Deuteronomy 2:32

2:32 When Sihon and all his troops ¹  emerged to encounter us in battle at Jahaz, ² 

Joshua 7:5

7:5 The men of Ai killed about thirty-six of them and chased them from in front of the city gate all the way to the fissures ³  and defeated them on the steep slope. ⁴  The people’s ⁵  courage melted away like water. ⁶ 

Joshua 11:19-20

11:19 No city made peace with the Israelites (except the Hivites living in Gibeon); ⁷  they had to conquer all of them, ⁸  11:20 for the Lord determined to make them obstinate so they would attack Israel. He wanted Israel to annihilate them without mercy, as he had instructed Moses. ⁹ 

Psalms 44:3-4

44:3 For they did not conquer ¹⁰  the land by their swords,

and they did not prevail by their strength, ¹¹ 

but rather by your power, ¹²  strength ¹³  and good favor, ¹⁴ 

for you were partial to ¹⁵  them.

44:4 You are my ¹⁶  king, O God!

Decree ¹⁷  Jacob’s ¹⁸  deliverance!

¹ tn Heb “people.”

² sn Jahaz. This is probably Khirbet el-Medeiyineh. See J. Dearman, “The Levitical Cities of Reuben and Moabite Toponymy,” BASOR 276 (1984): 55-57.

³ tn The meaning and correct translation of the Hebrew word שְׁבָרִים (shÿvarim) is uncertain. The translation “fissures” is based on usage of the plural form of the noun in Ps 60:4 HT (60:2 ET), where it appears to refer to cracks in the earth caused by an earthquake. Perhaps deep ravines or gorges are in view, or the word is a proper noun (“all the way to Shebarim”).

⁴ sn The precise geographical location of the Israelite defeat at this “steep slope” is uncertain.

⁵ tn Or “army’s.”

⁶ tn Heb “and the heart of the people melted and became water.”

⁷ tn The LXX omits this parenthetical note, which may represent a later scribal addition.

⁸ tn Heb “the whole they took in battle.”

⁹ tn Heb “for from the Lord it was to harden their heart[s] to meet for the battle with Israel, in order to annihilate them, so that they would receive no mercy, in order annihilate them, as the Lord commanded Moses.”

¹⁰ tn Or “take possession of.”

¹¹ tn Heb “and their arm did not save them.” The “arm” here symbolizes military strength.

¹² tn Heb “your right hand.” The Lord’s “right hand” here symbolizes his power to protect and deliver (see Pss 17:7; 20:6; 21:8).

¹³ tn Heb “your arm.”

¹⁴ tn Heb “light of your face.” The idiom “light of your face” probably refers to a smile (see Eccl 8:1), which in turn suggests favor and blessing (see Num 6:25; Pss 4:6; 31:16; 67:1; 80:3, 7, 19; 89:15; Dan 9:17).

¹⁵ tn Or “favorable toward.”

¹⁶ sn The speaker changes here to an individual, perhaps the worship leader or the king. The oscillation between singular (vv. 4, 6) and plural (vv. 1-3, 5, 7-8) in vv. 1-8 may reflect an antiphonal ceremony.

¹⁷ tc The LXX assumes a participle here (מְצַוֶּה [mÿtsavveh], “the one who commands/decrees”) which would stand in apposition to “my God.” It is possible that the MT, which has the imperative (צַוֵּה, tsavveh) form, has suffered haplography of the letter mem (ם). Note that the preceding word (אֱלֹהִים, ’elohim) ends in mem. Another option is that the MT is divided in the wrong place; perhaps one could move the final mem from אֱלֹהִים to the beginning of the next word and read מְצַוֶּה אֱלֹהָי (’elohay mÿtsavveh, “[You are my king,] my God, the one who decrees”).

¹⁸ tn That is, Israel. See Pss 14:7; 22:23.