27:28 May God give you
the dew of the sky 1
and the richness 2 of the earth,
and plenty of grain and new wine.
32:2 My teaching will drop like the rain,
my sayings will drip like the dew, 3
as rain drops upon the grass,
and showers upon new growth.
33:13 Of Joseph he said:
May the Lord bless his land
with the harvest produced by the sky, 4 by the dew,
and by the depths crouching beneath;
33:28 Israel lives in safety,
the fountain of Jacob is quite secure, 5
in a land of grain and new wine;
indeed, its heavens 6 rain down dew. 7
33:1 This is the blessing Moses the man of God pronounced upon the Israelites before his death.
19:12 A king’s wrath is like 10 the roar of a lion, 11
but his favor is like dew on the grass. 12
14:5 I will be like the dew to Israel;
he will blossom like a lily,
he will send down his roots like a cedar of 13 Lebanon.
1 tn Heb “and from the dew of the sky.”
2 tn Heb “and from the fatness.”
3 tn Or “mist,” “light drizzle.” In some contexts the term appears to refer to light rain, rather than dew.
4 tn Heb “from the harvest of the heavens.” The referent appears to be good crops produced by the rain that falls from the sky.
5 tn Heb “all alone.” The idea is that such vital resources as water will some day no longer need protection because God will provide security.
6 tn Or “skies.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heaven(s)” or “sky” depending on the context.
7 tn Or perhaps “drizzle, showers.” See note at Deut 32:2.
8 tn Heb “to the
9 tn The Hebrew word תּוֹעֵבָה (to’evah, “an abomination”; cf. NAB) describes persons, things, or practices offensive to ritual or moral order. See M. Grisanti, NIDOTTE 4:314-18; see also the note on the word “abhorrent” in Deut 7:25.
10 sn The verse contrasts the “rage” of the king with his “favor” by using two similes. The first simile presents the king at his most dangerous – his anger (e.g., 20:2; Amos 3:4). The second simile presents his favor as beneficial for life (e.g., 16:14-15; 28:15).
11 tn Heb “is a roaring like a lion.”
12 sn The proverb makes an observation about a king’s power to terrify or to refresh. It advises people to use tact with a king.
13 tn Heb “like Lebanon” (so KJV; also in the following verse). The phrase “a cedar of” does not appear in the Hebrew text; it is supplied in translation for clarity. Cf. TEV “the trees of Lebanon”; NRSV “the forests of Lebanon.”
14 tn The Hebrew text has “over you” (so KJV), but this is redundant in contemporary English and has been left untranslated.
15 sn This linkage of human sin to natural disaster is reminiscent of the curse brought upon the earth by Adam’s disobedience (Gen 3:17-19; see Rom 8:20-22).