¹ tn Heb “trembled to meet.”

² tn Heb “let not a man know anything about the matter [for] which I am sending you and [about] which I commanded you.”

³ tn Heb “servants.”

⁴ tn The Hebrew expression here refers to a particular, but unnamed, place. It occurs in the OT only here, in 2 Kgs 6:8, and in Ruth 4:1, where Boaz uses it to refer to Naomi’s unnamed kinsman-redeemer. A contracted form of the expression appears in Dan 8:13.

⁵ tn Heb “under your hand.”

⁶ tn Heb “servants.”

⁷ tn Heb “have kept themselves from women” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV); TEV “haven’t had sexual relations recently”; NLT “have not slept with any women recently.”

⁸ tn Heb “servants’.”

⁹ tn Heb “placed these matters in his heart.”

¹⁰ tn Heb “in their eyes.”

¹¹ tn Heb “in their hand.”

¹² tn Heb “house.”

¹³ tn Heb “bitter of soul.”

¹⁴ tn Heb “to.”

¹⁵ tn Heb “go forth.”

¹⁶ tn Heb “all the days.”

¹⁷ tn Heb “and Saul heard that David and the men who were with him were known.”

¹⁸ tc The MT has “to all of you.” If this reading is correct, we have here an example of a prepositional phrase functioning as the equivalent of a dative of advantage, which is not impossible from a grammatical point of view. However, the LXX, the Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate all have “and.” A conjunction rather than a preposition should probably be read on the front of this phrase.

¹⁹ tn Heb “officers of a thousand and officers of a hundred.”

²⁰ tn Heb “uncovers my ear.”

²¹ tn Heb “by giving.”

²² tn Heb “rises up against.”

²³ tn Heb “set a matter against.”

²⁴ tn Heb “small or great.”

²⁵ tn Heb “runners.”

²⁶ tn Heb “their hand is.”

²⁷ tn Heb “to extend their hand to harm.”

²⁸ tc The number is confused in the Greek ms tradition. The LXX, with the exception of the Lucianic recension, has the number 305. The Lucianic recension, along with a couple of Old Latin mss, has the number 350.

²⁹ tc The translation follows the LXX, which reads “I am guilty,” rather than the MT, which has “I have turned.”

³⁰ tn Or “the one who.” This may refer specifically to Saul, in which case David acknowledges that Abiathar’s life is endangered because of his allegiance to David. The translation assumes that the statement is more generalized, meaning that any enemy of Abiathar is an enemy of David. In other words, David promises that he will protect Abiathar with his very own life.

³¹ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.

³² tn Grk “fleshly [people]”; the Greek term here is σαρκινός (BDAG 914 s.v. 1).

³³ sn Milk refers figuratively to basic or elementary Christian teaching. Paul’s point was that the Corinthian believers he was writing to here were not mature enough to receive more advanced teaching. This was not a problem at the time, when they were recent converts, but the problem now is that they are still not ready.

³⁴ tn Or “are still merely human”; Grk “fleshly.” Cf. BDAG 914 s.v. σαρκικός 2, “pert. to being human at a disappointing level of behavior or characteristics, (merely) human.” The same phrase occurs again later in this verse.

³⁵ tn Grk “and walking in accordance with man,” i.e., living like (fallen) humanity without the Spirit’s influence; hence, “unregenerate people.”

³⁶ tn Grk “are you not men,” i.e., (fallen) humanity without the Spirit’s influence. Here Paul does not say “walking in accordance with” as in the previous verse; he actually states the Corinthians are this. However, this is almost certainly rhetorical hyperbole.

³⁷ tn Grk “and to each as the Lord gave.”

³⁸ sn The expression I planted is generally taken to mean that Paul founded the church at Corinth. Later Apollos had a significant ministry there (watered). See also v. 10.

³⁹ tn Grk “is anything.”

