Verse 11 reports the killing of the Israelites in battle: they were slaughtered like sheep and the survivors were taken as prisoners of war to foreign countries. The psalmist continues to insist that God is responsible for these tragic defeats. The Good News Translation expression “foreign countries” can sometimes be translated “far away where the other tribes live.”

The expression sold thy people is a common figure of speech in the Old Testament. If in translation one must indicate to whom the people have been sold, the implication is “sold thy people as slaves to their enemies.”

In particularly bitter terms (verse 12) the psalmist says that God has sold his own people for a trifle, that is, for an insignificant amount. The second line of verse 12 can be taken to mean “you did not ask a large amount for them” (see Revised Standard Version) or “you made no profit from the sale” (Good News Translation footnote; see New Jerusalem Bible, New English Bible, New International Version, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy, Bible en français courant); the latter is probably the best way to translate this line. The verse accuses God of having little, if any, feeling for his people. As Oesterley comments, “Such irreverent sarcasm is without parallel in the psalms.”

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Reyburn, William D. A Handbook on the Book of Psalms. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1991. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .