Psalm 35 - New English Translation (NET)

Psalm 35^[a]

By David.

35 O Lord, fight^[b] those who fight with me.
Attack those who attack me.
² Grab your small shield and large shield,^[c]
and rise up to help me.
³ Use your spear and lance^[d] against^[e] those who chase me.
Assure me with these words:^[f] “I am your deliverer.”
⁴ May those who seek my life be embarrassed and humiliated.
May those who plan to harm me be turned back and ashamed.^[g]
5 May they be^[h] like wind-driven chaff,
as the angel of the Lord^[i] attacks them.^[j]
6 May their path be^[k] dark and slippery,
as the angel of the Lord chases them.
⁷ I did not harm them, but they hid a net to catch me
and dug a pit to trap me.^[l]
8 Let destruction take them by surprise.^[m]
Let the net they hid catch them.
Let them fall into destruction.^[n]
9 Then I will rejoice in the Lord
and be happy because of his deliverance.^[o]
10 With all my strength I will say,^[p]
“O Lord, who can compare to you?
You rescue^[q] the oppressed from those who try to overpower them,^[r]
the oppressed and needy from those who try to rob them.”^[s]
11 Violent men perjure themselves,^[t]
and falsely accuse me.^[u]
12 They repay me evil for the good I have done;^[v]
I am overwhelmed with sorrow.^[w]
13 When they were sick, I wore sackcloth,^[x]
and refrained from eating food.^[y]
(If I am lying, may my prayers go unanswered.)^[z]
14 I mourned for them as I would for a friend or my brother.^[aa]
I bowed down^[ab] in sorrow as if I were mourning for my mother.^[ac]
15 But when I stumbled, they rejoiced and gathered together;
they gathered together to ambush me.^[ad]
They tore at me without stopping to rest.^[ae]
16 When I tripped, they taunted me relentlessly,^[af]
and tried to bite me.^[ag]
17 O Lord, how long are you going to watch this?
Rescue^[ah] me^[ai] from their destructive attacks;
guard my life^[aj] from the young lions.
¹⁸ Then I will give you thanks in the great assembly;^[ak]
I will praise you before a large crowd of people.^[al]
19 Do not let those who are my enemies for no reason^[am] gloat^[an] over me.
Do not let those who hate me without cause carry out their wicked schemes.^[ao]
20 For they do not try to make peace with others,^[ap]
but plan ways to deceive those who live peacefully in the land.^[aq]
21 They are ready to devour me;^[ar]
they say, “Aha! Aha! We’ve got you!”^[as]
22 But you take notice,^[at] Lord; do not be silent!
O Lord, do not remain far away from me.
²³ Rouse yourself, wake up^[au] and vindicate me.^[av]
My God and Lord, defend my just cause.^[aw]
24 Vindicate me by your justice, O Lord my God.
Do not let them gloat^[ax] over me.
²⁵ Do not let them say to themselves,^[ay] “Aha! We have what we wanted!”^[az]
Do not let them say, “We have devoured him.”
²⁶ May those who rejoice in my troubles be totally embarrassed and ashamed.^[ba]
May those who arrogantly taunt me be covered with shame and humiliation.^[bb]
27 May those who desire my vindication shout for joy and rejoice.
May they continually say,^[bc] “May the Lord be praised,^[bd] for he wants his servant to be secure.”^[be]
28 Then I will tell others about your justice,^[bf]
and praise you all day long.^[bg]

Footnotes

1. Psalm 35:1 sn Psalm 35. The author, who faces ruthless enemies who seek his life for no reason, begs the Lord to fight his battles for him and to vindicate him by annihilating his adversaries.
2. Psalm 35:1 tn Or “contend.”
3. Psalm 35:2 tn Two different types of shields are mentioned here. See also Ezek 38:4. Many modern translations render the first term (translated here “small shield”) as “buckler” (cf. NASB “buckler and shield”; the order is often reversed in the translation, apparently for stylistic reasons: cf. NEB, NIV, NRSV “shield and buckler”). The English term “buckler,” referring to a small round shield held on the arm to protect the upper body, is unfamiliar to many modern readers, so the term “small shield” was used in the present translation for clarity.
4. Psalm 35:3 tn Or “javelin.” On the meaning of this word, which occurs only here in the Hebrew Bible, see M. Dahood, Psalms (AB), 1:210-11.
5. Psalm 35:3 tn Heb “draw out spear and lance to meet.”
6. Psalm 35:3 tn Heb “say to me,” or “say to my soul.”
7. Psalm 35:4 tn The four prefixed verbal forms in this verse are understood as jussives. The psalmist is calling judgment down on his enemies. See also the distinct jussive form in v. 6.
8. Psalm 35:5 tn The prefixed verbal form is taken as a jussive. See v. 4.
9. Psalm 35:5 sn See the mention of the angel of the Lord in Ps 34:7.
10. Psalm 35:5 tn Heb “as the angel of the Lord pushes [them].”
11. Psalm 35:6 tn The prefixed verbal form is distinctly jussive, indicating this is a prayer.
12. Psalm 35:7 tc Heb “for without cause they hid for me a pit of their net, without cause they dug for my life.” It appears that the words “pit” and “net” have been transposed. “Net” goes with the verb “hid” in the first line (see v. 8, as well as Pss 9:15; 31:4), while “pit” goes with the verb “dug” in the second line (see Ps 7:15).
13. Psalm 35:8 tn Heb “let destruction [which] he does not know come to him.” The singular is used of the enemy in v. 8, probably in a representative or collective sense. The psalmist has more than one enemy, as vv. 1-7 make clear.
14. Psalm 35:8 tn The psalmist’s prayer for his enemies’ demise continues. See vv. 4-6.
15. Psalm 35:9 tn Heb “then my soul will rejoice in the Lord and be happy in his deliverance.”
16. Psalm 35:10 tn Heb “all my bones will say.”
17. Psalm 35:10 tn Heb “[the one who] rescues.” The substantival participle in the Hebrew text characterizes God as one who typically rescues the oppressed.
18. Psalm 35:10 tn Heb “from [the one who is] too strong for him.” The singular forms are used in a representative sense. The typical oppressed individual and typical oppressor are in view.
19. Psalm 35:10 tn Heb “the oppressed [one] and needy [one] from [the one who] robs him.” As in the previous line, the singular forms are used in a representative sense.
20. Psalm 35:11 tn Heb “witnesses of violence rise up.”
21. Psalm 35:11 tn Heb “[that] which I do not know they ask me.”
22. Psalm 35:12 tn Heb “they repay me evil instead of good.”
23. Psalm 35:12 tn Heb “[there is] bereavement to my soul.”
24. Psalm 35:13 tn Heb “as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth.” Sackcloth was worn by mourners. When the psalmist’s enemies were sick, he was sorry for their misfortune and mourned for them.
25. Psalm 35:13 sn Fasting was also a practice of mourners. By refraining from normal activities, such as eating food, the mourner demonstrated the sincerity of his sorrow.
26. Psalm 35:13 tn Heb “and my prayer upon my chest will return.” One could translate, “but my prayer was returning upon my chest,” but the use of the imperfect verbal form sets this line apart from the preceding and following lines (vv. 13a, 14), which use the perfect to describe the psalmist’s past actions.
27. Psalm 35:14 tn Heb “like a friend, like a brother to me I walked about.”
28. Psalm 35:14 sn I bowed down. Bowing down was a posture for mourning. See Ps 38:6.
29. Psalm 35:14 tn Heb “like mourning for a mother [in] sorrow I bowed down.”
30. Psalm 35:15 tn Heb “they gathered together against me, stricken [ones], and I did not know.” The Hebrew form נֵכִים (nekhim, “stricken ones” ?) is problematic. Some suggest an emendation to נָכְרִים[כְ] (k^enokh^erim, “foreigners”) or “like foreigners,” which would fit with what follows, “[like] foreigners that I do not recognize.” Perhaps the form should be read as a Qal active participle, נֹכִים (nokhim, “ones who strike”) from the verbal root נָכָה (nakhah, “to strike”). The Qal of this verb is unattested in biblical Hebrew, but the peal (basic) stem appears in Old Aramaic (J. Fitzmyer, The Aramaic Inscriptions of Sefire [BibOr], 114; DNWSI 1:730.) In this case one might translate, “attackers gathered together against me though I was not aware of it” (cf. NASB “smiters”; NEB, NRSV “ruffians”; NIV “attackers”).