⁴⁰ tn Grk “are one.” The purpose of this phrase is to portray unified action on the part of ministers underneath God’s sovereign control. Although they are in fact individuals, they are used by God with a single purpose to accomplish his will in facilitating growth. This emphasis is brought out in the translation “work as one.”

⁴¹ tn Although 1 Cor 3:9 is frequently understood to mean, “we are coworkers with God,” such a view assumes that the genitive θεοῦ (qeou) is associative because of its relationship to συνεργοί (sunergoi). However, not only is a genitive of association not required by the syntax (cf. ExSyn 130), but the context is decidedly against it: Paul and Apollos are insignificant compared to the God whom they serve (vv. 5-8).

⁴² sn The various materials described here, both valuable (gold, silver, precious stones) and worthless (wood, hay, or straw) refer to the quality of work built on the foundation, or possibly to the motivation of those doing the building. The materials themselves have been understood (1) as deeds or (2) as people (since ultimately the passage is addressing those who minister to others).

⁴³ tn Grk “each one’s.” Here “builder’s” is employed in the translation for clarity.

⁴⁴ tn In an attempt to clarify the referent, some translations add “of Christ” after “Day” (so TEV); others specify this as “judgment day” (NLT) or “the day of judgment” (CEV).

sn The Day refers to the Day of the Lord Jesus Christ (cf. 1:8; 5:5) when each Christian worker will appear before Christ for evaluation of his ministry. Paul’s constant motivation was to be pleasing to the Lord in that day (2 Cor 5:9-10) and receive his commendation (1 Cor 4:5).

⁴⁵ tc ‡ αὐτό (auto) is found at this point in v. 13 in a number of significant witnesses, including A B C P 33 1739 al. But Ì⁴⁶ א D Ψ 0289 1881 Ï latt lack it. The pronoun could be a motivated reading, designed to intensify Paul’s statement. On the other hand, it could have been deleted because the article alone made the reference already clear. In this instance, the possibility of scribal addition seems more likely than scribal deletion, although a decision is difficult. NA²⁷ includes the word in brackets, indicating doubt as to its authenticity.

sn It is unclear whether the phrase it will be revealed by fire describes the Day (subject of the previous clause) or each one’s work (subject of the clause before that).

⁴⁶ tn The translation “[will] be punished” is given here by BDAG 428 s.v. ζημιόω 2. But the next clause says “he will be delivered” and so “suffering loss” is more likely to refer to the destruction of the “work” by fire or the loss of the reward that could have been gained.

⁴⁷ sn You are God’s temple refers here to the church, since the pronoun you is plural in the Greek text. (In 6:19 the same imagery is used in a different context to refer to the individual believer.)

⁴⁸ tn Grk “let no one deceive himself.”

⁴⁹ sn A quotation from Job 5:13.

⁵⁰ sn A quotation from Ps 94:11.

⁵¹ tn Grk “so then, let no one boast in men.”

⁵² sn The meaning of the thirtieth year is problematic. Some take it to mean the age of Ezekiel when he prophesied (e.g., Origen). The Aramaic Targum explains the thirtieth year as the thirtieth year dated from the recovery of the book of the Torah in the temple in Jerusalem (2 Kgs 22:3-9). The number seems somehow to be equated with the fifth year of Jehoiachin’s exile in 1:2, i.e., 593 b.c.

⁵³ sn The Assyrians started the tactic of deportation, the large-scale forced displacement of conquered populations, in order to stifle rebellions. The task of uniting groups of deportees, gaining freedom from one’s overlords and returning to retake one’s own country would be considerably more complicated than living in one’s homeland and waiting for an opportune moment to drive out the enemy’s soldiers. The Babylonians adopted this practice also, after defeating the Assyrians. The Babylonians deported Judeans on three occasions. The practice of deportation was reversed by the Persian conquerors of Babylon, who gained favor from their subjects for allowing them to return to their homeland and, as polytheists, sought the favor of the gods of the various countries which had come under their control.

