Psalm 86
New English Translation
Psalm 86[a]
A prayer of David.
86 Listen,[b] O Lord. Answer me.
For I am oppressed and needy.
2 Protect me,[c] for I am loyal.
You are my God; deliver your servant who trusts in you.
3 Have mercy on me,[d] O Lord,
for I cry out to you all day long.
4 Make your servant[e] glad,
for to you, O Lord, I pray.[f]
5 Certainly,[g] O Lord, you are kind[h] and forgiving,
and show great faithfulness to all who cry out to you.
6 O Lord, hear my prayer.
Pay attention to my plea for mercy.
7 In my time of trouble I cry out to you,
for you will answer me.
8 None can compare to you among the gods, O Lord.
Your exploits are incomparable.[i]
9 All the nations, whom you created,
will come and worship you,[j] O Lord.
They will honor your name.
10 For you are great and do amazing things.
You alone are God.
11 O Lord, teach me how you want me to live.[k]
Then I will obey your commands.[l]
Make me wholeheartedly committed to you.[m]
12 O Lord, my God, I will give you thanks with my whole heart.
I will honor your name continually.[n]
13 For you will extend your great loyal love to me,[o]
and will deliver my life[p] from the depths of Sheol.[q]
14 O God, arrogant men attack me;[r]
a gang[s] of ruthless men, who do not respect you, seek my life.[t]
15 But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and merciful God.
You are patient[u] and demonstrate great loyal love and faithfulness.[v]
16 Turn toward me and have mercy on me.
Give your servant your strength.
Deliver this son of your female servant.[w]
17 Show me evidence of your favor.[x]
Then those who hate me will see it and be ashamed,[y]
for you, O Lord, will help me and comfort me.[z]
Footnotes
- Psalm 86:1 sn Psalm 86. The psalmist appeals to God’s mercy as he asks for deliverance from his enemies.
- Psalm 86:1 tn Heb “turn your ear.”
- Psalm 86:2 tn Heb “my life.”
- Psalm 86:3 tn Or “show me favor.”
- Psalm 86:4 tn Heb “the soul of your servant.”
- Psalm 86:4 tn Heb “I lift up my soul.”
- Psalm 86:5 tn Or “for.”
- Psalm 86:5 tn Heb “good.”
- Psalm 86:8 tn Heb “and there are none like your acts.”
- Psalm 86:9 tn Or “bow down before you.”
- Psalm 86:11 tn Heb “teach me your way.” The Lord’s “way” refers here to the moral principles he expects the psalmist to follow. See Pss 25:4; 27:11.
- Psalm 86:11 tn Heb “I will walk in your truth.” The Lord’s commandments are referred to as “truth” here because they are a trustworthy and accurate expression of the divine will. See Ps 25:5.
- Psalm 86:11 tn Heb “Bind my heart to the fearing of your name.” The verb translated “bind” occurs only here in the Piel stem. It appears twice in the Qal, meaning “be joined” in both cases (Gen 49:6; Isa 14:20). To “fear” God’s name means to have a healthy respect for him which in turn motivates one to obey his commands (see Pss 61:5; 102:15).
- Psalm 86:12 tn Or “forever.”
- Psalm 86:13 tn Heb “for your loyal love [is] great over me.”
- Psalm 86:13 tn Or “for he will have delivered my life.” The verb form indicates a future perfect here.
- Psalm 86:13 tn Or “lower Sheol.”
- Psalm 86:14 tn Heb “rise up against me.”
- Psalm 86:14 tn Or “assembly.”
- Psalm 86:14 tn Heb “seek my life and do not set you before them.” See Ps 54:3.
- Psalm 86:15 tn Heb “slow to anger.”
- Psalm 86:15 tn Heb “and great of loyal love and faithfulness.”sn The psalmist’s confession of faith in this verse echoes Exod 34:6.
- Psalm 86:16 tn Heb “the son of your female servant.” The phrase “son of a female servant” (see also Ps 116:16) is used of a son born to a secondary wife or concubine (Exod 23:12). In some cases the child’s father is the master of the house (see Gen 21:10, 13; Judg 9:18). The phrase may be used metaphorically and idiomatically to emphasize the psalmist’s humility before the Lord and his status as the Lord’s servant. Or it may be a reference to the psalmist’s own mother who also was a servant of the Lord.
- Psalm 86:17 tn Heb “Work with me a sign for good.” The expression “work a sign” also occurs in Judg 6:17.
- Psalm 86:17 tn After the imperative in the preceding line (“work”), the prefixed verb forms with prefixed vav (ו) conjunctive indicate purpose or result.
- Psalm 86:17 tn The perfect verbal forms are understood here as dramatic/rhetorical, expressing the psalmist’s certitude that such a sign from the Lord will be followed by his intervention. Another option is to understand the forms as future perfects (“for you, O Lord, will have helped me and comforted me”).
Psalm 86
Amplified Bible
A Psalm of Supplication and Trust.
A Prayer of David.
86 Incline Your ear, O Lord, and answer me,
For I am distressed and needy [I long for Your help].
2
Protect my life (soul), for I am godly and faithful;
O You my God, save Your servant, who trusts in You [believing in You and relying on You, confidently committing everything to You].
3
Be gracious and merciful to me, O Lord,
For to You I cry out all the day long.
4
Make Your servant rejoice,
For to You, O Lord, I lift up my soul [all that I am—in prayer].
5
For You, O Lord, are good, and ready to forgive [our sins, sending them away, completely letting them go forever and ever];
And abundant in lovingkindness and overflowing in mercy to all those who call upon You.
6
Hear, O Lord, my prayer;
And listen attentively to the voice of my supplications (specific requests)!
7
In the day of my trouble I will call upon You,
For You will answer me.
8
There is no one like You among the gods, O Lord,
Nor are there any works [of wonder and majesty] like Yours.
9
All nations whom You have made shall come and kneel down in worship before You, O Lord,
And they shall glorify Your name.
10
For You are great and do wondrous works!
You alone are God.
11
Teach me Your way, O Lord,
I will walk and live in Your truth;
Direct my heart to fear Your name [with awe-inspired reverence and submissive wonder].(A)
12
I will give thanks and praise You, O Lord my God, with all my heart;
And will glorify Your name forevermore.
13
For great is Your lovingkindness and graciousness toward me;
And You have rescued my life from the depths of Sheol [from death].
14
O God, arrogant and insolent men have risen up against me;
A band of violent men have sought my life,
And they have not set You before them.
15
But You, O Lord, are a God [who protects and is] merciful and gracious,
Slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness and truth.
16
Turn to me, and be gracious to me;
Grant Your strength [Your might and the power to resist temptation] to Your servant,
And save the son of Your handmaid.
17
Show me a sign of [Your] goodwill,
That those who hate me may see it and be ashamed,
Because You, O Lord, helped and comforted me.
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