Mazmur 18:14

18:14 He shot his ¹  arrows and scattered them, ² 

many lightning bolts ³  and routed them. ⁴ 

Mazmur 18:17

18:17 He rescued me from my strong enemy, ⁵ 

from those who hate me,

for they were too strong for me.

Mazmur 22:8

22:8 They say, ⁶ 

“Commit yourself ⁷  to the Lord!

Let the Lord ⁸  rescue him!

Let the Lord ⁹  deliver him, for he delights in him.” ¹⁰ 

Mazmur 34:17

34:17 The godly ¹¹  cry out and the Lord hears;

he saves them from all their troubles. ¹² 

Mazmur 37:40

37:40 The Lord helps them and rescues them;

he rescues them from evil men and delivers them, ¹³ 

for they seek his protection.

Mazmur 106:43

106:43 Many times he delivered ¹⁴  them,

but they had a rebellious attitude, ¹⁵ 

and degraded themselves ¹⁶  by their sin.

Mazmur 107:20

107:20 He sent them an assuring word ¹⁷  and healed them;

he rescued them from the pits where they were trapped. ¹⁸ 

Mazmur 33:19

33:19 by saving their lives from death ¹⁹ 

and sustaining them during times of famine. ²⁰ 

Mazmur 97:10

97:10 You who love the Lord, hate evil!

He protects ²¹  the lives of his faithful followers;

he delivers them from the power ²²  of the wicked.

[18:14]  ¹ tn 2 Sam 22:15 omits the pronominal suffix (“his”).

[18:14]  ² tn The pronominal suffixes on the verbs “scattered” and “routed” (see the next line) refer to the psalmist’s enemies. Some argue that the suffixes refer to the arrows, in which case one might translate “shot them far and wide” and “made them move noisily,” respectively. They argue that the enemies have not been mentioned since v. 4 and are not again mentioned until v. 17. However, usage of the verbs פוּץ (puts, “scatter”) and הָמַם (hamam, “rout”) elsewhere in Holy War accounts suggests the suffixes refer to enemies. Enemies are frequently pictured in such texts as scattered and/or routed (see Exod 14:24; 23:27; Num 10:35; Josh 10:10; Judg 4:15; 1 Sam 7:10; 11:11; Ps 68:1).

[18:14]  ³ sn Lightning is a common motif in in OT theophanies and in ancient Near Eastern portrayals of the storm god and warring kings. See R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological Study of Psalm 18/2 Samuel 22” (Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983), 190-92.

[18:14]  ⁴ tn Heb “lightning bolts, many.” 2 Sam 22:15 has simply “lightning” (בָּרָק, baraq). The identity of the word רָב (rav) in Ps 18:14 is problematic. (1) It may be a form of a rare verb רָבַב (ravav, “to shoot”), perhaps attested in Gen 49:23 as well. In this case one might translate, “he shot lightning bolts and routed them.” Other options include (2) understanding רָב (rav) as an adverbial use of the adjective, “lightning bolts in abundance,” or (3) emending the form to רַבּוּ (rabbu), from רָבַב (ravav, “be many”) or to רָבוּ (ravu), from רָבָה (ravah, “be many”) – both a haplography of the vav (ו); note the initial vav on the immediately following form – and translating “lightning bolts were in abundance.”

[18:14]  sn Arrows and lightning bolts are associated in other texts (see Pss 77:17-18; 144:6; Zech 9:14), as well as in ancient Near Eastern art (see R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological Study of Psalm 18/2 Samuel 22” [Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983], 187).

[18:17]  ⁵ tn The singular refers either to personified death or collectively to the psalmist’s enemies. The following line, which refers to “those [plural] who hate me,” favors the latter.

[22:8]  ⁶ tn The words “they say” are supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons. The psalmist here quotes the sarcastic taunts of his enemies.

[22:8]  ⁷ tn Heb “roll [yourself].” The Hebrew verb גלל here has the sense of “commit” (see Prov 16:3). The imperatival form in the Hebrew text indicates the enemies here address the psalmist. Since they refer to him in the third person in the rest of the verse, some prefer to emend the verb to a perfect, “he commits himself to the Lord.”

[22:8]  ⁸ tn Heb “Let him”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[22:8]  ⁹ tn Heb “Let him”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[22:8]  ¹⁰ tn That is, “for he [the Lord] delights in him [the psalmist].” For other cases where the expression “delight in” refers to God’s delight in a person, see Num 14:8; 1 Kgs 10:9; Pss 18:19; 40:8.

[22:8]  sn This statement does not necessarily reflect the enemies’ actual belief, but it does reflect the psalmist’s confession. The psalmist’s enemies sarcastically appeal to God to help him, because he claims to be an object of divine favor. However, they probably doubted the reality of his claim.

[34:17]  ¹¹ tn Heb “they” (i.e., the godly mentioned in v. 15).

[34:17]  ¹² tn The three perfect verbal forms are taken in a generalizing sense in v. 17 and translated with the present tense (note the generalizing mood of vv. 18-22).

[37:40]  ¹³ tn The prefixed verbal forms with vav (ו) consecutive carry on the generalizing tone of the preceding verse.

[106:43]  ¹⁴ tn The prefixed verbal form is either preterite or imperfect, in which case it is customary, describing repeated action in past time (“he would deliver”).

[106:43]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “but they rebelled in their counsel.” The prefixed verbal form is either preterite or imperfect, in which case it is customary, describing repeated action in past time (“they would have a rebellious attitude”).

[106:43]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “they sank down.” The Hebrew verb מָכַךְ (makhakh, “to lower; to sink”) occurs only here in the Qal.

[107:20]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “he sent his word.” This probably refers to an oracle of assurance which announced his intention to intervene (see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 [WBC], 59).

[107:20]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “he rescued from their traps.” The Hebrew word שְׁחִית (shekhit, “trap”) occurs only here and in Lam 4:20, where it refers to a trap or pit in which one is captured. Because of the rarity of the term and the absence of an object with the verb “rescued,” some prefer to emend the text of Ps 107:20, reading מִשַׁחַת חַיָּתָם (mishakhat khayyatam, “[he rescued] their lives from the pit”). Note also NIV “from the grave,” which interprets the “pit” as Sheol or the grave.

[33:19]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “to save from death their live[s].”

[33:19]  ²⁰ tn Heb “and to keep them alive in famine.”

[97:10]  ²¹ tn The participle may be verbal, though it might also be understood as substantival and appositional to “the Lord.” In this case one could translate, “Hate evil, you who love the Lord, the one who protects the lives…and delivers them.”

[97:10]  ²² tn Heb “hand.”