Psalms 9:7-9

9:7 But the Lord ¹  rules ²  forever;

he reigns in a just manner. ³ 

9:8 He judges the world fairly;

he makes just legal decisions for the nations. ⁴ 

9:9 Consequently ⁵  the Lord provides safety for the oppressed; ⁶ 

he provides safety in times of trouble. ⁷ 

Psalms 72:4

72:4 He will defend ⁸  the oppressed among the people;

he will deliver ⁹  the children ¹⁰  of the poor

and crush the oppressor.

Psalms 82:2-5

82:2 He says, ¹¹  “How long will you make unjust legal decisions

and show favoritism to the wicked? ¹²  (Selah)

82:3 Defend the cause of the poor and the fatherless! ¹³ 

Vindicate the oppressed and suffering!

82:4 Rescue the poor and needy!

Deliver them from the power ¹⁴  of the wicked!

82:5 They ¹⁵  neither know nor understand.

They stumble ¹⁶  around in the dark,

while all the foundations of the earth crumble. ¹⁷ 

Isaiah 11:4

11:4 He will treat the poor fairly, ¹⁸ 

and make right decisions ¹⁹  for the downtrodden of the earth. ²⁰ 

He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, ²¹ 

and order the wicked to be executed. ²² 

Jeremiah 5:28

5:28 That is how ²³  they have grown fat and sleek. ²⁴ 

There is no limit to the evil things they do. ²⁵ 

They do not plead the cause of the fatherless in such a way as to win it.

They do not defend the rights of the poor.

[9:7]  ¹ tn The construction vav (ו) + subject highlights the contrast between the exalted Lord and his defeated foes (see v. 6).

[9:7]  ² tn Heb “sits” (i.e., enthroned, see v. 4). The imperfect verbal form highlights the generalization.

[9:7]  ³ tn Heb “he establishes for justice his throne.”

[9:8]  ⁴ tn Heb “the peoples.” The imperfect verbal forms in v. 8 either describe God’s typical, characteristic behavior, or anticipate a future judgment of worldwide proportions (“will judge…”).

[9:9]  ⁵ tn Following the imperfect in v. 9, the construction vav (ו) conjunctive + shortened form of the prefixed verb הָיָה (hayah) indicates a consequence or result of the preceding statement. The construction functions this same way in Pss 81:15 and 104:20.

[9:9]  ⁶ tn Heb “and the Lord is an elevated place for the oppressed.” The singular form דָּךְ (dakh, “oppressed”) is collective here.

[9:9]  ⁷ tn Heb “[he is] an elevated place for times in trouble.” Here an “elevated place” refers to a stronghold, a defensible, secure position that represents a safe haven in times of unrest or distress (cf. NEB “tower of strength”; NIV, NRSV “stronghold”).

[72:4]  ⁸ tn Heb “judge [for].”

[72:4]  ⁹ tn The prefixed verbal form appears to be an imperfect, not a jussive.

[72:4]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “sons.”

[82:2]  ¹¹ tn The words “he says” are supplied in the translation to indicate that the following speech is God’s judicial decision (see v. 1).

[82:2]  ¹² tn Heb “and the face of the wicked lift up.”

[82:3]  ¹³ tn The Hebrew noun יָתוֹם (yatom) refers to one who has lost his father (not necessarily his mother, see Ps 109:9). Because they were so vulnerable and were frequently exploited, fatherless children are often mentioned as epitomizing the oppressed (see Pss 10:14; 68:5; 94:6; 146:9; as well as Job 6:27; 22:9; 24:3, 9; 29:12; 31:17, 21).

[82:4]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “hand.”

[82:5]  ¹⁵ sn Having addressed the defendants, God now speaks to those who are observing the trial, referring to the gods in the third person.

[82:5]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “walk.” The Hitpael stem indicates iterative action, picturing these ignorant “judges” as stumbling around in the darkness.

[82:5]  ¹⁷ sn These gods, though responsible for justice, neglect their duty. Their self-imposed ignorance (which the psalmist compares to stumbling around in the dark) results in widespread injustice, which threatens the social order of the world (the meaning of the phrase all the foundations of the earth crumble).

[11:4]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “with justice” (so NAB) or “with righteousness” (so KJV, NASB, NIV, NRSV).

[11:4]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “make decisions with rectitude”; cf. ASV, NRSV “and decide with equity.”

[11:4]  ²⁰ tn Or “land” (NAB, NCV, CEV). It is uncertain if the passage is picturing universal dominion or focusing on the king’s rule over his covenant people. The reference to God’s “holy mountain” in v. 9 and the description of renewed Israelite conquests in v. 14 suggest the latter, though v. 10 seems to refer to a universal kingdom (see 2:2-4).

[11:4]  ²¹ tc The Hebrew text reads literally, “and he will strike the earth with the scepter of his mouth.” Some have suggested that in this context אֶרֶץ (’erets, “earth”) as an object of judgment seems too broad in scope. The parallelism is tighter if one emends the word to ץ(י)עָרִ (’arits, “potentate, tyrant”). The phrase “scepter of his mouth” refers to the royal (note “scepter”) decrees that he proclaims with his mouth. Because these decrees will have authority and power (see v. 2) behind them, they can be described as “striking” the tyrants down. Nevertheless, the MT reading may not need emending. Isaiah refers to the entire “earth” as the object of God’s judgment in several places without specifying the wicked as the object of the judgment (Isa 24:17-21; 26:9, 21; 28:22; cf. 13:11).

[11:4]  ²² tn Heb “and by the breath of his lips he will kill the wicked.” The “breath of his lips” refers to his speech, specifically in this context his official decrees that the wicked oppressors be eliminated from his realm. See the preceding note.

[5:28]  ²³ tn These words are not in the text but are supplied in the translation to show that this line is parallel with the preceding.

[5:28]  ²⁴ tn The meaning of this word is uncertain. This verb occurs only here. The lexicons generally relate it to the word translated “plate” in Song 5:14 and understand it to mean “smooth, shiny” (so BDB 799 s.v. I עֶשֶׁת) or “fat” (so HALOT 850 s.v. II עֶשֶׁת). The word in Song 5:14 more likely means “smooth” than “plate” (so TEV). So “sleek” is most likely here.

[5:28]  ²⁵ tn Heb “they cross over/transgress with respect to matters of evil.”