Psalms 78:5

78:5 He established a rule ¹  in Jacob;

he set up a law in Israel.

He commanded our ancestors

to make his deeds known to their descendants, ² 

Psalms 78:8

78:8 Then they will not be like their ancestors,

who were a stubborn and rebellious generation,

a generation that was not committed

and faithful to God. ³ 

Psalms 78:12

78:12 He did amazing things in the sight of their ancestors,

in the land of Egypt, in the region of Zoan. ⁴ 

Psalms 78:57

78:57 They were unfaithful ⁵  and acted as treacherously as ⁶  their ancestors;

they were as unreliable as a malfunctioning bow. ⁷ 

[78:5]  ¹ tn The Hebrew noun עֵדוּת (’edut) refers here to God’s command that the older generation teach their children about God’s mighty deeds in the nation’s history (see Exod 10:2; Deut 4:9; 6:20-25).

[78:5]  ² tn Heb “which he commanded our fathers to make them known to their sons.” The plural suffix “them” probably refers back to the Lord’s mighty deeds (see vv. 3-4).

[78:8]  ³ tn Heb “a generation that did not make firm its heart and whose spirit was not faithful with God.” The expression “make firm the heart” means “to be committed, devoted” (see 1 Sam 7:3).

[78:12]  ⁴ sn The region of Zoan was located in the Egyptian delta, where the enslaved Israelites lived (see Num 13:22; Isa 19:11, 13; 30:4; Ezek 30:14).

[78:57]  ⁵ tn Heb “they turned back.”

[78:57]  ⁶ tn Or “acted treacherously like.”

[78:57]  ⁷ tn Heb “they turned aside like a deceitful bow.”