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1O Lord , I come before you in prayer.[#tn Heb “to you, O Lord, my life I lift up.” To “lift up” one’s “life” to the Lord means to express one’s trust in him through prayer. See Pss 86:4; 143:8.]
2My God, I trust in you.
Please do not let me be humiliated;
do not let my enemies triumphantly rejoice over me!
3Certainly none who rely on you will be humiliated.
Those who deal in treachery will be thwarted and humiliated.
4Make me understand your ways, O Lord !
Teach me your paths!
5Guide me into your truth and teach me.[#sn The Lord’s commandments are referred to as truth here because they are a trustworthy and accurate expression of the divine will.]
For you are the God who delivers me;
on you I rely all day long.
6Remember your compassionate and faithful deeds, O Lord ,[#tn That is, “remember” with the intention of repeating.]
for you have always acted in this manner.
7Do not hold against me the sins of my youth or my rebellious acts![#tn Heb “do not remember,” with the intention of punishing.; #sn That is, the sins characteristic of youths, who lack moral discretion and wisdom.]
Because you are faithful to me, extend to me your favor, O Lord !
8The Lord is both kind and fair;[#tn Heb “good and just.”]
that is why he teaches sinners the right way to live.
9May he show the humble what is right![#tn The prefixed verbal form is jussive; the psalmist expresses his prayer.; #tn Heb “may he guide the humble into justice.” The Hebrew term עֲנָוִים (’anavim, “humble”) usually refers to the oppressed, but in this context, where the psalmist confesses his sin and asks for moral guidance, it apparently refers to sinners who humble themselves before God and seek deliverance from their sinful condition.]
May he teach the humble his way!
10The Lord always proves faithful and reliable[#tn Heb “all the paths of the Lord are faithful and trustworthy.” The Lord’s “paths” refer here to his characteristic actions.]
to those who follow the demands of his covenant.
11For the sake of your reputation, O Lord ,[#tn Heb “name.” By forgiving the sinful psalmist, the Lord’s reputation as a merciful God will be enhanced.]
forgive my sin, because it is great.
12The Lord shows his faithful followers
the way they should live.
13They experience his favor;[#tn Heb “his life in goodness dwells.” The singular is representative (see v. 14).]
their descendants inherit the land.
14The Lord ’s loyal followers receive his guidance,[#tn Heb “the advice of the Lord belongs to those who fear him.”]
and he reveals his covenantal demands to them.
15I continually look to the Lord for help,[#tn Heb “my eyes continually [are] toward the Lord.”]
for he will free my feet from the enemy’s net.
16Turn toward me and have mercy on me,
for I am alone and oppressed!
17Deliver me from my distress;[#tc Heb “the distresses of my heart, they make wide.” The text makes little if any sense as it stands, unless this is an otherwise unattested intransitive use of the Hiphil of רָחַב (rakhav, “be wide”). It is preferable to emend the form הִרְחִיבוּ (hirkhivu; Hiphil perfect third plural “they make wide”) to הַרְחֵיב (harkhev; Hiphil imperative masculine singular “make wide”). (The final vav [ו] can be joined to the following word and taken as a conjunction.) In this case one can translate, “[in/from] the distresses of my heart, make wide [a place for me],” that is, “deliver me from the distress I am experiencing.” For the expression “make wide [a place for me],” see Ps 4:1.]
rescue me from my suffering!
18See my pain and suffering!
Forgive all my sins!
19Watch my enemies, for they outnumber me;
they hate me and want to harm me.
20Protect me and deliver me![#tn Or “my life.”]
Please do not let me be humiliated,
for I have taken shelter in you!
21May integrity and godliness protect me,
for I rely on you!
22O God, rescue Israel[#tn Or “redeem.”]
from all their distress!