him, but continues to extend his loyal love. To this point in the psalm, the author has used the name “God,” but now, as he mentions the divine characteristic of loyal love, he switches to the more personal divine name Yahweh (rendered in the translation as “the Lord”).

[42:8]  ²⁷ tn Heb “his song [is] with me.”

[42:8]  ²⁸ tc A few medieval Hebrew mss read תְּהִלָּה (tÿhillah, “praise”) instead of תְּפִלָּה (tÿfillah, “prayer”).

[64:1]  ³¹ sn Psalm 64. The psalmist asks God to protect him from his dangerous enemies and then confidently affirms that God will destroy his enemies and demonstrate his justice in the sight of all observers.

[64:1]  ³² tn Heb “my voice.”

[64:1]  ³³ tn The imperfect verbal form is used here to express the psalmist’s request.

[64:1]  ³⁴ tn Heb “from the terror of [the] enemy.” “Terror” is used here metonymically for the enemy’s attacks that produce fear because they threaten the psalmist’s life.

[27:4]  ³⁶ tn Heb “my living.”

[27:4]  ³⁷ sn The Lord’s house. This probably refers to the tabernacle (if one accepts Davidic authorship) or the temple (see Judg 19:18; 1 Sam 1:7, 24; 2 Sam 12:20; 1 Kgs 7:12, 40, 45, 51).

[27:4]  ³⁸ tn Or “beauty.”