Mazmur 46:9

46:9 He brings an end to wars throughout the earth; ¹ 

he shatters ²  the bow and breaks ³  the spear;

he burns ⁴  the shields with fire. ⁵ 

Mazmur 46:2

46:2 For this reason we do not fear ⁶  when the earth shakes, ⁷ 

and the mountains tumble into the depths of the sea, ⁸ 

Mazmur 14:1

Psalm 14 ⁹ 

For the music director; by David.

14:1 Fools say to themselves, ¹⁰  “There is no God.” ¹¹ 

They sin and commit evil deeds; ¹² 

none of them does what is right. ¹³ 

Mazmur 14:1

Psalm 14 ¹⁴ 

For the music director; by David.

14:1 Fools say to themselves, ¹⁵  “There is no God.” ¹⁶ 

They sin and commit evil deeds; ¹⁷ 

none of them does what is right. ¹⁸ 

Mazmur 20:1

Psalm 20 ¹⁹ 

For the music director; a psalm of David.

20:1 May the Lord answer ²⁰  you ²¹  when you are in trouble; ²² 

may the God of Jacob ²³  make you secure!

Mazmur 32:1

Psalm 32 ²⁴ 

By David; a well-written song. ²⁵ 

32:1 How blessed ²⁶  is the one whose rebellious acts are forgiven, ²⁷ 

whose sin is pardoned! ²⁸ 

Yesaya 37:35-36

37:35 I will shield this city and rescue it for the sake of my reputation and because of my promise to David my servant.”’” ²⁹ 

37:36 The Lord’s messenger ³⁰  went out and killed 185,000 troops ³¹  in the Assyrian camp. When they ³²  got up early the next morning, there were all the corpses! ³³ 

Yehezkiel 39:3-4

39:3 I will knock your bow out of your left hand and make your arrows fall from your right hand. 39:4 You will fall dead on the mountains of Israel, you and all your troops and the people who are with you. I give you as food to every kind of bird and every wild beast.

Yehezkiel 39:9-10

39:9 “‘Then those who live in the cities of Israel will go out and use the weapons for kindling ³⁴  – the shields, ³⁵  bows and arrows, war clubs and spears – they will burn them for seven years. 39:10 They will not need to take ³⁶  wood from the field or cut down trees from the forests, because they will make fires with the weapons. They will take the loot from those who looted them and seize the plunder of those who plundered them, ³⁷  declares the sovereign Lord.

[46:9]  ¹ tn Heb “[the] one who causes wars to cease unto the end of the earth.” The participle continues the description begun in v. 8b and indicates that this is the Lord’s characteristic activity. Ironically, he brings peace to the earth by devastating the warlike, hostile nations (vv. 8, 9b).

[46:9]  ² tn The verb שָׁבַר (shavar, “break”) appears in the Piel here (see Ps 29:5). In the OT it occurs thirty-six times in the Piel, always with multiple objects (the object is either a collective singular or grammatically plural or dual form). The Piel may highlight the repetition of the pluralative action, or it may suggest an intensification of action, indicating repeated action comprising a whole, perhaps with the nuance “break again and again, break in pieces.” Another option is to understand the form as resultative: “make broken” (see IBHS 404-7 §24.3). The imperfect verbal form carries on and emphasizes the generalizing nature of the description.

[46:9]  ³ tn The perfect verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive carries along the generalizing emphasis of the preceding imperfect.

[46:9]  ⁴ tn The imperfect verbal form carries on and emphasizes the generalizing nature of the description.

[46:9]  ⁵ tn Heb “wagons he burns with fire.” Some read “chariots” here (cf. NASB), but the Hebrew word refers to wagons or carts, not chariots, elsewhere in the OT. In this context, where military weapons are mentioned, it is better to revocalize the form as עֲגִלוֹת (’agilot, “round shields”), a word which occurs only here in the OT, but is attested in later Hebrew and Aramaic.

[46:2]  ⁶ tn The imperfect is taken in a generalizing sense (cf. NEB) because the situation described in vv. 2-3 is understood as symbolizing typical world conditions. In this case the imperfect draws attention to the typical nature of the response. The covenant community characteristically responds with confidence, not fear. Another option is to take the situation described as purely hypothetical. In this case one might translate, “We will not fear, even though the earth should shake” (cf. NIV, NRSV).

[46:2]  ⁷ tn The Hiphil infinitival form is normally taken to mean “when [the earth] is altered,” being derived from מוּר (mur, “to change”). In this case the Hiphil would be intransitive, as in Ps 15:4. HALOT 560 s.v. II מור emends the form to a Niphal and derives it from a homonymic root מוּר attested in Arabic with the meaning “shake.”

[46:2]  ⁸ tn Heb “heart of the seas.” The plural may be used for emphasis, pointing to the deepest sea. Note that the next verse uses a singular pronoun (“its waters,” “its swelling”) in referring back to the plural noun.

