33:12 How blessed 1 is the nation whose God is the Lord,
the people whom he has chosen to be his special possession. 2
33:13 The Lord watches 3 from heaven;
he sees all people. 4
33:14 From the place where he lives he looks carefully
at all the earth’s inhabitants.
33:15 He is the one who forms every human heart, 5
and takes note of all their actions.
33:16 No king is delivered by his vast army;
a warrior is not saved by his great might.
33:17 A horse disappoints those who trust in it for victory; 6
despite its great strength, it cannot deliver.
33:18 Look, the Lord takes notice of his loyal followers, 7
those who wait for him to demonstrate his faithfulness 8
33:19 by saving their lives from death 9
and sustaining them during times of famine. 10
33:20 We 11 wait for the Lord;
he is our deliverer 12 and shield. 13
33:21 For our hearts rejoice in him,
for we trust in his holy name.
33:22 May we experience your faithfulness, O Lord, 14
for 15 we wait for you.
1 tn The Hebrew noun is an abstract plural. The word often refers metonymically to the happiness that God-given security and prosperity produce (see Pss 1:1; 2:12; 34:9; 41:1; 65:4; 84:12; 89:15; 106:3; 112:1; 127:5; 128:1; 144:15).
2 tn Heb “inheritance.”
3 tn The Hebrew perfect verbal forms in v. 13 state general facts.
4 tn Heb “all the sons of men.”
5 tn Heb “the one who forms together their heart[s].” “Heart” here refers to human nature, composed of intellect, emotions and will. The precise force of יָחַד (yakhad, “together”) is unclear here. The point seems to be that the
6 tn Heb “a lie [is] the horse for victory.”
7 tn Heb “look, the eye of the
8 tn Heb “for the ones who wait for his faithfulness.”
9 tn Heb “to save from death their live[s].”
10 tn Heb “and to keep them alive in famine.”
11 tn Or “our lives.” The suffixed form of נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “being, life”) is often equivalent to a pronoun in poetic texts.
12 tn Or “[source of] help.”
13 tn Or “protector.”
14 tn Heb “let your faithfulness, O
15 tn Or “just as.”