Psalms 27:12

27:12 Do not turn me over to my enemies, ¹ 

for false witnesses who want to destroy me testify against me. ² 

Psalms 94:20-21

94:20 Cruel rulers ³  are not your allies,

those who make oppressive laws. ⁴ 

94:21 They conspire against ⁵  the blameless, ⁶ 

and condemn to death the innocent. ⁷ 

Psalms 94:2

94:2 Rise up, O judge of the earth!

Pay back the proud!

Psalms 15:1

Psalm 15 ⁸ 

A psalm of David.

15:1 Lord, who may be a guest in your home? ⁹ 

Who may live on your holy hill? ¹⁰ 

Job 5:12-13

5:12 He frustrates ¹¹  the plans ¹²  of the crafty ¹³ 

so that ¹⁴  their hands cannot accomplish

what they had planned! ¹⁵ 

5:13 He catches ¹⁶  the wise in their own craftiness, ¹⁷ 

and the counsel of the cunning ¹⁸  is brought to a quick end. ¹⁹ 

[27:12]  ¹ tn Heb “do not give me over to the desire of my enemies.”

[27:12]  ² tn Heb “for they have risen up against me, lying witnesses and a testifier of violence.” The form יָפֵחַ (yafeakh) is traditionally understood as a verb meaning “snort, breathe out”: “for false witnesses are risen up against me, and such as breathe out cruelty” (KJV; cf. BDB 422 s.v.). A better option is to take the form as a noun meaning “a witness” (or “testifier”). See Prov 6:19; 12:17; 14:5, 25; 19:5, 9, and Hab 2:3.

[94:20]  ³ tn Heb “a throne of destruction.” “Throne” stands here by metonymy for rulers who occupy thrones.

[94:20]  ⁴ tn Heb “Is a throne of destruction united to you, one that forms trouble upon a statute?” The rhetorical question anticipates the answer, “Of course not!” The translation, while not preserving the interrogative form of the statement, reflects its rhetorical force.

[94:21]  ⁵ tn Or “attack.”

[94:21]  ⁶ tn Heb “the life of the blameless.”

[94:21]  ⁷ tn Heb “and the blood of the innocent they declare guilty.”

[15:1]  ⁸ sn Psalm 15. This psalm describes the character qualities that one must possess to be allowed access to the divine presence.

[15:1]  ⁹ tn Heb “Who may live as a resident alien in your tent?”

[15:1]  ¹⁰ sn In this context the Lord’s holy hill probably refers to Zion/Jerusalem. See Isa 66:20; Joel 2:1; 3:17; Zech 8:3; Pss 2:6; 43:3; 48:1; 87:1; Dan 9:16.

[5:12]  ¹¹ tn The Hiphil form מֵפֵר (mefer) is the participle from פָּרַר (parar, “to annul; to frustrate; to break”). It continues the doxological descriptions of God; but because of the numerous verses in this section, it may be clearer to start a new sentence with this form (rather than translating it “who…”).

[5:12]  ¹² tn The word is related to the verb “to think; to plan; to devise,” and so can mean “thoughts; plans; imagination.” Here it refers to the plan of the crafty that must be frustrated (see also Isa 44:25 for the contrast).

[5:12]  ¹³ tn The word עֲרוּמִים (’arumim) means “crafty” or “shrewd.” It describes the shrewdness of some to achieve their ends (see Gen 3:1, where the serpent is more cunning than all the creatures, that is, he knows where the dangers are and will attempt to bring down the innocent). In the next verse it describes the clever plans of the wise – those who are wise in their own sight.

[5:12]  ¹⁴ tn The consecutive clause showing result or purpose is simply introduced with the vav and the imperfect/jussive (see GKC 504-5 §166.a).

[5:12]  ¹⁵ tn The word תּוּשִׁיָּה (tushiyyah) is a technical word from wisdom literature. It has either the idea of the faculty of foresight, or of prudence in general (see 12:6; 26:3). It can be parallel in the texts to “wisdom,” “counsel,” “help,” or “strength.” Here it refers to what has been planned ahead of time.

[5:13]  ¹⁶ tn The participles continue the description of God. Here he captures or ensnares the wise in their wickedly clever plans. See also Ps 7:16, where the wicked are caught in the pit they have dug – they are only wise in their own eyes.

[5:13]  ¹⁷ sn This is the only quotation from the Book of Job in the NT (although Rom 11:35 seems to reflect 41:11, and Phil 1:19 is similar to 13:6). Paul cites it in 1 Cor 3:19.

[5:13]  ¹⁸ tn The etymology of נִפְתָּלִים (niftalim) suggests a meaning of “twisted” (see Prov 8:8) in the sense of tortuous. See Gen 30:8; Ps 18:26 [27].

[5:13]  ¹⁹ tn The Niphal of מָהַר (mahar) means “to be hasty; to be irresponsible.” The meaning in the line may be understood in this sense: The counsel of the wily is hastened, that is, precipitated before it is ripe, i.e., frustrated (A. B. Davidson, Job, 39).