Psalms 106:16-21
Context106:16 In the camp they resented 1 Moses,
and Aaron, the Lord’s holy priest. 2
106:17 The earth opened up and swallowed Dathan;
it engulfed 3 the group led by Abiram. 4
106:18 Fire burned their group;
the flames scorched the wicked. 5
106:19 They made an image of a calf at Horeb,
and worshiped a metal idol.
106:20 They traded their majestic God 6
for the image of an ox that eats grass.
106:21 They rejected 7 the God who delivered them,
the one who performed great deeds in Egypt,
Psalms 106:28
Context106:28 They worshiped 8 Baal of Peor,
and ate sacrifices offered to the dead. 9
Psalms 106:32-40
Context106:32 They made him angry by the waters of Meribah,
and Moses suffered 10 because of them,
106:33 for they aroused 11 his temper, 12
and he spoke rashly. 13
106:34 They did not destroy the nations, 14
as the Lord had commanded them to do.
106:35 They mixed in with the nations
and learned their ways. 15
106:36 They worshiped 16 their idols,
which became a snare to them. 17
106:37 They sacrificed their sons and daughters to demons. 18
106:38 They shed innocent blood –
the blood of their sons and daughters,
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan.
The land was polluted by bloodshed. 19
106:39 They were defiled by their deeds,
and unfaithful in their actions. 20
106:40 So the Lord was angry with his people 21
and despised the people who belong to him. 22
[106:16] 2 tn Heb “the holy one of the
[106:17] 4 tn Or “the assembly of Abiram.”
[106:18] 5 sn Verses 16-18 describe the events of Num 16:1-40.
[106:20] 6 tn Heb “their glory.” According to an ancient Hebrew scribal tradition, the text originally read “his glory” or “my glory.” In Jer 2:11 the
[106:28] 8 tn Heb “joined themselves to.”
[106:28] 9 tn Here “the dead” may refer to deceased ancestors (see Deut 26:14). Another option is to understand the term as a derogatory reference to the various deities which the Israelites worshiped at Peor along with Baal (see Num 25:2 and L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 [WBC], 49).
[106:32] 10 tn Heb “there was harm to Moses.”
[106:33] 11 tn The Hebrew text vocalizes the form as הִמְרוּ (himru), a Hiphil from מָרָה (marah, “to behave rebelliously”), but the verb fits better with the object (“his spirit”) if it is revocalized as הֵמֵרוּ (hemeru), a Hiphil from מָרַר (marar, “to be bitter”). The Israelites “embittered” Moses’ “spirit” in the sense that they aroused his temper with their complaints.
[106:33] 12 tn Heb “his spirit.”
[106:33] 13 tn The Hebrew text adds “with his lips,” but this has not been included in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[106:34] 14 tn That is, the nations of Canaan.
[106:35] 15 tn Heb “their deeds.”
[106:36] 17 sn Became a snare. See Exod 23:33; Judg 2:3.
[106:37] 18 tn The Hebrew term שֵׁדִים (shedim, “demons”) occurs only here and in Deut 32:17. Some type of lesser deity is probably in view.
[106:38] 19 sn Num 35:33-34 explains that bloodshed defiles a land.
[106:39] 20 tn Heb “and they committed adultery in their actions.” This means that they were unfaithful to the
[106:40] 21 tn Heb “the anger of the