Psalms 20:7

20:7 Some trust in chariots and others in horses,

but we depend on the Lord our God.

Psalms 33:17

33:17 A horse disappoints those who trust in it for victory;

despite its great strength, it cannot deliver.

Psalms 147:10-11

147:10 He is not enamored with the strength of a horse,

nor is he impressed by the warrior’s strong legs.

147:11 The Lord takes delight in his faithful followers,

and in those who wait for his loyal love.

Isaiah 5:28

5:28 Their arrows are sharpened,

and all their bows are prepared.

The hooves of their horses are hard as flint,

and their chariot wheels are like a windstorm.

Jeremiah 47:4

47:4 For the time has come

to destroy all the Philistines.

The time has come to destroy all the help

that remains for Tyre 10  and Sidon. 11 

For I, the Lord, will 12  destroy the Philistines,

that remnant that came from the island of Crete. 13 

Micah 4:13

4:13 “Get up and thresh, Daughter Zion!

For I will give you iron horns; 14 

I will give you bronze hooves,

and you will crush many nations.” 15 

You will devote to the Lord the spoils you take from them,

and dedicate their wealth to the sovereign Ruler 16  of the whole earth. 17 


tn Heb “these in chariots and these in horses.” No verb appears; perhaps the verb “invoke” is to be supplied from the following line. In this case the idea would be that some “invoke” (i.e., trust in) their military might for victory (cf. NEB “boast”; NIV “trust”; NRSV “take pride”). Verse 8 suggests that the “some/others” mentioned here are the nation’s enemies.

tn The grammatical construction (conjunction + pronominal subject) highlights the contrast between God’s faithful people and the others mentioned in the previous line.

tn Heb “we invoke the name of.” The Hiphil of זָכַר (zakhar), when combined with the phrase “in the name,” means “to invoke” (see Josh 23:7; Isa 48:1; Amos 6:10). By invoking the Lord’s name in prayer, the people demonstrate their trust in him.

tn Heb “a lie [is] the horse for victory.”

tn Heb “he does not desire the strength of the horse, he does not take delight in the legs of the man.” Here “the horse” refers to the war horse used by ancient Near Eastern chariot forces, and “the man” refers to the warrior whose muscular legs epitomize his strength.

tn Heb “those who fear him.”

tn Heb “bent” (so KJV, NAB, NASB, NRSV); NIV “are strung.”

tn Heb “regarded like flint.”

sn They are like a windstorm in their swift movement and in the way they kick up dust.

10 map For location see Map1-A2; Map2-G2; Map4-A1; JP3-F3; JP4-F3.

11 map For location see Map1-A1; JP3-F3; JP4-F3.

12 tn Heb “For the Lord will.” The first person style has been adopted because the Lord is speaking (cf. v. 2).

13 sn All the help that remains for Tyre and Sidon and that remnant that came from the island of Crete appear to be two qualifying phrases that refer to the Philistines, the last with regard to their origin and the first with regard to the fact that they were allies that Tyre and Sidon depended on. “Crete” is literally “Caphtor” which is generally identified with the island of Crete. The Philistines had come from there (Amos 9:7) in the wave of migration from the Aegean Islands during the twelfth and eleventh century and had settled on the Philistine plain after having been repulsed from trying to enter Egypt.

14 tn Heb “I will make your horn iron.”

15 sn Jerusalem (Daughter Zion at the beginning of the verse; cf. 4:8) is here compared to a powerful ox which crushes the grain on the threshing floor with its hooves.

16 tn Or “the Lord” (so many English versions); Heb “the master.”

17 tn Heb “and their wealth to the master of all the earth.” The verb “devote” does double duty in the parallelism and is supplied in the second line for clarification.