Translations
For the worship leader; to be played on strings. A wisdom psalm of David. Written when the Ziphites went to Saul and said, "Isn't David hiding among us?"
Save me, O God, by the power of Your name; vindicate me by Your strength.
For the director of music; with stringed instruments. A Maskil of David. When the Ziphim came and said to Sha'ul, "Is not David hiding himself among us?"
O Elohim, by Your name save me; by Your might vindicate me.
To the chief Musician on Neginoth, Maschil, A Psalm of David, when the Ziphims came and said to Saul, Doth not David hide himself with us?
Save me, O God, by thy name, and judge me by thy strength.
For the choirmaster. With stringed instruments. A Maskil of David. When the Ziphites went to Saul and said, “Is David not hiding among us?”
Save me, O God, by Your name, and vindicate me by Your might!
Footnotes
The superscription occupies vv.1–2 in Hebrew numbering; English translations treat it as an unnumbered heading, with the psalm proper beginning at English v.1 (Hebrew v.3). The historical setting alludes to 1 Samuel 23:19, when the Ziphites betrayed David's location to Saul, a moment of stinging abandonment by fellow Israelites. The appeal to shem ("name") is no mere title; in ANE thought, the name was the person and their concentrated power. Maskil likely denotes a contemplative or instructional composition — wisdom forged in the furnace of crisis. FOG renders "by Your name" literally; FOG Message expands to "by the power of Your name" to draw out the name as an active, saving force.