⁵⁴ sn The Kebar River is mentioned in Babylonian texts from the city of Nippur in the fifth century b.c. It provided artificial irrigation from the Euphrates.

⁵⁵ sn For the concept of the heavens opened in later literature, see 3 Macc 6:18; 2 Bar. 22:1; T. Levi 5:1; Matt 3:16; Acts 7:56; Rev 19:11.

⁵⁶ tn Or “saw visions from God.” References to divine visions occur also in Ezek 8:3; 40:2

⁵⁷ sn The prophet’s name, Ezekiel, means in Hebrew “May God strengthen.”

⁵⁸ tn Or “to Ezekiel son of Buzi the priest.”

⁵⁹ tn Heb “Chaldeans.” The name of the tribal group ruling Babylon, “Chaldeans” is used as metonymy for the whole empire of Babylon. The Babylonians worked with the Medes to destroy the Assyrian Empire near the end of the 7th century b.c. Then, over the next century, the Babylonians dominated the West Semitic states (such as Phoenicia, Aram, Moab, Edom, and Judah in the modern countries of Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and Israel) and made incursions into Egypt.

⁶⁰ tn Or “power.”

sn Hand in the OT can refer metaphorically to power, authority, or influence. In Ezekiel God’s “hand” being on the prophet is regularly associated with communication or a vision from God (3:14, 22; 8:1; 37:1; 40:1).

⁶¹ tn The word הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally “behold”) indicates becoming aware of something and has been translated here as a verb.

⁶² sn Storms are often associated with appearances of God (see Nah 1:3; Ps 18:12). In some passages, the “storm” (סְעָרָה, sÿ’arah) may be a whirlwind (Job 38:1, 2 Kgs 2:1).

⁶³ tn Heb “fire taking hold of itself,” perhaps repeatedly. The phrase occurs elsewhere only in Exod 9:24 in association with a hailstorm. The LXX interprets the phrase as fire flashing like lightning, but it is possibly a self-sustaining blaze of divine origin. The LXX also reverses the order of the descriptors, i.e., “light went around it and fire flashed like lightning within it.”

⁶⁴ tn Or “radiance.” The term also occurs in 1:27b.

⁶⁵ tc Or “was in it”; cf. LXX ἐν τῷ μέσῳ αὐτοῦ (en tw mesw autou, “in its midst”).

⁶⁶ tn The LXX translates חַשְׁמַל (khashmal) with the word ἤλεκτρον (hlektron, “electrum”; so NAB), an alloy of silver and gold, perhaps envisioning a comparison to the glow of molten metal.

⁶⁷ tc Heb “from its midst” (מִתּוֹכָהּ, mitokhah). The LXX reads ἐν τῷ μέσῳ (en tw mesw, “in the midst of it”). The LXX also reads ἐν for מִתּוֹךְ (mitokh) in v. 4. The translator of the LXX of Ezekiel either read בְּתוֹךְ (bÿtokh, “within”) in his Hebrew exemplar or could not imagine how מִתּוֹךְ could make sense and so chose to use ἐν. The Hebrew would be understood by adding “from its midst emerged the forms of four living beings.”

⁶⁸ tn Heb “form, figure, appearance.”

⁶⁹ tn The Hebrew term is feminine plural yet thirty-three of the forty-five pronominal suffixes and verbal references which refer to the living beings in the chapter are masculine plural. The grammatical vacillation between masculine and feminine plurals suggests the difficulty Ezekiel had in penning these words as he was overcome by the vision of God. In ancient Near Eastern sculpture very similar images of part-human, part-animal creatures serve as throne and sky bearers. For a discussion of ancient Near Eastern parallels, see L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 1:26-31. Ezekiel’s vision is an example of contextualization, where God accommodates his self-revelation to cultural expectations and norms.

⁷⁰ sn They had human form may mean they stood erect.

⁷¹ sn The Hebrew verb translated gleamed occurs only here in the OT.

