Psalm 30

¹I will praise you, O Lord , for you lifted me up,[#tn Elsewhere the verb דָּלָה (dalah) is used of drawing water from a well (Exod 2:16, 19; Prov 20:5). The psalmist was trapped in the pit leading to Sheol (see v. 3), but the Lord hoisted him up. The Piel stem is used here, perhaps suggesting special exertion on the Lord’s part.]

and did not allow my enemies to gloat over me.

²O Lord my God,

I cried out to you and you healed me.

³O Lord , you pulled me up from Sheol;[#tn Or “my life.”]

you rescued me from among those descending into the grave.

⁴Sing to the Lord , you faithful followers of his;[#tn A “faithful follower” (חָסִיד) is one who does what is right in God’s eyes and remains faithful to God (see Pss 4:3; 12:1; 16:10; 31:23; 37:28; 86:2; 97:10).]

give thanks to his holy name.

⁵For his anger lasts only a brief moment,

and his good favor restores one’s life.

One may experience sorrow during the night,

but joy arrives in the morning.

⁶In my self-confidence I said,

“I will never be upended.”

⁷O Lord , in your good favor you made me secure.[#tn Heb “in your good favor you caused to stand for my mountain strength.” Apparently this means “you established strength for my mountain” (“mountain” in this case representing his rule, which would be centered on Mt. Zion) or “you established strength as my mountain” (“mountain” in this case being a metaphor for security).]

Then you rejected me and I was terrified.

⁸To you, O Lord , I cried out;

I begged the Lord for mercy:

⁹“What profit is there in taking my life,[#sn The following two verses (vv. 9-10) contain the prayer (or an excerpt of the prayer) that the psalmist offered to the Lord during his crisis.; #tn Heb “What profit [is there] in my blood?” “Blood” here represents his life.]

in my descending into the Pit?

Can the dust of the grave praise you?

Can it declare your loyalty?

¹⁰Hear, O Lord , and have mercy on me!

O Lord , deliver me!”

¹¹Then you turned my lament into dancing;

you removed my sackcloth and covered me with joy.

¹²So now my heart will sing to you and not be silent;[#tn Heb “so that”; or “in order that.”; #tn Heb “glory.” Some view כָבוֹד (khavod, “glory”) here as a metonymy for man’s inner being (see BDB 459 s.v. II כָּבוֹד 5), but it is preferable to emend the form to כְּבֵדִי (kÿvediy, “my liver”). Like the heart, the liver is viewed as the seat of one’s emotions. See also Pss 16:9; 57:9; 108:1, as well as H. W. Wolff, Anthropology of the Old Testament, 64, and M. Dahood, Psalms (AB), 1:90. For an Ugaritic example of the heart/liver as the source of joy, see G. R. Driver, Canaanite Myths and Legends, 47-48: “her [Anat’s] liver swelled with laughter, her heart was filled with joy, the liver of Anat with triumph.” “Heart” is used in the translation above for the sake of English idiom; the expression “my liver sings” would seem odd indeed to the modern reader.]

O Lord my God, I will always give thanks to you.