Psalms 44:13

44:13 You made us ¹  an object of disdain to our neighbors;

those who live on our borders taunt and insult us. ² 

Psalms 79:4

79:4 We have become an object of disdain to our neighbors;

those who live on our borders taunt and insult us. ³ 

Proverbs 24:17-18

24:17 Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, ⁴ 

and when he stumbles do not let your heart rejoice,

24:18 lest the Lord see it, and be displeased, ⁵ 

and turn his wrath away from him. ⁶ 

Lamentations 2:15-17

ס (Samek)

2:15 All who passed by on the road

clapped their hands to mock you. ⁷ 

They sneered and shook their heads

at Daughter Jerusalem.

“Ha! Is this the city they called ⁸ 

‘The perfection of beauty, ⁹ 

the source of joy of the whole earth!’?” ¹⁰ 

פ (Pe)

2:16 All your enemies

gloated over you. ¹¹ 

They sneered and gnashed their teeth;

they said, “We have destroyed ¹²  her!

Ha! We have waited a long time for this day.

We have lived to see it!” ¹³ 

ע (Ayin)

2:17 The Lord has done what he planned;

he has fulfilled ¹⁴  his promise ¹⁵ 

that he threatened ¹⁶  long ago: ¹⁷ 

He has overthrown you without mercy ¹⁸ 

and has enabled the enemy to gloat over you;

he has exalted your adversaries’ power. ¹⁹ 

Ezekiel 25:8

A Prophecy Against Moab

25:8 “This is what the sovereign Lord says: ‘Moab ²⁰  and Seir say, “Look, the house of Judah is like all the other nations.”

Ezekiel 26:2-3

26:2 “Son of man, because Tyre ²¹  has said about Jerusalem, ²²  ‘Aha, the gateway of the peoples is broken; it has swung open to me. I will become rich, ²³  now that she ²⁴  has been destroyed,’ 26:3 therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, ²⁵  I am against you, ²⁶  O Tyre! I will bring up many nations against you, as the sea brings up its waves.

Ezekiel 35:15

35:15 As you rejoiced over the inheritance of the house of Israel because it was desolate, so will I deal with you – you will be desolate, Mount Seir, and all of Edom – all of it! Then they will know that I am the Lord.’”

Ezekiel 36:2

36:2 This is what the sovereign Lord says: The enemy has spoken against you, saying “Aha!” and, “The ancient heights ²⁷  have become our property!”’

Ezekiel 36:4

36:4 therefore, O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the sovereign Lord: This is what the sovereign Lord says to the mountains and hills, the ravines and valleys, and to the desolate ruins and the abandoned cities that have become prey and an object of derision to the rest of the nations round about –

Obadiah 1:12-13

1:12 You should not ²⁸  have gloated ²⁹  when your relatives ³⁰  suffered calamity. ³¹ 

You should not have rejoiced over the people of Judah when they were destroyed. ³² 

You should not have boasted ³³  when they suffered adversity. ³⁴ 

1:13 You should not have entered the city ³⁵  of my people when they experienced distress. ³⁶ 

You should not have joined ³⁷  in gloating over their misfortune when they suffered distress. ³⁸ 

You should not have looted ³⁹  their wealth when they endured distress. ⁴⁰ 

Micah 7:8-10

Jerusalem Will Be Vindicated

7:8 My enemies, ⁴¹  do not gloat ⁴²  over me!

Though I have fallen, I will get up.

Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light. ⁴³ 

7:9 I must endure ⁴⁴  the Lord’s anger,

for I have sinned against him.

But then ⁴⁵  he will defend my cause, ⁴⁶ 

and accomplish justice on my behalf.

He will lead me out into the light;

I will experience firsthand ⁴⁷  his deliverance. ⁴⁸ 

7:10 When my enemies see this, they will be covered with shame.

They say ⁴⁹  to me, “Where is the Lord your God?”

I will gloat over them. ⁵⁰ 

Then they will be trampled down ⁵¹ 

like mud in the streets.

Zephaniah 2:8

2:8 “I have heard Moab’s taunts

and the Ammonites’ insults.

They ⁵²  taunted my people

and verbally harassed those living in Judah. ⁵³ 

Zephaniah 2:10

2:10 This is how they will be repaid for their arrogance, ⁵⁴ 

for they taunted and verbally harassed ⁵⁵  the people of the Lord who commands armies.

Matthew 7:2

7:2 For by the standard you judge you will be judged, and the measure you use will be the measure you receive. ⁵⁶ 

[44:13]  ¹ tn The prefixed verbal form is a preterite (without vav [ו] consecutive).

[44:13]  ² tn Heb “an [object of] taunting and [of] mockery to those around us.”

