Psalms 118:11-16

118:11 They surrounded me, yes, they surrounded me.

Indeed, in the name of the Lord I pushed them away.

118:12 They surrounded me like bees.

But they disappeared as quickly ¹  as a fire among thorns. ² 

Indeed, in the name of the Lord I pushed them away.

118:13 “You aggressively attacked me ³  and tried to knock me down, ⁴ 

but the Lord helped me.

118:14 The Lord gives me strength and protects me; ⁵ 

he has become my deliverer.” ⁶ 

118:15 They celebrate deliverance in the tents of the godly. ⁷ 

The Lord’s right hand conquers, ⁸ 

118:16 the Lord’s right hand gives victory, ⁹ 

the Lord’s right hand conquers.

[118:12]  ¹ tn Heb “were extinguished.”

[118:12]  ² tn The point seems to be that the hostility of the nations (v. 10) is short-lived, like a fire that quickly devours thorns and then burns out. Some, attempting to create a better parallel with the preceding line, emend דֹּעֲכוּ (do’akhu, “they were extinguished”) to בָּעֲרוּ (ba’aru, “they burned”). In this case the statement emphasizes their hostility.

[118:13]  ³ tn Heb “pushing, you pushed me.” The infinitive absolute emphasizes the following verbal idea. The psalmist appears to address the nations as if they were an individual enemy. Some find this problematic and emend the verb form (which is a Qal perfect second masculine singular with a first person singular suffix) to נִדְחֵיתִי (nidkheti), a Niphal perfect first common singular, “I was pushed.”

[118:13]  ⁴ tn Heb “to fall,” i.e., “that [I] might fall.”

[118:14]  ⁵ tn Heb “my strength and protection [is] the Lord.” The Hebrew term זִמְרָת (zimrat) is traditionally understood as meaning “song” (“my strength and song [is] the Lord”) in which case one might translate, “for the Lord gives me strength and joy” (i.e., a reason to sing). However, many recent commentators have argued that the noun זִמְרָת is here a homonym, meaning “protection” or “strength.” See HALOT 274 s.v.; cf. NEB “The Lord is my refuge and defence”; NRSV “my strength and my might.”

[118:14]  ⁶ tn Or “salvation.”

[118:15]  ⁷ tn Heb “the sound of a ringing shout and deliverance [is] in the tents of the godly.”

[118:15]  ⁸ tn Heb “does valiantly.” The statement refers here to military success (see Num 24:18; 1 Sam 14:48; Pss 60:12; 108:13).

[118:16]  ⁹ tn Heb “exalts.”