Psalms 66:3

66:3 Say to God:

“How awesome are your deeds!

Because of your great power your enemies cower in fear ¹  before you.

Psalms 81:15

81:15 (May those who hate the Lord ²  cower in fear ³  before him!

May they be permanently humiliated!) ⁴ 

Deuteronomy 33:29

33:29 You have joy, Israel! Who is like you?

You are a people delivered by the Lord,

your protective shield

and your exalted sword.

May your enemies cringe before you;

may you trample on their backs.

Deuteronomy 33:2

33:2 He said:

A Historical Review

The Lord came from Sinai

and revealed himself ⁵  to Israel ⁶  from Seir.

He appeared in splendor ⁷  from Mount Paran,

and came forth with ten thousand holy ones. ⁸ 

With his right hand he gave a fiery law ⁹  to them.

Deuteronomy 1:13

1:13 Select wise and practical ¹⁰  men, those known among your tribes, whom I may appoint as your leaders.”

Isaiah 62:8

62:8 The Lord swears an oath by his right hand,

by his strong arm: ¹¹ 

“I will never again give your grain

to your enemies as food,

and foreigners will not drink your wine,

which you worked hard to produce.

Ezekiel 44:7

44:7 When you bring foreigners, those uncircumcised in heart and in flesh, into my sanctuary, you desecrate ¹²  it – even my house – when you offer my food, the fat and the blood. You ¹³  have broken my covenant by all your abominable practices.

¹ tn 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).

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

³ tn 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.

⁴ tc 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.

⁵ tn Or “rose like the sun” (NCV, TEV).

⁶ tc Heb “to him.” The LXX reads “to us” (לָנוּ [lanu] for לָמוֹ [lamo]), the reading of the MT is acceptable since it no doubt has in mind Israel as a collective singular.

⁷ tn Or “he shone forth” (NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).

⁸ tc With slight alteration (מִמְרִבַת קָדֵשׁ [mimrivat qadesh] for the MT’s מֵרִבְבֹת קֹדֶשׁ [merivvot qodesh]) the translation would be “from Meribah Kadesh” (cf. NAB, NLT; see Deut 32:51). However, the language of holy war in the immediate context favors the reading of the MT, which views the Lord as accompanied by angelic hosts.

⁹ tc The mispointed Hebrew term אֵשְׁדָּת (’eshdat) should perhaps be construed as אֵשְׁהַת (’eshhat) with Smr.

¹⁰ tn The Hebrew verb נְבֹנִים (nÿvonim, from בִּין [bin]) is a Niphal referring to skill or intelligence (see T. Fretheim, NIDOTTE 1:652-53).

¹¹ tn The Lord’s right hand and strong arm here symbolize his power and remind the audience that his might guarantees the fulfillment of the following promise.

¹² tn Heb “to desecrate.”

¹³ tc The Greek, Syriac, and Latin versions read “you.” The Masoretic text reads “they.”