Psalm 44/Notes/Phrasal.V. 23.219656
From Psalms: Layer by Layer
- כָל־הַיּוֹם ("all day long"): Indication of duration of time. This noun phrase specifies the temporal duration of the psalmist's experience of the threat of death. The focus appears to be on the experience's continuous—rather than unending—nature, as the psalmist is requesting that God deliver him from it.
- עָלֶי-ךָ ("because of you"): The preposition עַל can indicate indirect goal, "for the sake of" (BHRG, §39.20.3c), or cause, "because of" (Ibid, §39.20.4). The distinction between goals and causes can be difficult to distinguish (IBHS, §11.2.13e). However, within the present context of lament, the portrayal of God as the active agent in the psalmist's suffering points to a causal nuance.
- כְּ-צֹאן טִבְחָֽה׃ ("as sheep for slaughtering"): The preposition כ frequently indicates similarity (BHRG, §39.10.1).