Psalms 24:8

24:8 Who is this majestic king? ¹ 

The Lord who is strong and mighty!

The Lord who is mighty in battle!

Psalms 78:65

78:65 But then the Lord awoke from his sleep; ² 

he was like a warrior in a drunken rage. ³ 

Psalms 120:4

120:4 Here’s how! ⁴  With the sharp arrows of warriors,

with arrowheads forged over the hot coals. ⁵ 

Psalms 127:4

127:4 Sons born during one’s youth

are like arrows in a warrior’s hand. ⁶ 

Psalms 45:3

45:3 Strap your sword to your thigh, O warrior! ⁷ 

Appear in your majestic splendor! ⁸ 

Psalms 112:2

112:2 His descendants ⁹  will be powerful on the earth;

the godly ¹⁰  will be blessed.

Psalms 19:5

19:5 Like a bridegroom it emerges ¹¹  from its chamber; ¹² 

like a strong man it enjoys ¹³  running its course. ¹⁴ 

Psalms 33:16

33:16 No king is delivered by his vast army;

a warrior is not saved by his great might.

Psalms 103:20

103:20 Praise the Lord, you angels of his,

you powerful warriors who carry out his decrees

and obey his orders! ¹⁵ 

Psalms 89:19

89:19 Then you ¹⁶  spoke through a vision to your faithful followers ¹⁷  and said:

“I have energized a warrior; ¹⁸ 

I have raised up a young man ¹⁹  from the people.

Psalms 52:1

Psalm 52 ²⁰ 

For the music director; a well-written song ²¹  by David. It was written when Doeg the Edomite went and informed Saul: “David has arrived at the home of Ahimelech.” ²² 

52:1 Why do you boast about your evil plans, ²³  O powerful man?

God’s loyal love protects me all day long! ²⁴ 

[24:8]  ¹ sn Who is this majestic king? Perhaps the personified gates/doors ask this question, in response to the command given in v. 7.

[78:65]  ² tn Heb “and the master awoke like one sleeping.” The Lord’s apparent inactivity during the time of judgment is compared to sleep.

[78:65]  ³ tn Heb “like a warrior overcome with wine.” The Hebrew verb רוּן (run, “overcome”) occurs only here in the OT. The phrase “overcome with wine” could picture a drunken warrior controlled by his emotions and passions (as in the present translation), or it could refer to a warrior who awakes from a drunken stupor.

[120:4]  ³ tn The words “here’s how” are supplied in the translation as a clarification. In v. 4 the psalmist answers the question he raises in v. 3.

[120:4]  ⁴ tn Heb “with coals of the wood of the broom plant.” The wood of the broom plant was used to make charcoal, which in turn was used to fuel the fire used to forge the arrowheads.

[127:4]  ⁴ tn Heb “like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so [are] sons of youth.” Arrows are used in combat to defend oneself against enemies; sons are viewed here as providing social security and protection (see v. 5). The phrase “sons of youth” is elliptical, meaning “sons [born during the father’s] youth.” Such sons will have grown up to be mature adults and will have children of their own by the time the father reaches old age and becomes vulnerable to enemies. Contrast the phrase “son of old age” in Gen 37:3 (see also 44:20), which refers to Jacob’s age when Joseph was born.

[45:3]  ⁵ tn Or “mighty one.”

[45:3]  ⁶ tn The Hebrew text has simply, “your majesty and your splendor,” which probably refers to the king’s majestic splendor when he appears in full royal battle regalia.

[112:2]  ⁶ tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”

[112:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “His seed will be mighty on the earth, the generation of the godly.” The Hebrew term דוֹר (dor, “generation”) could be taken as parallel to “offspring” and translated “posterity,” but the singular more likely refers to the godly as a class. See BDB 189-90 s.v. for other examples where “generation” refers to a class of people.

[19:5]  ⁷ tn The participle expresses the repeated or regular nature of the action.

[19:5]  ⁸ tn The Hebrew noun חֻפָּה (khufah, “chamber”) occurs elsewhere only in Isa 4:5 and Joel 2:16 (where it refers to the bedroom of a bride and groom).

[19:5]  ⁹ tn The imperfect verbal form draws attention to the regularity of the action.

[19:5]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “[on] a path.”

[103:20]  ⁸ tn Heb “[you] mighty ones of strength, doers of his word, by listening to the voice of his word.”

[89:19]  ⁹ tn The pronoun “you” refers to the Lord, who is addressed here. The quotation that follows further develops the announcement of vv. 3-4.

[89:19]  ¹⁰ tc Many medieval mss read the singular here, “your faithful follower.” In this case the statement refers directly to Nathan’s oracle to David (see 2 Sam 7:17).

[89:19]  ¹¹ tn Heb “I have placed help upon a warrior.”

[89:19]  ¹² tn Or perhaps “a chosen one.”

[52:1]  ¹⁰ sn Psalm 52. The psalmist confidently confronts his enemy and affirms that God will destroy evildoers and vindicate the godly.

[52:1]  ¹¹ tn The meaning of the Hebrew term מַשְׂכִּיל (maskil) is uncertain. The word is derived from a verb meaning “to be prudent; to be wise.” Various options are: “a contemplative song,” “a song imparting moral wisdom,” or “a skillful [i.e., well-written] song.” The term occurs in the superscriptions of Pss 32, 42, 44, 45, 52-55, 74, 78, 88, 89, and 142, as well as in Ps 47:7.

[52:1]  ¹² tn Heb “when Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul and said to him, ‘David has come to the house of Ahimelech.’”

[52:1]  ¹³ tn Heb “Why do you boast in evil?”

[52:1]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “the loyal love of God [is] all the day.” In this context, where the psalmist is threatened by his enemy, the point seems to be that the psalmist is protected by God’s loyal love at all times.