Psalms 58:8

58:8 Let them be ¹  like a snail that melts away as it moves along! ² 

Let them be like ³  stillborn babies ⁴  that never see the sun!

[58:8]  ¹ tn There is no “to be” verb in the Hebrew text at this point, but a jussive tone can be assumed based on vv. 6-7.

[58:8]  ² tn Heb “like a melting snail [that] moves along.” A. Cohen (Psalms [SoBB], 184) explains that the text here alludes “to the popular belief that the slimy trail which the snail leaves in its track is the dissolution of its substance.”

[58:8]  ³ tn The words “let them be like” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. The jussive mood is implied from the preceding context, and “like” is understood by ellipsis (see the previous line).

[58:8]  ⁴ tn This rare word also appears in Job 3:16 and Eccles 6:3.