[79:4]  ³ tn Heb “an [object of] taunting and [of] mockery to those around us.” See Ps 44:13.

[24:17]  ⁴ sn The saying (vv. 17, 18) warns against gloating over the misfortune of one’s enemies. The prohibition is formed with two negated jussives “do not rejoice” and “let not be glad,” the second qualified by “your heart” as the subject, signifying the inner satisfaction of such a defeat.

[24:18]  ⁵ tn Heb “and [it is] evil in his eyes.”

[24:18]  ⁶ sn The judgment of God should strike a note of fear in the heart of people (e.g., Lev 19:17-18). His judgment is not to be taken lightly, or personalized as a victory. If that were to happen, then the Lord might take pity on the enemies in their calamity, for he champions the downtrodden and defeated. These are probably personal enemies; the imprecatory psalms and the prophetic oracles present a different set of circumstances for the downfall of God’s enemies – even the book of Proverbs says that brings joy to the community.

[2:15]  ⁷ tn Heb “clap their hands at you.” Clapping hands at someone was an expression of malicious glee, derision and mockery (Num 24:10; Job 27:23; Lam 2:15).

[2:15]  ⁸ tn Heb “of which they said.”

[2:15]  ⁹ tn Heb “perfection of beauty.” The noun יֹפִי (yofi, “beauty”) functions as a genitive of respect in relation to the preceding construct noun: Jerusalem was perfect in respect to its physical beauty.

[2:15]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the joy of all the earth.” This is similar to statements found in Pss 48:2 and 50:2.

[2:16]  ¹¹ tn Heb “they have opened wide their mouth against you.”

[2:16]  ¹² tn Heb “We have swallowed!”

[2:16]  ¹³ tn Heb “We have attained, we have seen!” The verbs מָצָאנוּ רָאִינוּ (matsa’nu ra’inu) form a verbal hendiadys in which the first retains its full verbal sense and the second functions as an object complement. It forms a Hebrew idiom that means something like, “We have lived to see it!” The three asyndetic 1st person common plural statements in 2:16 (“We waited, we destroyed, we saw!”) are spoken in an impassioned, staccato style reflecting the delight of the conquerors.

[2:17]  ¹⁴ tn The verb בָּצַע (batsa’) has a broad range of meanings: (1) “to cut off, break off,” (2) “to injure” a person, (3) “to gain by violence,” (4) “to finish, complete” and (5) “to accomplish, fulfill” a promise.

[2:17]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “His word.” When used in collocation with the verb בָּצַע (batsa’, “to fulfill,” see previous tn), the accusative noun אִמְרָה (’imrah) means “promise.”

[2:17]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “commanded” or “decreed.” If a reference to prophetic oracles is understood, then “decreed” is preferable. If understood as a reference to the warnings in the covenant, then “threatened” is a preferable rendering.

[2:17]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “from days of old.”

[2:17]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “He has overthrown and has not shown mercy.” The two verbs חָרַס וְלֹא חָמָל (kharas vÿlo’ khamal) form a verbal hendiadys in which the first retains its verbal sense and the second functions adverbially: “He has overthrown you without mercy.” וְלֹא חָמָל (vÿlo’ khamal) alludes to 2:2.

[2:17]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “He has exalted the horn of your adversaries.” The term “horn” (קֶרֶן, qeren) normally refers to the horn of a bull, one of the most powerful animals in ancient Israel. This term is often used figuratively as a symbol of strength, usually in reference to the military might of an army (Deut 33:17; 1 Sam 2:1, 10; 2 Sam 22:3; Pss 18:3; 75:11; 89:18, 25; 92:11; 112:9; 1 Chr 25:5; Jer 48:25; Lam 2:3; Ezek 29:21), just as warriors are sometimes figuratively described as “bulls.” To lift up the horn often means to boast and to lift up someone else’s horn is to give victory or cause to boast.

[25:8]  ²⁰ sn Moab was located immediately south of Ammon.

[26:2]  ²¹ sn Tyre was located on the Mediterranean coast north of Israel.

[26:2]  ²² map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[26:2]  ²³ tn Heb “I will be filled.”

[26:2]  ²⁴ sn That is, Jerusalem.

[26:3]  ²⁵ tn The word הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally “behold”) draws attention to something and has been translated here as a verb.

[26:3]  ²⁶ tn Or “I challenge you.” The phrase “I am against you” may be a formula for challenging someone to combat or a duel. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 1:201-2, and P. Humbert, “Die Herausforderungsformel ‘h!nn#n' ?l?K>,’” ZAW 45 (1933): 101-8. The Hebrew text switches to a second feminine singular form here, indicating that personified Jerusalem is addressed (see vv. 5-6a). The address to Jerusalem continues through v. 15. In vv. 16-17 the second masculine plural is used, as the people are addressed.