31. Psalm 35:15 tn Heb “they tore and did not keep quiet.” By using the verb “tear,” the psalmist likens his enemies to a wild animal (see Hos 13:8). In v. 17 he compares them to hungry young lions.
32. Psalm 35:16 tc The MT reads “as profane [ones] of mockers of food,” which is difficult. The present translation assumes (1) an emendation of בְּחַנְפֵי (b^ekhanfe, “as profane men”) to בְּחַנְפִי (bekhanfi, “when I tripped”; preposition + Qal infinitive construct from II חָנַף [“limp”] + first common singular pronominal suffix) and (2) an emendation of לַעֲגֵי מָעוֹג (laʿage maʿog, “mockers of food”) to עָגוּ [ם]לַעְגָּ (laʿgam ʿagu, “[with] taunting they taunted”; masculine plural noun with enclitic mem + Qal perfect third common plural from לַּעַג [laʿag, “taunt”]).
33. Psalm 35:16 tn Heb “gnashing at me with their teeth.” The infinitive absolute adds a complementary action—they gnashed with their teeth as they taunted.
34. Psalm 35:17 tn Heb “bring back, restore.”
35. Psalm 35:17 tn Or “my life.”
36. Psalm 35:17 tn Heb “my only one.” The psalmist may mean that his life is precious, or that he feels isolated and alone (see Ps 22:20). The verb “guard” is supplied in the translation, because the verb “rescue” is understood by ellipsis (see the previous line).
37. Psalm 35:18 sn The great assembly is also mentioned in Ps 22:25.
38. Psalm 35:18 tn Heb “among numerous people.”
39. Psalm 35:19 tn Heb “[with] a lie.” The Hebrew noun שֶׁקֶר (sheqer, “lie”) is used here as an adverb, “falsely, wrongfully” (see Ps 38:19).
40. Psalm 35:19 tn Heb “rejoice.”
41. Psalm 35:19 tn Heb “[do not let] those who hate me without cause pinch [i.e., wink] an eye.” The negative particle is understood in the second line by ellipsis (see the preceding line). In the Book of Proverbs “winking an eye” is associated with deceit and trickery (see 6:13; 10:10; 16:30).
42. Psalm 35:20 tn Heb “for they do not speak peace.”
43. Psalm 35:20 tn Heb “but against the quiet ones of the land words of deceit they plan.” The imperfect verbal forms in v. 20 highlight their characteristic behavior.
44. Psalm 35:21 tn Heb “and they cause their mouth to be wide against me.” The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here carries on the generalizing mood of the previous verse. For other examples of this use of the prefixed verbal form with vav consecutive, see GKC 329 §111.t.
45. Psalm 35:21 tn Heb “our eye sees.” Apparently this is an idiom meaning to “look in triumph” or “gloat over” (see Ps 54:7).
46. Psalm 35:22 tn Heb “you see, O Lord.” There is a deliberate play on words. In v. 21 the enemies say, “our eye sees,” but the psalmist is confident that the Lord “sees” as well, so he appeals to him for help (see also v. 17).
47. Psalm 35:23 sn Though he is confident that the Lord is aware of his situation (see v. 22a), the psalmist compares the Lord’s inactivity to sleep and urges him to wake up.
48. Psalm 35:23 tn Heb “for my justice.”
49. Psalm 35:23 tn Heb “for my cause.”
50. Psalm 35:24 tn Heb “rejoice.”
51. Psalm 35:25 tn Heb “in their heart[s].”
52. Psalm 35:25 tn Heb “Aha! Our desire!” The “desire” of the psalmist’s enemies is to triumph over him.
53. Psalm 35:26 tn Heb “may they be embarrassed and ashamed together, the ones who rejoice over my harm.”
54. Psalm 35:26 tn Heb “may they be clothed with shame and humiliation, the ones who magnify [themselves] against me.” The prefixed verbal forms in v. 26 are understood as jussives (see vv. 24b-25, where the negative particle אַל (ʾal) appears before the prefixed verbal forms, indicating they are jussives). The psalmist is calling down judgment on his enemies.
55. Psalm 35:27 tn The prefixed verbal forms in v. 27a are understood as jussives (see vv. 24b-26).
56. Psalm 35:27 tn The prefixed verbal form is taken as a jussive, “may the Lord be magnified [in praise].” Another option is to take the verb as an imperfect, “the Lord is great.”
57. Psalm 35:27 tn Heb “the one who desires the peace of his servant.”
58. Psalm 35:28 tn Heb “and my tongue will proclaim your justice.”
59. Psalm 35:28 tn Heb “all the day your praise.” The verb “proclaim” is understood by ellipsis in the second line (see the previous line).