Psalms 78:11

78:11 They forgot what he had done, ¹ 

the amazing things he had shown them.

Psalms 78:42

78:42 They did not remember what he had done, ² 

how he delivered them from the enemy, ³ 

Psalms 106:18

106:18 Fire burned their group;

the flames scorched the wicked. ⁴ 

Psalms 106:21

106:21 They rejected ⁵  the God who delivered them,

the one who performed great deeds in Egypt,

Ecclesiastes 12:1

Fear God Now Because Old Age and Death Come Quickly

12:1 So remember ⁶  your Creator in the days of your youth –

before ⁷  the difficult ⁸  days come,

and the years draw near when you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”;

Jeremiah 2:32

2:32 Does a young woman forget to put on her jewels?

Does a bride forget to put on her bridal attire?

But my people have forgotten me

for more days than can even be counted.

[78:11]  ¹ tn Heb “his deeds.”

[78:42]  ² tn Heb “his hand,” symbolizing his saving activity and strength, as the next line makes clear.

[78:42]  ³ tn Heb “[the] day [in] which he ransomed them from [the] enemy.”

[106:18]  ⁴ sn Verses 16-18 describe the events of Num 16:1-40.

[106:21]  ⁵ tn Heb “forgot.”

[12:1]  ⁶ tn The imperative זְכֹר (zekhor, “Remember!”) is a figurative expression (metonymy of association) for obeying God and acknowledging his lordship over one’s life (e.g., Num 15:40; Deut 8:18; Pss 42:6-7; 63:6-8; 78:42; 103:18; 106:7; 119:52, 55; Jer 51:50; Ezek 20:43; Jonah 2:7; Mal 4:4). The exhortation to fear God and obey his commands in 12:13-14 spells out what it means to “remember” God.

[12:1]  ⁷ tn The temporal adjective עַד (’ad, “before”) appears three times in 12:1-7 (vv. 1b, 2a, 6a). Likewise, the temporal preposition בְּ (bet, “when”) is repeated (vv. 3a, 4b). These seven verses comprise one long sentence in Hebrew: The main clause is 12:1a (“Remember your Creator in the days of your youth”), while 12:1b-7 consists of five subordinate temporal clauses (“before…before…when…when…before…”).

[12:1]  ⁸ tn The adjective רָעָה (ra’ah, “evil”) does not refer here to ethical evil, but to physical difficulty, injury, pain, deprivation and suffering (e.g., Deut 31:17, 21; 32:23; 1 Sam 10:19; Neh 1:3; 2:17; Pss 34:20; 40:13; 88:4; 107:26; Eccl 11:10; Jer 2:27; Lam 3:38); see HALOT 1263 s.v. רָעָה 4.b; BDB 949 s.v. רָעָה 2.