Psalms 94
94
PSALM 94
Common Meter: 8,6,8,6
1O Lord God, unto whom alone
all vengeance doth belong;
O mighty God, who vengeance own'st,
shine forth, avenging wrong.
2Lift up thyself, thou of the earth
the sov'reign Judge that art;
And unto those that are so proud
a due reward impart.
3How long, O mighty God, shall they
who lewd and wicked be,
How long shall they who wicked are
thus triumph haughtily?
4How long shall things most hard by them
be uttered and told?
And all that work iniquity
to boast themselves be bold?
5Thy folk they break in pieces, Lord,
thine heritage oppress:
6The widow they and stranger slay,
and kill the fatherless.
7Yet say they, God it shall not see,
nor God of Jacob know.
8Ye brutish people! understand;
fools! when wise will ye grow?
9The Lord did plant the ear of man,
and hear then shall not he?
He only form'd the eye, and
then shall he not clearly see?
10He that the nations doth correct,
shall he not chastise you?
He knowledge unto man doth teach,
and shall himself not know?
11Man's thoughts to be but vanity
the Lord doth well discern.
12Bless'd is the man thou chast'nest, Lord,
and mak'st thy law to learn:
13That thou may'st give him rest from days
of sad adversity,
Until the pit be digg'd for those
that work iniquity.
14For sure the Lord will not cast off
those that his people be,
Neither his own inheritance
quit and forsake will he:
15But judgment unto righteousness
shall yet return again;
And all shall follow after it
that are right-hearted men.
16Who will rise up for me against
those that do wickedly?
Who will stand up for me 'gainst those
that work iniquity?
17Unless the Lord had been my help
when I was sore opprest,
Almost my soul had in the house
of silence been at rest.
18When I had uttered this word,
(my foot doth slip away,)
Thy mercy held me up, O Lord,
thy goodness did me stay.
19Amidst the multitude of thoughts
which in my heart do fight,
My soul, lest it be overcharg'd,
thy comforts do delight.
20Shall of iniquity the throne
have fellowship with thee,
Which mischief, cunningly contriv'd,
doth by a law decree?
21Against the righteous souls they join,
they guiltless blood condemn.
22But of my refuge God's the rock,
and my defence from them.
23On them their own iniquity
the Lord shall bring and lay,
And cut them off in their own sin;
our Lord God shall them slay.
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Psalms 94: MP1650
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maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society
Psalms 94
94
Psalm 94#sn Psalm 94. The psalmist asks God to judge the wicked and affirms his confidence in God’s justice.
1 O Lord, the God who avenges!
O God who avenges, reveal your splendor!#tn Heb “shine forth” (see Pss 50:2; 80:1).
2 Rise up, O judge of the earth!
Pay back the proud!
3 O Lord, how long will the wicked,
how long will the wicked celebrate?#tn Or “exult.”
4 They spew out threats#tn Heb “they gush forth [words].” and speak defiantly;
all the evildoers boast.#tn The Hitpael of אָמַר (’amar) occurs only here (and perhaps in Isa 61:6).
5 O Lord, they crush your people;
they oppress the nation that belongs to you.#tn Or “your inheritance.”
6 They kill the widow and the one residing outside his native land,
and they murder the fatherless.#tn The Hebrew noun יָתוֹם (yatom) refers to one who has lost his father (not necessarily his mother, see Ps 109:9). Because they were so vulnerable and were frequently exploited, fatherless children are often mentioned as epitomizing the oppressed (see Pss 10:14; 68:5; 82:3; 146:9; as well as Job 6:27; 22:9; 24:3, 9; 29:12; 31:17, 21).
7 Then they say, “The Lord does not see this;
the God of Jacob does not take notice of it.”#tn Heb “does not understand.”
8 Take notice of this,#tn Heb “understand.” The verb used in v. 7 is repeated here for rhetorical effect. The people referred to here claim God is ignorant of their actions, but the psalmist corrects their faulty viewpoint. you ignorant people!#tn Heb “[you] brutish among the people.”
You fools, when will you ever understand?
9 Does the one who makes the human ear not hear?
Does the one who forms the human eye not see?#tn Heb “The one who plants an ear, does he not hear? The one who forms an eye, does he not see?”
10 Does the one who disciplines the nations not punish?
He is the one who imparts knowledge to human beings!
11 The Lord knows that
peoples’ thoughts are morally bankrupt.#tn Heb “the Lord knows the thoughts of man, that they are emptiness.” The psalmist thinks specifically of the “thoughts” expressed in v. 7.
12 How blessed is the one#tn Heb “[Oh] the happiness [of] the man.” Hebrew wisdom literature often assumes and reflects the male-oriented perspective of ancient Israelite society. The principle of the psalm is certainly applicable to all people, regardless of their gender or age. To facilitate modern application, we translate the gender and age specific “man” with the more neutral “one.” The generic masculine pronoun is used in v. 2. whom you instruct, O Lord,
the one whom you teach from your law,
13 in order to protect him from times of trouble,#tn Heb “to give him rest from the days of trouble.”
until the wicked are destroyed.#tn Heb “until a pit is dug for the wicked.”
14 Certainly#tn Or “for.” the Lord does not forsake his people;
he does not abandon the nation that belongs to him.#tn Or “his inheritance.”
15 For justice will prevail,#tn Heb “for judgment will return to justice.”
and all the morally upright#tn Heb “all the pure of heart.” The “heart” is here viewed as the seat of one’s moral character and motives. The “pure of heart” are God’s faithful followers who trust in and love the Lord and, as a result, experience his deliverance (see Pss 7:10; 11:2; 32:11; 36:10; 64:10; 97:11). will be vindicated.#tn Heb “and after it [are] the pure of heart.”
16 Who will rise up to defend me#tn Heb “for me.” against the wicked?
Who will stand up for me against the evildoers?#sn Who will stand up for me…? The questions anticipate the answer, “No one except God” (see v. 17).
17 If the Lord had not helped me,
I would have laid down in the silence of death.#tn Heb “If the Lord [were] not my help, quickly my life would have lain down in silence.” The psalmist, perhaps speaking as the nation’s representative, recalls God’s past intervention. For other examples of conditional sentences with the term לוּלֵי (luley, “if not”) in the protasis and a perfect verbal form in the apodosis, see Pss 119:92 and 124:2-5.
18 If I say, “My foot is slipping,”
your loyal love, O Lord, supports me.
19 When worries threaten to overwhelm me,#tn Heb “when my worries are many within me.”
your soothing touch makes me happy.#tn Heb “your comforts cause my soul to delight.”
20 Cruel rulers#tn Heb “a throne of destruction.” “Throne” stands here by metonymy for rulers who occupy thrones. are not your allies,
those who make oppressive laws.#tn Heb “Is a throne of destruction united to you, one that forms trouble upon a statute?” The rhetorical question anticipates the answer, “Of course not!” The translation, while not preserving the interrogative form of the statement, reflects its rhetorical force.
21 They conspire against#tn Or “attack.” the blameless,#tn Heb “the life of the blameless.”
and condemn to death the innocent.#tn Heb “and the blood of the innocent they declare guilty.”
22 But the Lord will protect me,#tn Heb “and the Lord has become my elevated place.” The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive is used in a rhetorical sense, describing an anticipated development as if it were already reality.
and my God will shelter me.#tn Heb “and my God [has become] a rocky summit of my safety.”
23 He will pay them back for their sin.#tn The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive is used in a rhetorical sense, describing an anticipated development as if it were already reality.
He will destroy them because of#tn Or “in.” their evil;
the Lord our God will destroy them.
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