88:17 They surround me like water all day long;
they join forces and encircle me. 1
118:11 They surrounded me, yes, they surrounded me.
Indeed, in the name of the Lord I pushed them away.
118:12 They surrounded me like bees.
But they disappeared as quickly 2 as a fire among thorns. 3
Indeed, in the name of the Lord I pushed them away.
1 tn Heb “they encircle me together.”
2 tn Heb “were extinguished.”
3 tn The point seems to be that the hostility of the nations (v. 10) is short-lived, like a fire that quickly devours thorns and then burns out. Some, attempting to create a better parallel with the preceding line, emend דֹּעֲכוּ (do’akhu, “they were extinguished”) to בָּעֲרוּ (ba’aru, “they burned”). In this case the statement emphasizes their hostility.