Psalms 7:16

7:16 He becomes the victim of his own destructive plans ¹ 

and the violence he intended for others falls on his own head. ² 

Psalms 9:15

9:15 The nations fell ³  into the pit they had made;

their feet were caught in the net they had hidden. ⁴ 

Psalms 17:13

17:13 Rise up, Lord!

Confront him! ⁵  Knock him down! ⁶ 

Use your sword to rescue me from the wicked man! ⁷ 

Psalms 63:9

63:9 Enemies seek to destroy my life, ⁸ 

but they will descend into the depths of the earth. ⁹ 

Psalms 72:6

72:6 He ¹⁰  will descend like rain on the mown grass, ¹¹ 

like showers that drench ¹²  the earth. ¹³ 

Psalms 78:31

78:31 when the anger of God flared up against them.

He killed some of the strongest of them;

he brought the young men of Israel to their knees.

Psalms 105:36

105:36 He struck down all the firstborn in their land,

the firstfruits of their reproductive power. ¹⁴ 

Psalms 140:11

140:11 A slanderer ¹⁵  will not endure on ¹⁶  the earth;

calamity will hunt down a violent man and strike him down. ¹⁷ 

[7:16]  ¹ tn Heb “his harm [i.e., the harm he conceived for others, see v. 14] returns on his head.”

[7:16]  ² tn Heb “and on his forehead his violence [i.e., the violence he intended to do to others] comes down.”

[9:15]  ³ tn Heb “sank down.”

[9:15]  ⁴ sn The hostility of the nations against God’s people is their downfall, for it prompts God to intervene and destroy them. See also Ps 7:15-16.

[17:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “Be in front of his face.”

[17:13]  ⁶ tn Or “bring him to his knees.”

[17:13]  ⁷ tn Heb “rescue my life from the wicked [one] [by] your sword.”

[63:9]  ⁷ tn Heb “but they for destruction seek my life.” The pronoun “they” must refer here to the psalmist’s enemies, referred to at this point for the first time in the psalm.

[63:9]  ⁸ sn The depths of the earth refers here to the underworld dwelling place of the dead (see Ezek 26:20; 31:14, 16, 18; 32:18, 24). See L. I. J. Stadelmann, The Hebrew Conception of the World, 167.

[72:6]  ⁹ tn That is, the king (see vv. 2, 4).

[72:6]  ¹⁰ tn The rare term zg refers to a sheep’s fleece in Deut 18:4 and Job 31:20, but to “mown” grass or crops here and in Amos 7:1.

[72:6]  ¹¹ tc The form in the Hebrew text appears to be an otherwise unattested noun. Many prefer to emend the form to a verb from the root זָרַף (zaraf). BHS in textual note b on this verse suggests a Hiphil imperfect, third masculine plural יַזְרִיפוּ (yazrifu), while HALOT 283 s.v. *זרף prefers a Pilpel perfect, third masculine plural זִרְזְפוּ (zirzÿfu). The translation assumes the latter.

[72:6]  ¹² sn The imagery of this verse compares the blessings produced by the king’s reign to fructifying rains that cause the crops to grow.

[105:36]  ¹¹ tn Heb “the beginning of all their strength,” that is, reproductive power (see Ps 78:51).

[140:11]  ¹³ tn Heb “a man of a tongue.”

[140:11]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “be established in.”

[140:11]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “for blows.” The Hebrew noun מַדְחֵפֹה (madkhefoh, “blow”) occurs only here in the OT.