Psalms 66:3

66:3 Say to God:

“How awesome are your deeds!

Because of your great power your enemies cower in fear¹ before you.

Psalms 81:15

81:15 (May those who hate the Lord² cower in fear³ before him!

May they be permanently humiliated!)⁴

Revelation 3:9

3:9 Listen!⁵ I am going to make those people from the synagogue⁶ of Satan – who say they are Jews yet⁷ are not, but are lying – Look, I will make⁸ them come and bow down⁹ at your feet and acknowledge¹⁰ that I have loved you.

¹tn See Deut 33:29; Ps 81:15 for other uses of the verb כָּחַשׁ (kakhash) in the sense “cower in fear.” In Ps 18:44 the verb seems to carry the nuance “be weak, powerless” (see also Ps 109:24).

²tn “Those who hate the Lord” are also mentioned in 2 Chr 19:2 and Ps 139:21.

³tn See Deut 33:29; Ps 66:3 for other uses of the verb כָּחַשׁ (kakhash) in the sense “cower in fear.” In Ps 18:44 the verb seems to carry the nuance “to be weak; to be powerless” (see also Ps 109:24). The prefixed verbal form is taken as a jussive, parallel to the jussive form in the next line.

⁴tc Heb “and may their time be forever.” The Hebrew term עִתָּם (’ittam, “their time”) must refer here to the “time” of the demise and humiliation of those who hate the Lord. Some propose an emendation to בַּעֲתָתָם (ba’atatam) or בִּעֻתָם (bi’utam; “their terror”; i.e., “may their terror last forever”), but the omission of bet (ב) in the present Hebrew text is difficult to explain, making the proposed emendation unlikely.

⁵tn Grk “behold” (L&N 91.13).

⁶sn See the note on synagogue in 2:9.

⁷tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “yet” to indicate the contrast between what these people claimed and what they were.

⁸tn The verb here is ποιέω (poiew), but in this context it has virtually the same meaning as δίδωμι (didwmi) used at the beginning of the verse. Stylistic variation like this is typical of Johannine literature.

⁹tn The verb here is προσκυνήσουσιν (proskunhsousin), normally used to refer to worship.

¹⁰tn Or “and know,” “and recognize.”