Psalm 41:4-10
New English Translation
4 As for me, I said:[a]
“O Lord, have mercy on me!
Heal me, for I have sinned against you.
5 My enemies ask this cruel question about me,[b]
‘When will he finally die and be forgotten?’[c]
6 When someone comes to visit,[d] he pretends to be friendly;[e]
he thinks of ways to defame me,[f]
and when he leaves he slanders me.[g]
7 All who hate me whisper insults about me to one another;[h]
they plan ways to harm me.
8 They say,[i]
‘An awful disease[j] overwhelms him,[k]
and now that he is bedridden he will never recover.’[l]
9 Even my close friend[m] whom I trusted,
he who shared meals with me, has turned against me.[n]
10 As for you, O Lord, have mercy on me and raise me up,
so I can pay them back!”[o]
Footnotes
- Psalm 41:4 sn In vv. 4-10 the psalmist recites the prayer of petition and lament he offered to the Lord.
- Psalm 41:5 tn Heb “my enemies speak evil concerning me.”
- Psalm 41:5 tn Heb “and his name perish.”
- Psalm 41:6 tn Heb “to see.”
- Psalm 41:6 tn Heb “he speaks deceitfully.”
- Psalm 41:6 tn Heb “his heart gathers sin to itself.”
- Psalm 41:6 tn Heb “he goes outside and speaks.”
- Psalm 41:7 tn Heb “together against me they whisper, all those who hate me.” The Hitpael of לָחַשׁ (lakhash) refers here to whispering to one another (see 2 Sam 12:19).
- Psalm 41:8 tn The words “they say” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation to make it clear that v. 8 contains a quotation of what the psalmist’s enemies say about him (see v. 7a).
- Psalm 41:8 tn Heb “thing of worthlessness.” In Ps 101:3 the phrase refers to evil deeds in general, but here it appears to refer more specifically to the illness that plagues the psalmist.
- Psalm 41:8 tn Heb “is poured out on him.” The passive participle of יָצַק (yatsaq) is used.
- Psalm 41:8 tn Heb “and he who lies down will not again arise.”
- Psalm 41:9 tn Heb “man of my peace.” The phrase here refers to one’s trusted friend (see Jer 38:22; Obad 7).
- Psalm 41:9 tn Heb “has made a heel great against me.” The precise meaning of this phrase, which appears only here, is uncertain.sn The language of this verse is applied to Judas Iscariot in John 13:18.
- Psalm 41:10 tn The cohortative with prefixed vav (ו) here indicates purpose or result (“Then I will repay them”) after the preceding imperatives.
NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.