[14:1]  ⁹ sn Psalm 14. The psalmist observes that the human race is morally corrupt. Evildoers oppress God’s people, but the psalmist is confident of God’s protection and anticipates a day when God will vindicate Israel.

[14:1]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “a fool says in his heart.” The singular is used here in a collective or representative sense; the typical fool is envisioned.

[14:1]  ¹¹ sn “There is no God.” The statement is probably not a philosophical assertion that God does not exist, but rather a confident affirmation that God is unconcerned about how men live morally and ethically (see Ps 10:4, 11).

[14:1]  ¹² tn Heb “they act corruptly, they make a deed evil.” The verbs describe the typical behavior of the wicked. The subject of the plural verbs is “sons of man” (v. 2). The entire human race is characterized by sinful behavior. This practical atheism – living as if there is no God who will hold them accountable for their actions – makes them fools, for one of the earmarks of folly is to fail to anticipate the long range consequences of one’s behavior.

[14:1]  ¹³ tn Heb “there is none that does good.”

[14:1]  ¹⁴ sn Psalm 14. The psalmist observes that the human race is morally corrupt. Evildoers oppress God’s people, but the psalmist is confident of God’s protection and anticipates a day when God will vindicate Israel.

[14:1]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “a fool says in his heart.” The singular is used here in a collective or representative sense; the typical fool is envisioned.

[14:1]  ¹⁶ sn “There is no God.” The statement is probably not a philosophical assertion that God does not exist, but rather a confident affirmation that God is unconcerned about how men live morally and ethically (see Ps 10:4, 11).

[14:1]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “they act corruptly, they make a deed evil.” The verbs describe the typical behavior of the wicked. The subject of the plural verbs is “sons of man” (v. 2). The entire human race is characterized by sinful behavior. This practical atheism – living as if there is no God who will hold them accountable for their actions – makes them fools, for one of the earmarks of folly is to fail to anticipate the long range consequences of one’s behavior.

[14:1]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “there is none that does good.”

[20:1]  ¹⁹ sn Psalm 20. The people pray for the king’s success in battle. When the king declares his assurance that the Lord will answer the people’s prayer, they affirm their confidence in God’s enablement.

[20:1]  ²⁰ tn The prefixed verbal forms here and in vv. 1b-5 are interpreted as jussives of prayer (cf. NEB, NIV, NRSV). Another option is to understand them as imperfects, “the Lord will answer,” etc. In this case the people declare their confidence that the Lord will intervene on behalf of the king and extend to him his favor.

[20:1]  ²¹ sn May the Lord answer you. The people address the king as they pray to the Lord.

[20:1]  ²² tn Heb “in a day of trouble.”

[20:1]  ²³ tn Heb “the name of the God of Jacob.” God’s “name” refers metonymically to his very person and to the divine characteristics suggested by his name, in this case “God of Jacob,” which highlights his relationship to Israel.

[32:1]  ²⁴ sn Psalm 32. The psalmist recalls the agony he experienced prior to confessing his sins and affirms that true happiness comes when one’s sins are forgiven. He then urges others not to be stubborn, but to turn to God while forgiveness is available, for God extends his mercy to the repentant, while the wicked experience nothing but sorrow.

[32:1]  ²⁵ tn The meaning of the Hebrew term מַשְׂכִּיל (maskil) is uncertain. The word is derived from a verb meaning “to be prudent; to be wise.” Various options are: “a contemplative song,” “a song imparting moral wisdom,” or “a skillful [i.e., well-written] song.” The term occurs in the superscriptions of Pss 32, 42, 44, 45, 52-55, 74, 78, 88, 89, and 142, as well as in Ps 47:7.

[32:1]  ²⁶ tn The Hebrew noun is an abstract plural. The word often refers metonymically to the happiness that God-given security and prosperity produce (see Pss 1:1, 3; 2:12; 34:9; 41:1; 65:4; 84:12; 89:15; 106:3; 112:1; 127:5; 128:1; 144:15). Here it refers to the relief that one experiences when one’s sins are forgiven.

[32:1]  ²⁷ tn Heb “lifted up.”

[32:1]  ²⁸ tn Heb “covered over.”

[37:35]  ²⁹ tn Heb “for my sake and for the sake of David my servant.”

[37:36]  ³⁰ tn Traditionally, “the angel of the Lord” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).

[37:36]  ³¹ tn The word “troops” is supplied in the translation for smoothness and clarity.

[37:36]  ³² tn This refers to the Israelites and/or the rest of the Assyrian army.

[37:36]  ³³ tn Heb “look, all of them were dead bodies”; NLT “they found corpses everywhere.”

[39:9]  ³⁴ tn Heb “burn and kindle the weapons.”

[39:9]  ³⁵ tn Two different types of shields are specified in the Hebrew text.

[39:10]  ³⁶ tn Heb “they will not carry.”

[39:10]  ³⁷ tn Heb “loot their looters and plunder their plunderers.”