2:7 The Lord impoverishes and makes wealthy;
he humbles and he exalts.
2:8 He lifts the weak 1 from the dust;
he raises 2 the poor from the ash heap
to seat them with princes
and to bestow on them an honored position. 3
The foundations of the earth belong to the Lord,
and he has placed the world on them.
2:30 Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘I really did say 4 that your house and your ancestor’s house would serve 5 me forever.’ But now the Lord says, ‘May it never be! 6 For I will honor those who honor me, but those who despise me will be cursed!
1 tn Or “lowly”; Heb “insignificant.”
2 tn The imperfect verbal form, which is parallel to the participle in the preceding line, is best understood here as indicating what typically happens.
3 tn Heb “a seat of honor.”
4 tn The infinitive absolute appears before the finite verb for emphasis.
5 tn Heb “walk about before.”
6 tn Heb “may it be far removed from me.”