Psalms 82:2–4
God asks the judges to stop their injustice and rescue the poor and needy
Study it word by word2“How long will you judge unjustly, and lift the face of the wicked? Selah.
3Judge the poor and the orphan; do justice to the afflicted and the destitute.
4Bring to safety the poor and the needy; from the hand of the wicked deliver them.
In its context
1A psalm of Asaph. Elohim stands in the community of El; in the midst of the gods he judges.
…
5They do not know, and they do not understand; in darkness they walk about; all the foundations of the earth are shaken.
6I said, ‘You are gods, and sons of Elyon, all of you.
Its words in the original
- מָתַיmatay· when?
When? How long?
- תִּשְׁפְּטוּtishptu· judge
Judge: decide who is in the right and do him justice; also punish. Also rule, govern.
- עָוֶלavel· injustice, wrong
Injustice; what is crooked, what is not right.
- פְנֵיfene· face, presence
Face. From there "surface" (the face of something) and "presence" (being before someone's face); with a preposition it means "before" or "in front of".
- רְשָׁעִיםreshaim· wicked
Wicked: one who does evil and is guilty before God and before others.
- תִּשְׂאוּtisu· lift, carry, bear
Lift up, carry, bear. "Bear sin" is to suffer its consequences; said of God, "taking away" sin is forgiving it. "Lift up the eyes" is to look.
- סֶלָהsela· Selah
Selah: a word found at the end of some stanzas of the psalms. It is probably a direction for the music or a pause; its exact sense is unknown, so it is left in Hebrew.
- דַלdal· poor, weak
Poor, weak: one who has little and little strength to defend himself.
- יָתוֹםyatom· fatherless
Orphan; above all one who has lost his father.
- עָנִיani· poor, afflicted
Poor, afflicted: one who suffers need and has no one to defend him; also humble.
- רָשׁrash· be poor
Be poor, lack possessions.
- הַצְדִּיקוּhatsdiku· be righteous, justify
Be in the right, be righteous; in another form, declare righteous, justify.
- פַּלְּטוּpaltu· escape, deliver
To escape, to get to safety; and, when someone does it for another, to bring to safety, to deliver. From this root comes "fugitive."
- אֶבְיוֹןevyon· needy
Needy: one who depends on the help of others.
- יַּדyad· hand, power
Hand. Figuratively, power or control ("into the hand of" = into the power of); also side, part, or share. Also a projecting piece, such as a tenon.
- הַצִּילוּhatsilu· rescue, deliver
Snatch away, take away; very often, deliver or rescue from danger. In another form, strip oneself of something.