115:4 Their 1 idols are made of silver and gold –
they are man-made. 2
115:5 They have mouths, but cannot speak,
eyes, but cannot see,
115:6 ears, but cannot hear,
noses, but cannot smell,
115:7 hands, but cannot touch,
feet, but cannot walk.
They cannot even clear their throats. 3
135:15 The nations’ idols are made of silver and gold,
they are man-made. 4
135:16 They have mouths, but cannot speak,
eyes, but cannot see,
135:17 and ears, but cannot hear.
Indeed, they cannot breathe. 5
135:18 Those who make them will end up 6 like them,
as will everyone who trusts in them.
1 tn The referent of the pronominal suffix is “the nations” (v. 2).
2 tn Heb “the work of the hands of man.”
3 tn Heb “they cannot mutter in their throats.” Verse 5a refers to speaking, v. 7c to inarticulate sounds made in the throat (see M. Dahood, Psalms [AB], 3:140-41).
4 tn Heb “the work of the hands of man.”
5 tn Heb “indeed, there is not breath in their mouth.” For the collocation אַף אֵין (’af ’en, “indeed, there is not”) see Isa 41:26. Another option is to take אַף as “nose” (see Ps 115:6), in which case one might translate, “a nose, [but] they have no breath in their mouths.”
6 tn Heb “will be.” Another option is to take the prefixed verbal form as a prayer, “may those who make them end up like them.”