2:1 Why 2 do the nations rebel? 3
Why 4 are the countries 5 devising 6 plots that will fail? 7
2:2 The kings of the earth 8 form a united front; 9
the rulers collaborate 10
against the Lord and his anointed king. 11
2:1 Why 13 do the nations rebel? 14
Why 15 are the countries 16 devising 17 plots that will fail? 18
For the music director; a psalm of David.
20:1 May the Lord answer 20 you 21 when you are in trouble; 22
may the God of Jacob 23 make you secure!
22:7 All who see me taunt 24 me;
they mock me 25 and shake their heads. 26
22:8 They say, 27
“Commit yourself 28 to the Lord!
Let the Lord 29 rescue him!
Let the Lord 30 deliver him, for he delights in him.” 31
22:9 Yes, you are the one who brought me out 32 from the womb
and made me feel secure on my mother’s breasts.
22:10 I have been dependent on you since birth; 33
from the time I came out of my mother’s womb you have been my God. 34
22:11 Do not remain far away from me,
for trouble is near and I have no one to help me. 35
22:12 Many bulls 36 surround me;
powerful bulls of Bashan 37 hem me in.
22:13 They 38 open their mouths to devour me 39
like a roaring lion that rips its prey. 40
22:66 When day came, the council of the elders of the people gathered together, both the chief priests and the experts in the law. 41 Then 42 they led Jesus 43 away to their council 44
23:1 Then 45 the whole group of them rose up and brought Jesus 46 before Pilate. 47 23:2 They 48 began to accuse 49 him, saying, “We found this man subverting 50 our nation, forbidding 51 us to pay the tribute tax 52 to Caesar 53 and claiming that he himself is Christ, 54 a king.”
1 sn Psalm 2. In this royal psalm the author asserts the special status of the divinely chosen Davidic king and warns the nations and their rulers to submit to the authority of God and his chosen vice-regent.
2 tn The question is rhetorical. Rather than seeking information, the psalmist expresses his outrage that the nations would have the audacity to rebel against God and his chosen king.
3 tn The Hebrew verb רָגַשׁ (ragash) occurs only here. In Dan 6:6, 11, 15 the Aramaic cognate verb describes several officials acting as a group. A Hebrew nominal derivative is used in Ps 55:14 of a crowd of people in the temple.
4 tn The interrogative לָמָּה (lamah, “why?”) is understood by ellipsis in the second line.
5 tn Or “peoples” (so many English versions).
6 tn The Hebrew imperfect form describes the rebellion as underway. The verb הָגָה (hagah), which means “to recite quietly, meditate,” here has the metonymic nuance “devise, plan, plot” (see Ps 38:12; Prov 24:2).
7 tn Heb “devising emptiness.” The noun רִיק (riq, “emptiness”) may characterize their behavior as “worthless, morally bankrupt” but more likely refers to the outcome of their plots (i.e., failure). As the rest of the psalm emphasizes, their rebellion will fail.
8 sn The expression kings of the earth refers somewhat hyperbolically to the kings who had been conquered by and were subject to the Davidic king.
9 tn Or “take their stand.” The Hebrew imperfect verbal form describes their action as underway.
10 tn Or “conspire together.” The verbal form is a Niphal from יָסַד (yasad). BDB 413-14 s.v. יָסַד defines the verb as “establish, found,” but HALOT 417 s.v. II יסד proposes a homonym meaning “get together, conspire” (an alternate form of סוּד, sud).
11 tn Heb “and against his anointed one.” The Davidic king is the referent (see vv. 6-7).
12 sn Psalm 2. In this royal psalm the author asserts the special status of the divinely chosen Davidic king and warns the nations and their rulers to submit to the authority of God and his chosen vice-regent.
13 tn The question is rhetorical. Rather than seeking information, the psalmist expresses his outrage that the nations would have the audacity to rebel against God and his chosen king.
14 tn The Hebrew verb רָגַשׁ (ragash) occurs only here. In Dan 6:6, 11, 15 the Aramaic cognate verb describes several officials acting as a group. A Hebrew nominal derivative is used in Ps 55:14 of a crowd of people in the temple.
15 tn The interrogative לָמָּה (lamah, “why?”) is understood by ellipsis in the second line.
16 tn Or “peoples” (so many English versions).
17 tn The Hebrew imperfect form describes the rebellion as underway. The verb הָגָה (hagah), which means “to recite quietly, meditate,” here has the metonymic nuance “devise, plan, plot” (see Ps 38:12; Prov 24:2).