[36:2]  ²⁷ tn Or “high places.”

[1:12]  ²⁸ tn In vv. 12-14 there are eight prohibitions which summarize the nature of the Lord’s complaint against Edom. Each prohibition alludes to something that Edom did to Judah that should not have been done by one “brother” to another. It is because of these violations that the Lord has initiated judgment against Edom. In the Hebrew text these prohibitions are expressed by אַל (’al, “not”) plus the jussive form of the verb, which is common in negative commands of immediate urgency. Such constructions would normally have the sense of prohibiting something either not yet begun (i.e., “do not start to …”) or something already in process at the time of speaking (i.e., “stop…”). Here, however, it seems more likely that the prohibitions refer to a situation in past rather than future time (i.e., “you should not have …”). If so, the verbs are being used in a rhetorical fashion, as though the prophet were vividly projecting himself back into the events that he is describing and urging the Edomites not to do what in fact they have already done.

[1:12]  ²⁹ tn The Hebrew expression “to look upon” often has the sense of “to feast the eyes upon” or “to gloat over” (cf. v. 13).

[1:12]  ³⁰ tn Heb “your brother” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV); NCV “your brother Israel.”

[1:12]  ³¹ tn Heb “in the day of your brother, in the day of his calamity.” This expression is probably a hendiadys meaning, “in the day of your brother’s calamity.” The Hebrew word נָכְרוֹ (nokhro, “his calamity”)_is probably a word-play on נָכְרִים (nokherim, “foreigners”) in v. 11.

[1:12]  ³² tn Heb “in the day of their destruction” (so KJV, NASB, NIV); NAB, NRSV “on the day of their ruin.”

[1:12]  ³³ tn Or “boasted with your mouth.” The Hebrew text includes the phrase “with your mouth,” which is redundant in English and has been left untranslated.

[1:12]  ³⁴ tn Heb “in the day of adversity”; NASB “in the day of their distress.”

[1:13]  ³⁵ tn Heb “the gate.” The term “gate” here functions as a synecdoche for the city as a whole, which the Edomites plundered.

[1:13]  ³⁶ tn Heb “in the day of their distress.” The phrase is used three times in this verse; the Hebrew word translated “distress” (אֵידָם, ’edam) is a wordplay on the name Edom. For stylistic reasons and to avoid monotony, in the present translation this phrase is rendered: “when they experienced distress,” “when they suffered distress,” and “when they endured distress.”

[1:13]  ³⁷ tn Heb “you, also you.”

[1:13]  ³⁸ tn Heb “in the day of his distress.” In this and the following phrase at the end of v. 13 the suffix is 3rd person masculine singular. As collective singulars both occurrences have been translated as plurals (“they suffered distress…endured distress” rather than “he suffered distress…endured distress”).

[1:13]  ³⁹ tc In the MT the verb is feminine plural, but the antecedent is unclear. The Hebrew phrase תִּשְׁלַחְנָה (tishlakhnah) here should probably be emended to read תִּשְׁלַח יָד (tishlakh yad), although yad (“hand”) is not absolutely essential to this idiom.

[1:13]  ⁴⁰ tn See the note on the phrase “suffered distress” in the previous line.

[7:8]  ⁴¹ tn The singular form is understood as collective.

[7:8]  ⁴² tn Or “rejoice” (KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); NCV “don’t laugh at me.”

[7:8]  ⁴³ sn Darkness represents judgment; light (also in v. 9) symbolizes deliverance. The Lord is the source of the latter.

[7:9]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “lift, bear.”

[7:9]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “until.”

[7:9]  ⁴⁶ tn Or “plead my case” (NASB and NIV both similar); NRSV “until he takes my side.”

[7:9]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “see.”

[7:9]  ⁴⁸ tn Or “justice, vindication.”

[7:10]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “who say.” A new sentence was begun here in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[7:10]  ⁵⁰ tn Heb “My eyes will look on them.”

[7:10]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “a trampled-down place.”

[2:8]  ⁵² tn Heb “who.” A new sentence was begun here in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[2:8]  ⁵³ tn Heb “and they made great [their mouth?] against their territory.” Other possible translation options include (1) “they enlarged their own territory” (cf. NEB) and (2) “they bragged about [the size] of their own territory.”

[2:10]  ⁵⁴ tn Heb “this is for them in place of their arrogance.”

[2:10]  ⁵⁵ tn Heb “made great [their mouth?] against” (cf. the last phrase of v. 8).

[7:2]  ⁵⁶ tn Grk “by [the measure] with which you measure it will be measured to you.”