Psalm 63:1-3

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Psalm 63:1 sn Psalm 63. The psalmist expresses his intense desire to be in God’s presence and confidently affirms that God will judge his enemies.
2. Psalm 63:1 sn According to the psalm superscription David wrote the psalm while in the “wilderness of Judah.” Perhaps this refers to the period described in 1 Sam 23-24 or to the incident mentioned in 2 Sam 15:23.
3. Psalm 63:1 tn Or “I will seek you.”
4. Psalm 63:1 tn Or “I thirst.”
5. Psalm 63:1 tn Heb “faint” or “weary.” This may picture the land as “faint” or “weary,” or it may allude to the effect this dry desert has on those who are forced to live in it.
6. Psalm 63:2 tn The Hebrew particle כֵּן (ken) is used here to stress the following affirmation (see Josh 2:4).
7. Psalm 63:2 tn The perfect verbal form is understood here as referring to a past experience which the psalmist desires to be repeated. Another option is to take the perfect as indicating the psalmist’s certitude that he will again stand in God’s presence in the sanctuary. In this case one can translate, “I will see you.”
8. Psalm 63:2 tn Heb “seeing.” The preposition with the infinitive construct here indicates an accompanying circumstance.
9. Psalm 63:3 tn This line is understood as giving the basis for the praise promised in the following line. Another option is to take the Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) as asseverative/emphasizing, “Indeed, your loyal love is better” (cf. NEB, which leaves the particle untranslated).
10. Psalm 63:3 tn The word “experiencing” is supplied in the translation for clarification. The psalmist does not speak here of divine loyal love in some abstract sense, but of loyal love revealed and experienced.