Mazmur 75:6-8

75:6 For victory does not come from the east or west,

or from the wilderness. ¹ 

75:7 For God is the judge! ² 

He brings one down and exalts another. ³ 

75:8 For the Lord holds in his hand a cup full

of foaming wine mixed with spices, ⁴ 

and pours it out. ⁵ 

Surely all the wicked of the earth

will slurp it up and drink it to its very last drop.” ⁶ 

[75:6]  ¹ tn Heb “for not from the east or from the west, and not from the wilderness of the mountains.” If one follows this reading the sentence is elliptical. One must supply “does help come,” or some comparable statement. However, it is possible to take הָרִים (harim) as a Hiphil infinitive from רוּם (rum), the same verb used in vv. 4-5 of “lifting up” a horn. In this case one may translate the form as “victory.” In this case the point is that victory does not come from alliances with other nations.

[75:7]  ² tn Or “judges.”

[75:7]  ³ tn The imperfects here emphasize the generalizing nature of the statement.

[75:8]  ⁴ tn Heb “for a cup [is] in the hand of the Lord, and wine foams, it is full of a spiced drink.” The noun מֶסֶךְ (mesekh) refers to a “mixture” of wine and spices.

[75:8]  ⁵ tn Heb “and he pours out from this.”

[75:8]  ⁶ tn Heb “surely its dregs they slurp up and drink, all the wicked of the earth.”

[75:8]  sn The psalmist pictures God as forcing the wicked to gulp down an intoxicating drink that will leave them stunned and vulnerable. Divine judgment is also depicted this way in Ps 60:3; Isa 51:17-23; and Hab 2:16.