The Lord preserves the faithful,
but abundantly repays the one who acts haughtily.
Be strong, and let your heart take courage,
all you who wait for the Lord.
I have studied the thirty-first psalm more carefully than any other.
But today I noticed something new.
Above are the final verses.
In the original Hebrew the second clause of the second verse is:
אֱמוּנִים, נֹצֵר יְהוָה; וּמְשַׁלֵּם עַל-יֶתֶר, עֹשֵׂה גַאֲוָה.
Rather than repaying the haughty, I read: completing or fulfilling the expansive maker.
The verb is shalam: to make whole, complete, fulfill.
The adjective/noun is ga'avah 'asah. The doer, maker, worker, designer is rising up, emerging, lifted up, exalted.
The more negative translation is certainly possible, but not necessary.
And, at least for me - on this day - the more positive translation seems more coherent with the remainder of the psalm and my understanding of God.
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