Psalms 37:17

37:17 for evil men will lose their power, ¹ 

but the Lord sustains ²  the godly.

Psalms 37:24

37:24 Even if ³  he trips, he will not fall headlong, ⁴ 

for the Lord holds ⁵  his hand.

Psalms 63:8

63:8 My soul ⁶  pursues you; ⁷ 

your right hand upholds me.

Isaiah 41:10

41:10 Don’t be afraid, for I am with you!

Don’t be frightened, for I am your God! ⁸ 

I strengthen you –

yes, I help you –

yes, I uphold you with my saving right hand! ⁹ 

Isaiah 41:13

41:13 For I am the Lord your God,

the one who takes hold of your right hand,

who says to you, ‘Don’t be afraid, I am helping you.’

Isaiah 42:1

The Lord Commissions His Special Servant

42:1 ¹⁰ “Here is my servant whom I support,

my chosen one in whom I take pleasure.

I have placed my spirit on him;

he will make just decrees ¹¹  for the nations. ¹² 

[37:17]  ¹ tn Heb “for the arms of the evil ones will be broken.”

[37:17]  ² tn The active participle here indicates this is characteristically true.

[37:24]  ³ tn Other translation options for כִּי in this context are “when” (so NASB) or “though” (so NEB, NIV, NRSV).

[37:24]  ⁴ tn Heb “be hurled down.”

[37:24]  ⁵ tn The active participle indicates this is characteristically true. See v. 17.

[63:8]  ⁶ tn Or “I.” The Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) with a pronominal suffix is often equivalent to a pronoun, especially in poetry (see BDB 660 s.v. נֶפֶשׁ 4.a).

[63:8]  ⁷ tn Heb “clings after.” The expression means “to pursue with determination” (see Judg 20:45; 1 Sam 14:22; 1 Chr 10:2; Jer 42:16).

[41:10]  ⁸ tn According to BDB (1043 s.v. שָׁעָה), the verb תִּשְׁתָּע (tishta’) in the second line of the poetic couplet is a Hitpael form from the root שָׁעָה (sha’ah, “gaze,” with metathesis of the stem prefix and the first root letter). Taking the Hitpael as iterative, one may then translate “do not anxiously look about.” However, the alleged Hitpael form of שָׁעָה (sha’ah) only occurs here and in verse 23. HALOT 1671 s.v. שׁתע proposes that the verb is instead a Qal form from the root שׁתע (“fear”) which is attested in cognate Semitic languages, including Ugaritic (discovered after the publishing of BDB), suggests the existence of this root. The poetic structure of v. 10 also supports the proposal, for the form in question is in synonymous parallelism to יָרֵא (yare’, “fear”).

[41:10]  ⁹ tn The “right hand” is a symbol of the Lord’s power to deliver (Exod 15:6, 12) and protect (Ps 63:9 HT [63:8 ET]). Here צֶדֶק (tsedeq) has its well-attested nuance of “vindicated righteousness,” i.e., “victory, deliverance” (see 45:8; 51:5, and BDB 841-42 s.v.).

[42:1]  ¹⁰ sn Verses 1-7 contain the first of Isaiah’s “servant songs,” which describe the ministry of a special, ideal servant who accomplishes God’s purposes for Israel and the nations. This song depicts the servant as a just king who brings justice to the earth and relief for the oppressed. The other songs appear in 49:1-13; 50:4-11; and 52:13-53:12.

[42:1]  ¹¹ tn Heb “he will bring out justice” (cf. ASV, NASB, NRSV).

[42:1]  ¹² sn Like the ideal king portrayed in Isa 11:1-9, the servant is energized by the divine spirit and establishes justice on the earth.