Psalms 7:2

7:2 Otherwise they will rip ¹  me ²  to shreds like a lion;

they will tear me to bits and no one will be able to rescue me. ³ 

Psalms 7:2

7:2 Otherwise they will rip ⁴  me ⁵  to shreds like a lion;

they will tear me to bits and no one will be able to rescue me. ⁶ 

Psalms 22:1

Psalm 22 ⁷ 

For the music director; according to the tune “Morning Doe;” ⁸  a psalm of David.

22:1 My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? ⁹ 

I groan in prayer, but help seems far away. ¹⁰ 

Amos 2:14

2:14 Fast runners will find no place to hide; ¹¹ 

strong men will have no strength left; ¹² 

warriors will not be able to save their lives.

Micah 5:8

5:8 Those survivors from Jacob will live among the nations,

in the midst of many peoples.

They will be like a lion among the animals of the forest,

like a young lion among the flocks of sheep,

which attacks when it passes through;

it rips its prey ¹³  and there is no one to stop it. ¹⁴ 

[7:2]  ¹ tn The verb is singular in the Hebrew text, even though “all who chase me” in v. 1 refers to a whole group of enemies. The singular is also used in vv. 4-5, but the psalmist returns to the plural in v. 6. The singular is probably collective, emphasizing the united front that the psalmist’s enemies present. This same alternation between a collective singular and a plural referring to enemies appears in Pss 9:3, 6; 13:4; 31:4, 8; 41:6, 10-11; 42:9-10; 55:3; 64:1-2; 74:3-4; 89:22-23; 106:10-11; 143:3, 6, 9.

[7:2]  ² tn Heb “my life.” The pronominal suffix attached to נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) is equivalent to a personal pronoun. See Ps 6:3.

[7:2]  ³ tn Heb “tearing and there is no one rescuing.” The verbal form translated “tearing” is a singular active participle.

[7:2]  ⁴ tn The verb is singular in the Hebrew text, even though “all who chase me” in v. 1 refers to a whole group of enemies. The singular is also used in vv. 4-5, but the psalmist returns to the plural in v. 6. The singular is probably collective, emphasizing the united front that the psalmist’s enemies present. This same alternation between a collective singular and a plural referring to enemies appears in Pss 9:3, 6; 13:4; 31:4, 8; 41:6, 10-11; 42:9-10; 55:3; 64:1-2; 74:3-4; 89:22-23; 106:10-11; 143:3, 6, 9.

[7:2]  ⁵ tn Heb “my life.” The pronominal suffix attached to נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) is equivalent to a personal pronoun. See Ps 6:3.

[7:2]  ⁶ tn Heb “tearing and there is no one rescuing.” The verbal form translated “tearing” is a singular active participle.

[22:1]  ⁷ sn Psalm 22. The psalmist cries out to the Lord for deliverance from his dangerous enemies, who have surrounded him and threaten his life. Confident that the Lord will intervene, he then vows to thank the Lord publicly for his help and anticipates a time when all people will recognize the Lord’s greatness and worship him.

[22:1]  ⁸ tn Heb “according to the doe of the dawn.” Apparently this refers to a particular musical tune or style.

[22:1]  ⁹ sn From the psalmist’s perspective it seems that God has abandoned him, for he fails to answer his cry for help (vv. 1b-2).

[22:1]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “far from my deliverance [are] the words of my groaning.” The Hebrew noun שְׁאָגָה (shÿ’agah) and its related verb שָׁאַג (sha’ag) are sometimes used of a lion’s roar, but they can also describe human groaning (see Job 3:24 and Pss 32:3 and 38:8.

[2:14]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and a place of refuge will perish from the swift.”

[2:14]  ¹² tn Heb “the strong will not increase his strength.”

[5:8]  ¹³ tn The words “its prey” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[5:8]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and there is no deliverer.”