Psalms 89:5

89:5 O Lord, the heavens ¹  praise your amazing deeds,

as well as your faithfulness in the angelic assembly. ² 

Psalms 89:37

89:37 it will remain stable, like the moon, ³ 

his throne will endure like the skies.” ⁴  (Selah)

Psalms 119:89

ל (Lamed)

119:89 O Lord, your instructions endure;

they stand secure in heaven. ⁵ 

Psalms 146:6

146:6 the one who made heaven and earth,

the sea, and all that is in them,

who remains forever faithful, ⁶ 

Numbers 23:19

23:19 God is not a man, that he should lie,

nor a human being, ⁷  that he should change his mind.

Has he said, and will he not do it?

Or has he spoken, and will he not make it happen? ⁸ 

Matthew 24:35

24:35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. ⁹ 

Hebrews 6:18

6:18 so that we who have found refuge in him ¹⁰  may find strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us through two unchangeable things, since it is impossible for God to lie.

[89:5]  ¹ tn As the following context makes clear, the personified “heavens” here stand by metonymy for the angelic beings that surround God’s heavenly throne.

[89:5]  ² tn Heb “in the assembly of the holy ones.” The phrase “holy ones” sometimes refers to God’s people (Ps 34:9) or to their priestly leaders (2 Chr 35:3), but here it refers to God’s heavenly assembly and the angels that surround his throne (see vv. 6-7).

[89:37]  ³ tn Heb “like the moon it will be established forever.”

[89:37]  ⁴ tn Heb “and a witness in the sky, secure.” Scholars have offered a variety of opinions as to the identity of the “witness” referred to here, none of which is very convincing. It is preferable to join וְעֵד (vÿ’ed) to עוֹלָם (’olam) in the preceding line and translate the commonly attested phrase עוֹלָם וְעֵד (“forever”). In this case one may translate the second line, “[it] will be secure like the skies.” Another option (the one reflected in the present translation) is to take עד as a rare noun meaning “throne” or “dais.” This noun is attested in Ugaritic; see, for example, CTA 16 vi 22-23, where ksi (= כִּסֵּא, kisse’, “throne”) and ’d (= עד, “dais”) appear as synonyms in the poetic parallelism (see G. R. Driver, Canaanite Myths and Legends, 91). Emending בַּשַּׁחַק (bashakhaq, “in the heavens”) to כַּשַׁחַק (kashakhaq, “like the heavens”) – bet/kaf (כ/ב) confusion is widely attested – one can then read “[his] throne like the heavens [is] firm/stable.” Verse 29 refers to the enduring nature of the heavens, while Job 37:18 speaks of God spreading out the heavens (שְׁחָקִים, shÿkhaqim) and compares their strength to a bronze mirror. Ps 89:29 uses the term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim, “skies”) which frequently appears in parallelism to שְׁחָקִים.

[119:89]  ⁵ tn Heb “Forever, O Lord, your word stands firm in heaven,” or “Forever, O Lord, [is] your word; it stands firm in heaven.” The translation assumes that “your word” refers here to the body of divine instructions contained in the law (note the frequent references to the law in vv. 92-96). See vv. 9, 16-17, 57, 101, 105, 130, 139 and 160-61. The reference in v. 86 to God’s law being faithful favors this interpretation. Another option is that “your word” refers to God’s assuring word of promise, mentioned in vv. 25, 28, 42, 65, 74, 81, 107, 114, 147 and 169. In this case one might translate, “O Lord, your promise is reliable, it stands firm in heaven.”

[146:6]  ⁶ tn Heb “the one who guards faithfulness forever.”

[23:19]  ⁷ tn Heb “son of man.”

[23:19]  ⁸ tn The verb is the Hiphil of קוּם (qum, “to cause to rise; to make stand”). The meaning here is more of the sense of fulfilling the promises made.

[24:35]  ⁹ sn The words that Jesus predicts here will never pass away. They are more stable and lasting than creation itself. For this kind of image, see Isa 40:8; 55:10-11.

[6:18]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “have taken refuge”; the basis of that refuge is implied in the preceding verse.