18:42 I grind them as fine windblown dust; 1
I beat them underfoot 2 like clay 3 in the streets.
46:6 Nations are in uproar, kingdoms are overthrown. 4
God 5 gives a shout, 6 the earth dissolves. 7
83:4 They say, “Come on, let’s annihilate them so they are no longer a nation! 8
Then the name of Israel will be remembered no more.”
83:5 Yes, 9 they devise a unified strategy; 10
they form an alliance 11 against you.
83:6 It includes 12 the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites,
Moab and the Hagrites, 13
83:7 Gebal, 14 Ammon, and Amalek,
Philistia and the inhabitants of Tyre. 15
83:8 Even Assyria has allied with them,
lending its strength to the descendants of Lot. 16 (Selah)
8:9 You will be broken, 17 O nations;
you will be shattered! 18
Pay attention, all you distant lands of the earth!
Get ready for battle, and you will be shattered!
Get ready for battle, and you will be shattered! 19
‘Why do the nations 26 rage, 27
and the peoples plot foolish 28 things?
1 tn Heb “I pulverize them like dust upon the face of the wind.” The phrase “upon the face of” here means “before.” 2 Sam 22:43 reads, “like dust of the earth.”
2 tc Ps 18:42 reads, “I empty them out” (Hiphil of ריק), while 2 Sam 22:43 reads, “I crush them, I stomp on them” (juxtaposing the synonyms דקק and רקע). It is likely that the latter is a conflation of variants. One, but not both, of the verbs in 2 Sam 22:43 is probably original; “empty out” does not form as good a parallel with “grind, pulverize” in the parallel line.
3 tn Or “mud.”
4 tn Heb “nations roar, kingdoms shake.” The Hebrew verb הָמָה (hamah, “roar, be in uproar”) is used in v. 3 of the waves crashing, while the verb מוֹט (mot, “overthrown”) is used in v. 2 of mountains tumbling into the sea (see also v. 5, where the psalm affirms that Jerusalem “cannot be moved”). The repetition of the verbs suggests that the language of vv. 2-3 is symbolic and depicts the upheaval that characterizes relationships between the nations of the earth. As some nations (symbolized by the surging, chaotic waters) show hostility, others (symbolized by the mountains) come crashing down to destruction. The surging waters are symbolic of chaotic forces in other poetic texts (see, for example, Isa 17:12; Jer 51:42) and mountains can symbolize strong kingdoms (see, for example, Jer 51:25).
5 tn Heb “He.” God is the obvious referent here (see v. 5), and has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 tn Heb “offers his voice.” In theophanic texts the phrase refers to God’s thunderous shout which functions as a battle cry (see Pss 18:13; 68:33).
7 tn Or “melts.” See Amos 9:5. The image depicts the nation’s helplessness before Jerusalem’s defender, who annihilates their armies (see vv. 8-9). The imperfect verbal form emphasizes the characteristic nature of the action described.
8 tn Heb “we will cause them to disappear from [being] a nation.”
9 tn Or “for.”
10 tn Heb “they consult [with] a heart together.”
11 tn Heb “cut a covenant.”
12 tn The words “it includes” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
13 sn The Hagrites are also mentioned in 1 Chr 5:10, 19-20.
14 sn Some identify Gebal with the Phoenician coastal city of Byblos (see Ezek 27:9, where the name is spelled differently), though others locate this site south of the Dead Sea (see BDB 148 s.v. גְּבַל; HALOT 174 s.v. גְּבַל).
15 map For location see Map1-A2; Map2-G2; Map4-A1; JP3-F3; JP4-F3.
16 tn Heb “they are an arm for the sons of Lot.” The “arm” is here a symbol of military might.
17 tn The verb רֹעוּ (ro’u) is a Qal imperative, masculine plural from רָעַע (ra’a’, “break”). Elsewhere both transitive (Job 34:24; Ps 2:9; Jer 15:12) and intransitive (Prov 25:19; Jer 11:16) senses are attested for the Qal of this verb. Because no object appears here, the form is likely intransitive: “be broken.” In this case the imperative is rhetorical (like “be shattered” later in the verse) and equivalent to a prediction, “you will be broken.” On the rhetorical use of the imperative in general, see IBHS 572 §34.4c; GKC 324 §110.c.
18 tn The imperatival form (Heb “be shattered”) is rhetorical and expresses the speaker’s firm conviction of the outcome of the nations’ attack. See the note on “be broken.”
19 tn The initial imperative (“get ready for battle”) acknowledges the reality of the nations’ hostility; the concluding imperative (Heb “be shattered”) is rhetorical and expresses the speakers’ firm conviction of the outcome of the nations’ attack. (See the note on “be broken.”) One could paraphrase, “Okay, go ahead and prepare for battle since that’s what you want to do, but your actions will backfire and you’ll be shattered.” This rhetorical use of the imperatives is comparable to saying to a child who is bent on climbing a high tree, “Okay, go ahead, climb the tree and break your arm!” What this really means is: “Okay, go ahead and climb the tree since that’s what you really want to do, but your actions will backfire and you’ll break your arm.” The repetition of the statement in the final two lines of the verse gives the challenge the flavor of a taunt (ancient Israelite “trash talking,” as it were).
20 sn The passive voice verb be handed over does not indicate by whom, but other passages note the Jewish leadership and betrayal (9:22, 44).
21 sn See Luke 22:63; 23:11, 36.
22 tn Or “and insulted.” L&N 33.390 and 88.130 note ὑβρίζω (Jubrizw) can mean either “insult” or “mistreat with insolence.”
23 sn And spat on. Later Luke does not note this detail in the passion narrative in chaps. 22-23, but see Mark 14:65; 15:19; Matt 26:67; 27:30 where Jesus’ prediction is fulfilled.
24 tn Grk “by the mouth of” (an idiom).
25 tn Or “ancestor”; Grk “father.”
26 tn Or “Gentiles.”
27 sn The Greek word translated rage includes not only anger but opposition, both verbal and nonverbal. See L&N 88.185.
28 tn Or “futile”; traditionally, “vain.”