Mazmur 22:8

22:8 They say, ¹ 

“Commit yourself ²  to the Lord!

Let the Lord ³  rescue him!

Let the Lord ⁴  deliver him, for he delights in him.” ⁵ 

Mazmur 81:12

81:12 I gave them over to their stubborn desires; ⁶ 

they did what seemed right to them. ⁷ 

[22:8]  ¹ 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]  ² 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]  ³ tn Heb “Let him”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[22:8]  ⁴ tn Heb “Let him”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[22:8]  ⁵ 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.

[81:12]  ⁶ tn Heb “and I sent him away in the stubbornness of their heart.”

[81:12]  ⁷ tn Heb “they walked in their counsel.” The prefixed verbal form is either preterite (“walked”) or a customary imperfect (“were walking”).