78:34 When he struck them down, 1 they sought his favor; 2
they turned back and longed for God.
78:35 They remembered that God was their protector, 3
and that the sovereign God was their deliverer. 4
78:36 But they deceived him with their words, 5
and lied to him. 6
78:37 They were not really committed to him, 7
and they were unfaithful to his covenant.
22:23 You may feel as secure as a bird
nesting in the cedars of Lebanon.
But oh how you 8 will groan 9 when the pains of judgment come on you.
They will be like those of a woman giving birth to a baby. 10
5:15 Then I will return again to my lair
until they have suffered their punishment. 11
Then they will seek me; 12
in their distress they will earnestly seek me.
1 tn Or “killed them,” that is, killed large numbers of them.
2 tn Heb “they sought him.”
3 tn Heb “my high rocky summit.”
4 tn Heb “and [that] God Most High [was] their redeemer.”
5 tn Heb “with their mouth.”
6 tn Heb “and with their tongue they lied to him.”
7 tn Heb “and their heart was not firm with him.”
8 tn Heb “You who dwell in Lebanon, you who are nested in its cedars, how you….” The metaphor has been interpreted for the sake of clarity. The figure here has often been interpreted of the people of Jerusalem living in paneled houses or living in a city dominated by the temple and palace which were built from the cedars of Lebanon. Some even interpret this as a reference to the king who has been characterized as living in a cedar palace, in a veritable Lebanon (cf. vv. 6-7, 14 and see also the alternate interpretation of 21:13-14). However, the reference to “nesting in the cedars” and the earlier reference to “feeling secure” suggests that the figure is rather like that of Ezek 31:6 and Dan 4:12. See also Hab 2:9 where a related figure is used. The forms for “you who dwell” and “you who are nested” in the literal translation are feminine singular participles referring again to personified Jerusalem. (The written forms of these participles are to be explained as participles with a hireq campaginis according to GKC 253 §90.m. The use of the participle before the preposition is to be explained according to GKC 421 §130.a.)
9 tn The verb here should be identified as a Niphal perfect of the verb אָנַח (’anakh) with the א (aleph) left out (so BDB 336 s.v. חָנַן Niph and GKC 80 §23.f, n. 1). The form is already translated that way by the Greek, Latin, and Syriac versions.
10 sn This simile has already been used in Jer 4:31; 6:24 in conjunction with Zion/Jerusalem’s judgment.
11 tn The verb יֶאְשְׁמוּ (ye’shÿmu, Qal imperfect 3rd person masculine plural from אָשַׁם, ’asham, “to be guilty”) means “to bear their punishment” (Ps 34:22-23; Prov 30:10; Isa 24:6; Jer 2:3; Hos 5:15; 10:2; 14:1; Zech 11:5; Ezek 6:6; BDB 79 s.v. אָשַׁם 3). Many English versions translate this as “admit their guilt” (NIV, NLT) or “acknowledge their guilt” (NASB, NRSV), but cf. NAB “pay for their guilt” and TEV “have suffered enough for their sins.”
12 tn Heb “seek my face” (so KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV); NAB “seek my presence.”