Psalms 77:10

77:10 Then I said, “I am sickened by the thought

that the sovereign One ¹  might become inactive. ² 

Psalms 139:11

139:11 If I were to say, “Certainly the darkness will cover me, ³ 

and the light will turn to night all around me,” ⁴ 

Psalms 55:6

55:6 I say, ⁵  “I wish I had wings like a dove!

I would fly away and settle in a safe place!

Psalms 95:10

95:10 For forty years I was continually disgusted ⁶  with that generation,

and I said, ‘These people desire to go astray; ⁷ 

they do not obey my commands.’ ⁸ 

Psalms 106:48

106:48 The Lord God of Israel deserves praise, ⁹ 

in the future and forevermore. ¹⁰ 

Let all the people say, “We agree! ¹¹  Praise the Lord!” ¹² 

[77:10]  ¹ tn Heb “Most High.” This divine title (עֶלְיוֹן, ’elyon) pictures God as the exalted ruler of the universe who vindicates the innocent and judges the wicked. See especially Pss 7:17; 9:2; 18:13; 21:7; 47:2.

[77:10]  ² tc Heb “And I said, ‘This is my wounding, the changing of the right hand of the Most High.’” The form חַלּוֹתִי (khallotiy) appears to be a Qal infinitive construct (with a first person singular pronominal suffix) from the verbal root חָלַל (khalal, “to pierce; to wound”). The present translation assumes an emendation to חֲלוֹתִי (khalotiy), a Qal infinitive construct (with a first person singular pronominal suffix) from the verbal root חָלָה (khalah, “be sick, weak”). The form שְׁנוֹת (shÿnot) is understood as a Qal infinitive construct from שָׁנָה (shanah, “to change”) rather than a plural noun form, “years” (see v. 5). “Right hand” here symbolizes by metonymy God’s power and activity. The psalmist observes that his real problem is theological in nature. His experience suggests that the sovereign Lord has abandoned him and become inactive. However, this goes against the grain of his most cherished beliefs.

[139:11]  ³ tn The Hebrew verb שׁוּף (shuf), which means “to crush; to wound,” in Gen 3:15 and Job 9:17, is problematic here. For a discussion of attempts to relate the verb to Arabic roots, see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 251. Many emend the form to יְשׂוּכֵּנִי (yesukkeniy), from the root שׂכך (“to cover,” an alternate form of סכך), a reading assumed in the present translation.

[139:11]  ⁴ tn Heb “and night, light, around me.”

[55:6]  ⁵ tn The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive carries on the descriptive (present progressive) force of the verbs in v. 5.

[95:10]  ⁷ tn The prefixed verbal form is either a preterite or an imperfect. If the latter, it emphasizes the ongoing nature of the condition in the past. The translation reflects this interpretation of the verbal form.

[95:10]  ⁸ tn Heb “a people, wanderers of heart [are] they.”

[95:10]  ⁹ tn Heb “and they do not know my ways.” In this context the Lord’s “ways” are his commands, viewed as a pathway from which his people, likened to wayward sheep (see v. 7), wander.

[106:48]  ⁹ tn Heb “[be] blessed.” See Pss 18:46; 28:6; 31:21.

[106:48]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “from everlasting to everlasting.”

[106:48]  ¹¹ tn Heb “surely” (אָמֵן, ’amen), traditionally transliterated “amen.”

[106:48]  ¹² sn The final verse (v. 48) is a conclusion to this fourth “book” (or major editorial division) of the Psalter. Similar statements appear at or near the end of each of the first, second and third “books” of the Psalter (see Pss 41:13; 72:18-19; 89:52, respectively).