⁷² tc The MT reads “his hand” while many Hebrew mss as well as the Qere read “hands of.” Two similar Hebrew letters, vav and yod, have been confused.

⁷³ tn Heb “They each went in the direction of one of his faces.”

⁷⁴ tc The MT has an additional word at the beginning of v. 11, וּפְנֵיהֶם (ufÿnehem, “and their faces”), which is missing from the LXX. As the rest of the verse only applies to wings, “their faces” would have to somehow be understood in the previous clause. But this would be very awkward and is doubly problematic since “their faces” are already introduced as the topic at the beginning of v. 10. The Hebrew scribe appears to have copied the phrase “and their faces and their wings” from v. 8, where it introduces the content of 9-11. Only “and (as for) their wings” belongs here.

⁷⁵ tn See the note on “straight ahead” in v. 9.

⁷⁶ tn Or “wind.”

⁷⁷ tc The MT reads “and the form of the creatures” (וּדְמוּת הַחַיּוֹת, udÿmut hakhayyot). The LXX reads “and in the midst of the creatures,” suggesting an underlying Hebrew text of וּמִתּוֹךְ הַחַיּוֹת (umittokh hakhayyot). The subsequent description of something moving among the creatures supports the LXX.

⁷⁸ tc The MT reads “and the form of the creatures – their appearance was like burning coals of fire.” The LXX reads “in the midst of the creatures was a sight like burning coals of fire.” The MT may have adjusted “appearance” to “their appearance” to fit their reading of the beginning of the verse (see the tc note on “in the middle”). See M. Greenberg, Ezekiel (AB), 1:46.

⁷⁹ sn Burning coals of fire are also a part of David’s poetic description of God’s appearance (see 2 Sam 22:9, 13; Ps 18:8).

⁸⁰ tc The LXX omits v. 14 and may well be correct. The verse may be a later explanatory gloss of the end of v. 13 which was copied into the main text. See M. Greenberg, Ezekiel (AB), 1:46.

tn Lit., “like the appearance of lightning.” The Hebrew term translated “lightning” occurs only here in the OT. In postbiblical Hebrew the term refers to a lightning flash.

⁸¹ tc The MT adds “at the living beings” which is absent from the LXX.

⁸² sn Another vision which includes wheels on thrones occurs in Dan 7:9. Ezek 10 contains a vision similar to this one.

⁸³ tn The Hebrew word may be translated either “earth” or “ground” in this context.

⁸⁴ tc This word is omitted from the LXX.

⁸⁵ tn Heb “Tarshish stone.” The meaning of this term is uncertain. The term has also been translated “topaz” (NEB); “beryl” (KJV, NASB, NRSV); or “chrysolite” (RSV, NIV).

⁸⁶ tn Or “like a wheel at right angles to another wheel.” Some envision concentric wheels here, while others propose “a globe-like structure in which two wheels stand at right angles” (L. C. Allen, Ezekiel [WBC], 1:33-34). The description given in v. 17 favors the latter idea.

⁸⁷ tc The MT reads וְיִרְאָה לָהֶם (vÿyir’ah lahem, “and fear belonged to them”). In a similar vision in 10:12 the wheels are described as having spokes (יִדֵיהֶם, yideyhem). That parallel would suggest יָדוֹת (yadot) here (written יָדֹת without the mater). By positing both a ד/ר (dalet/resh) confusion and a ת/ה (hey/khet) confusion the form was read as וְיָרֵה (vÿyareh) and was then misunderstood and subsequently written as וְיִרְאָה (vÿyir’ah) in the MT. The reading וְיִרְאָה does not seem to fit the context well, though in English it can be made to sound as if it does. See W. H. Brownlee, Ezekiel 1-19 (WBC), 8-9. The LXX reads καὶ εἶδον αὐτά (kai eidon auta, “and I saw”), which assumes וָאֵרֶא (va’ere’). The existing consonants of the MT may also be read as “it was visible to them.”

