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18 Yes,[a] I confess my wrongdoing,
and I am concerned about my sins.
19 But those who are my enemies for no reason are numerous;[b]
those who hate me without cause outnumber me.[c]
20 They repay me evil for the good I have done;
though I have tried to do good to them, they hurl accusations at me.[d]

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Footnotes

  1. Psalm 38:18 tn Or “for.” The translation assumes that כִּי (ki) is asseverative here.
  2. Psalm 38:19 tn Heb “and my enemies, life, are many.” The noun חַיִּים (khayyim, “life”) fits very awkwardly here. The translation assumes an emendation to חִנָּם (khinnam, “without reason”; note the parallelism with שֶׁקֶר [sheqer, “falsely”] and see Pss 35:19; 69:4; Lam 3:52). The verb עָצַם (ʿatsam) can sometimes mean “are strong,” but here it probably focuses on numerical superiority (note the parallel verb רָבַב, ravav, “be many”).
  3. Psalm 38:19 tn Heb “are many.”
  4. Psalm 38:20 tn Heb “the ones who repay evil instead of good accuse me, instead of my pursuing good.”