Psalms 105:40

105:40 They asked for food, ¹  and he sent quails;

he satisfied them with food from the sky. ² 

Psalms 2:8

2:8 Ask me,

and I will give you the nations as your inheritance, ³ 

the ends of the earth as your personal property.

Psalms 146:5

146:5 How blessed is the one whose helper is the God of Jacob,

whose hope is in the Lord his God,

Psalms 21:4

21:4 He asked you to sustain his life, ⁴ 

and you have granted him long life and an enduring dynasty. ⁵ 

[105:40]  ¹ tn Heb “he [i.e., his people] asked.” The singular form should probably be emended to a plural שָׁאֲלוּ (sha’alu, “they asked”), the vav (ו) having fallen off by haplography (note the vav at the beginning of the following form).

[105:40]  ² tn Or “bread of heaven.” The reference is to manna (see Exod 16:4, 13-15).

[2:8]  ³ sn I will give you the nations. The Lord promises the Davidic king universal dominion.

[21:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “life he asked from you.” Another option is to translate the perfect verbal forms in v. 4 with the present tense, “he asks…you grant.”

[21:4]  ⁶ tn Heb “you have granted him length of days forever and ever.” The phrase “length of days,” when used of human beings, usually refers to a lengthy period of time (such as one’s lifetime). See, for example, Deut 30:20; Job 12:12; Ps 91:16; Prov 3:2, 16; Lam 5:20. The additional phrase “forever and ever” is hyperbolic. While it seems to attribute eternal life to the king (see Pss 61:6-7; 72:5 as well), the underlying reality is the king’s enduring dynasty. He will live on, as it were, through his descendants, who will continue to rule over his kingdom long after he has passed off the scene.