The psalmist’s prayer concludes with one final plea for Yahweh’s love and mercy. And the psalmist reproaches Yahweh for having gone back on his promises to King David.
It should be noted that Lord in verses 49 and 50 translates the Hebrew title adonai; in verses 46, 51, and 52 “LORD” translates the Hebrew Yahweh.
Verse 49 is a long, rather complex rhetorical question, and it is advisable to divide it into two separate questions, as in Good News Translation. Or else “Where are your former acts of steadfast love … your faithful promises which you made to David?” (similarly Bible en français courant, New English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible). Biblia Dios Habla Hoy and New International Version are like Revised Standard Version, with the one subject (thy steadfast love) for the two lines. In verse 49a the plural of chesed (see 5.7) is translated by Good News Translation “proofs of (your) love,” and in verse 49b ʾemunah (see 36.5) is represented by “the promises,” as in verse 33b. In some languages it is not possible to ask where abstracts such as love and promises are. If the translator follows the lead of Good News Translation, it may be necessary to render this as, for example, “What can you do to show us that you love us as you used to do, and that you have kept the promises you made to David?”
In verse 50 the first person singular is the subject of the verb in line b; Good News Translation, for clarity, has also included it in line a, “I, your servant.” The Masoretic text is plural “your servants” (so New Jerusalem Bible, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, New American Bible, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy), which probably means the people of Israel; many Hebrew manuscripts have the singular “your servant” (Good News Translation, Revised Standard Version, An American Translation, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, Bible en français courant, New English Bible, Bible de Jérusalem, New Jerusalem Bible). Dahood understands the plural as “plural of majesty,” a reference to the king. It seems better to follow the Hebrew manuscripts that have the singular.
In verse 50b the Masoretic text seems deficient; literally it is “I bear in my bosom all the many peoples.” Traduction œcuménique de la Bible understands the Masoretic text to mean “all these people of whom I am in charge.” Most translations emend the text to get “all the curses” or “all the insults” (An American Translation, Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation, New English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, New International Version, New American Bible, Weiser). New Jerusalem Bible translates line b as a relative clause, “that I have borne in my bosom [from] many people.”49-51 Hebrew Old Testament Text Project gives two possible interpretations of this verse, without indicating which one is preferable: (1) “remember, O LORD, the shame of your servants, what I bear in my bosom, (from) all the numerous peoples”; (2) “remember, O LORD, the shame of your servants, all the numerous peoples (which) I bear (with love) in my bosom.” It seems best to go with the majority here. If “the heathen” are taken as the ones who insult and curse the king, then in many languages which do not use the passive, verse 50a may be rendered “Do not forget how the tribes who do not worship you insult and curse me, your servant.” In this way the two lines may have to be reduced to one.
In verse 51a thy enemies refers to the peoples (that is, the pagan Gentiles) of verse 50b. In verse 51a there is no object for the verb mock; Good News Translation takes it to be thy anointed of line b, and so transfers it to line a, “your chosen king” (see verse 38a) and uses “him” in line b. The same Hebrew verb is used in both lines; Revised Standard Version varies with taunt and mock.
Good News Translation takes the footsteps to mean “wherever he goes” (see Anderson); so Biblia Dios Habla Hoy “at every step.” Traduction œcuménique de la Bible understands the verbal clause in line b to mean “by spitting on the footsteps of your anointed one.” It is not clear how this meaning was arrived at.
Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Reyburn, William D. A Handbook on the Book of Psalms. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1991. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .