Psalms 18:44

18:44 When they hear of my exploits, they submit to me. ¹ 

Foreigners are powerless ²  before me;

Psalms 94:16

94:16 Who will rise up to defend me ³  against the wicked?

Who will stand up for me against the evildoers? ⁴ 

Psalms 108:8

108:8 Gilead belongs to me,

as does Manasseh! ⁵ 

Ephraim is my helmet, ⁶ 

Judah my royal scepter. ⁷ 

[18:44]  ¹ tn Heb “at a report of an ear they submit to me.” The report of the psalmist’s exploits is so impressive that those who hear it submit to his rulership without putting up a fight.

[18:44]  ² tn For the meaning “be weak, powerless” for כָּחַשׁ (kakhash), see Ps 109:24. The next line (see v. 45a), in which “foreigners” are also mentioned, favors this interpretation. Another option is to translate “cower in fear” (see Deut 33:29; Pss 66:3; 81:15; cf. NIV “cringe”; NRSV “came cringing”).

[94:16]  ³ tn Heb “for me.”

[94:16]  ⁴ sn Who will stand up for me…? The questions anticipate the answer, “No one except God” (see v. 17).

[108:8]  ⁵ tn Gilead was located east of the Jordan River. Half of the tribe of Manasseh lived east of the Jordan in the region of Bashan.

[108:8]  ⁶ tn Heb “the protection of my head.”

[108:8]  ⁷ sn Judah, like Ephraim, was the other major tribe west of the Jordan River. The Davidic king, symbolized here by the royal scepter, came from this tribe.