18 tn Heb “devising emptiness.” The noun רִיק (riq, “emptiness”) may characterize their behavior as “worthless, morally bankrupt” but more likely refers to the outcome of their plots (i.e., failure). As the rest of the psalm emphasizes, their rebellion will fail.
19 sn Psalm 20. The people pray for the king’s success in battle. When the king declares his assurance that the Lord will answer the people’s prayer, they affirm their confidence in God’s enablement.
20 tn The prefixed verbal forms here and in vv. 1b-5 are interpreted as jussives of prayer (cf. NEB, NIV, NRSV). Another option is to understand them as imperfects, “the
21 sn May the
22 tn Heb “in a day of trouble.”
23 tn Heb “the name of the God of Jacob.” God’s “name” refers metonymically to his very person and to the divine characteristics suggested by his name, in this case “God of Jacob,” which highlights his relationship to Israel.
24 tn Or “scoff at, deride, mock.”
25 tn Heb “they separate with a lip.” Apparently this refers to their verbal taunting.
26 sn Shake their heads. Apparently this refers to a taunting gesture. See also Job 16:4; Ps 109:25; Lam 2:15.
27 tn The words “they say” are supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons. The psalmist here quotes the sarcastic taunts of his enemies.
28 tn Heb “roll [yourself].” The Hebrew verb גלל here has the sense of “commit” (see Prov 16:3). The imperatival form in the Hebrew text indicates the enemies here address the psalmist. Since they refer to him in the third person in the rest of the verse, some prefer to emend the verb to a perfect, “he commits himself to the
29 tn Heb “Let him”; the referent (the
30 tn Heb “Let him”; the referent (the
31 tn That is, “for he [the
32 tn Or “the one who pulled me.” The verb is derived from either גָחָה (gakhah; see HALOT 187 s.v. גחה) or גִּיחַ (giyakh; see BDB 161 s.v. גִּיחַ) and seems to carry the nuance “burst forth” or “pull out.”
33 tn Heb “upon you I was cast from [the] womb.”
34 tn Heb “from the womb of my mother you [have been] my God.”
35 tn Heb “and there is no helper.”
36 sn The psalmist figuratively compares his enemies to dangerous bulls.
37 sn Bashan, located east of the Jordan River, was well-known for its cattle. See Ezek 39:18; Amos 4:1.
38 tn “They” refers to the psalmist’s enemies, who in the previous verse are described as “powerful bulls.”
39 tn Heb “they open against me their mouth[s].” To “open the mouth against” is a Hebrew idiom associated with eating and swallowing (see Ezek 2:8; Lam 2:16).
40 tn Heb “a lion ripping and roaring.”
41 tn Or “and the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 5:21.
42 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
43 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
44 sn Their council is probably a reference to the Jewish Sanhedrin, the council of seventy leaders.
45 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
46 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
47 sn Pilate was the Roman prefect (procurator) in charge of collecting taxes and keeping the peace. His immediate superior was the Roman governor (proconsul) of Syria, although the exact nature of this administrative relationship is unknown. Pilate’s relations with the Jews had been rocky (v. 12). Here he is especially sensitive to them.
48 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
49 sn They began to accuse him. There were three charges: (1) disturbing Jewish peace; (2) fomenting rebellion through advocating not paying taxes (a lie – 20:20-26); and (3) claiming to be a political threat to Rome, by claiming to be a king, an allusion to Jesus’ messianic claims. The second and third charges were a direct challenge to Roman authority. Pilate would be forced to do something about them.
50 tn On the use of the term διαστρέφω (diastrefw) here, see L&N 31.71 and 88.264.
51 tn Grk “and forbidding.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated to suggest to the English reader that this and the following charge are specifics, while the previous charge was a summary one. See the note on the word “misleading” earlier in this verse.
52 tn This was a “poll tax.” L&N 57.182 states this was “a payment made by the people of one nation to another, with the implication that this is a symbol of submission and dependence – ‘tribute tax.’”
53 tn Or “to the emperor” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).
54 tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”
55 tn Or “and the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 5:21.
56 sn Luke portrays the Jewish leadership as driving events toward the cross by vehemently accusing Jesus.
57 tn This is a continuation of the previous Greek sentence, but because of its length and complexity, a new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying “then” to indicate the sequence of events.
58 sn This mockery involved putting elegant royal clothes on Jesus, either white or purple (the colors of royalty). This was no doubt a mockery of Jesus’ claim to be a king.
59 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Herod) has been specified in the translation for clarity.