Deuteronomy 32:23

32:23 I will increase their ¹  disasters,

I will use up my arrows on them.

Joshua 10:10

10:10 The Lord routed ²  them before Israel. Israel ³  thoroughly defeated them ⁴  at Gibeon. They chased them up the road to the pass ⁵  of Beth Horon and struck them down all the way to Azekah and Makkedah.

Psalms 7:12-13

7:12 If a person ⁶  does not repent, God sharpens his sword ⁷ 

and prepares to shoot his bow. ⁸ 

7:13 He prepares to use deadly weapons against him; ⁹ 

he gets ready to shoot flaming arrows. ¹⁰ 

Psalms 18:14

18:14 He shot his ¹¹  arrows and scattered them, ¹² 

many lightning bolts ¹³  and routed them. ¹⁴ 

Psalms 45:5

45:5 Your arrows are sharp

and penetrate the hearts of the king’s enemies.

Nations fall at your feet. ¹⁵ 

Psalms 144:6-7

144:6 Hurl lightning bolts and scatter them!

Shoot your arrows and rout them! ¹⁶ 

144:7 Reach down ¹⁷  from above!

Grab me and rescue me from the surging water, ¹⁸ 

from the power of foreigners, ¹⁹ 

Habakkuk 3:11

3:11 The sun and moon stand still in their courses; ²⁰ 

the flash of your arrows drives them away, ²¹ 

the bright light of your lightning-quick spear. ²² 

[32:23]  ¹ tn Heb “upon them.”

[10:10]  ² tn Or “caused to panic.”

[10:10]  ³ tn Heb “he.” The referent is probably Israel (mentioned at the end of the previous sentence in the verse; cf. NIV, NRSV), but it is also possible that the Lord should be understood as the referent (cf. NASB “and He slew them with a great slaughter at Gibeon”), or even Joshua (cf. NEB “and Joshua defeated them utterly in Gibeon”).

[10:10]  ⁴ tn Heb “struck them down with a great striking down.”

[10:10]  ⁵ tn Or “ascent.”

[7:12]  ⁶ tn Heb “If he”; the referent (a person who is a sinner) has been specified in the translation for clarity. The subject of the first verb is understood as the sinner who fails to repent of his ways and becomes the target of God’s judgment (vv. 9, 14-16).

[7:12]  ⁷ tn Heb “if he does not return, his sword he sharpens.” The referent (God) of the pronominal subject of the second verb (“sharpens”) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[7:12]  ⁸ tn Heb “his bow he treads and prepares it.” “Treading the bow” involved stepping on one end of it in order to string it and thus prepare it for battle.

[7:13]  ⁹ tn Heb “and for him he prepares the weapons of death.”

[7:13]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “his arrows into flaming [things] he makes.”

[18:14]  ¹¹ tn 2 Sam 22:15 omits the pronominal suffix (“his”).

[18:14]  ¹² tn The pronominal suffixes on the verbs “scattered” and “routed” (see the next line) refer to the psalmist’s enemies. Some argue that the suffixes refer to the arrows, in which case one might translate “shot them far and wide” and “made them move noisily,” respectively. They argue that the enemies have not been mentioned since v. 4 and are not again mentioned until v. 17. However, usage of the verbs פוּץ (puts, “scatter”) and הָמַם (hamam, “rout”) elsewhere in Holy War accounts suggests the suffixes refer to enemies. Enemies are frequently pictured in such texts as scattered and/or routed (see Exod 14:24; 23:27; Num 10:35; Josh 10:10; Judg 4:15; 1 Sam 7:10; 11:11; Ps 68:1).

[18:14]  ¹³ sn Lightning is a common motif in in OT theophanies and in ancient Near Eastern portrayals of the storm god and warring kings. See R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological Study of Psalm 18/2 Samuel 22” (Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983), 190-92.

[18:14]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “lightning bolts, many.” 2 Sam 22:15 has simply “lightning” (בָּרָק, baraq). The identity of the word רָב (rav) in Ps 18:14 is problematic. (1) It may be a form of a rare verb רָבַב (ravav, “to shoot”), perhaps attested in Gen 49:23 as well. In this case one might translate, “he shot lightning bolts and routed them.” Other options include (2) understanding רָב (rav) as an adverbial use of the adjective, “lightning bolts in abundance,” or (3) emending the form to רַבּוּ (rabbu), from רָבַב (ravav, “be many”) or to רָבוּ (ravu), from רָבָה (ravah, “be many”) – both a haplography of the vav (ו); note the initial vav on the immediately following form – and translating “lightning bolts were in abundance.”

[45:5]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “your arrows are sharp – peoples beneath you fall – in the heart of the enemies of the king.” The choppy style reflects the poet’s excitement.

[144:6]  ¹⁶ sn Arrows and lightning bolts are associated in other texts (see Pss 18:14; 77:17-18; Zech 9:14), as well as in ancient Near Eastern art (see R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological study of Psalm 18/2 Samuel 22” [Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983], 187).

[144:7]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “stretch out your hands.”

[144:7]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “mighty waters.” The waters of the sea symbolize the psalmist’s powerful foreign enemies, as well as the realm of death they represent (see the next line and Ps 18:16-17).

[144:7]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “from the hand of the sons of foreignness.”

[3:11]  ²⁰ tn Heb “in their lofty dwelling places.”

[3:11]  ²¹ tn Or “at the light of your arrows they vanish.”

[3:11]  ²² tn Heb “at the brightness of the lightning of your spear.”