⁸⁸ tn Or “wind”; the same Hebrew word can be translated as either “wind” or “spirit” depending on the context.

⁸⁹ tc The MT adds the additional phrase “the spirit would go,” which seems unduly redundant here and may be dittographic.

⁹⁰ tn Or “wind.” The Hebrew is difficult since the text presents four creatures and then talks about “the spirit” (singular) of “the living being” (singular). According to M. Greenberg (Ezekiel [AB], 1:45) the Targum interprets this as “will.” Greenberg views this as the spirit of the one enthroned above the creatures, but one would not expect the article when the one enthroned has not yet been introduced.

⁹¹ tc The LXX reads “when it went, they went; when it stood, they stood.”

tn Heb “when they went, they went; when they stood, they stood.”

⁹² tn Or “like a dome” (NCV, NRSV, TEV).

⁹³ tn Or “like crystal” (NRSV, NLT).

⁹⁴ tc Heb “each had two wings covering and each had two wings covering,” a case of dittography. On the analogy of v. 11 and the support of the LXX, which reads the same for v. 11 and this verse, one should perhaps read “each had two wings touching another being and each had two wings covering.”

⁹⁵ tn Heb “Shaddai” (probably meaning “one of the mountain”), a title that depicts God as the sovereign ruler of the world who dispenses justice. The Old Greek translation omitted the phrase “voice of the Almighty.”

⁹⁶ tn The only other occurrence of the Hebrew word translated “tumult” is in Jer 11:16. It indicates a noise like that of the turmoil of a military camp or the sound of an army on the march.

⁹⁷ tc The MT continues “when they stood still they lowered their wings,” an apparent dittography from the end of v. 24. The LXX commits haplography by homoioteleuton, leaving out vv. 25b and 26a by skipping from רֹאשָׁם (rosham) in v. 25 to רֹאשָׁם in v. 26.

⁹⁸ tn See Ezek 1:4.

⁹⁹ tc The LXX lacks this phrase. Its absence from the LXX may be explained as a case of haplography resulting from homoioteleuton, skipping from כְּמַרְאֵה (kÿmar’eh) to מִמַּרְאֵה (mimmar’eh). On the other hand, the LXX presents a much more balanced verse structure when it is recognized that the final words of this verse belong in the next sentence.

¹⁰⁰ sn Reference to the glowing substance and the brilliant light and storm phenomena in vv. 27-28a echoes in reverse order the occurrence of these phenomena in v. 4.

¹⁰¹ tn The vision closes with the repetition of the verb “I saw” from the beginning of the vision in 1:4.

¹⁰² sn Psalm 37. The psalmist urges his audience not to envy the wicked, but to trust in and obey the Lord, for he will destroy sinners and preserve the godly. When the smoke of judgment clears, the wicked will be gone, but the godly will remain and inherit God’s promised blessings. The psalm is an acrostic; every other verse begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

¹⁰³ tn The verb form is singular (see vv. 3-10 as well, where the second person verbs and pronouns are also singular). The psalmist’s exhortation has a wisdom flavor to it; it is personalized for each member of his audience.

¹⁰⁴ tn Heb “over sinners.” The context indicates that the psalmist has in mind the apparent power and success of sinners. See v. 7b.

¹⁰⁵ tn Heb “like green vegetation.”

¹⁰⁶ tn Heb “tend integrity.” The verb רָעָה (ra’ah, “tend, shepherd”) is probably used here in the sense of “watch over, guard.” The noun אֱמוּנָה (’emunah, “faithfulness, honesty, integrity”) is understood as the direct object of the verb, though it could be taken as an adverbial accusative, “[feed] securely,” if the audience is likened to a flock of sheep.

¹⁰⁷ tn Following the imperatives of v. 3 the prefixed verbal forms with vav (ו) in v. 4 indicate result. Faith and obedience (v. 3) will bring divine blessing (v. 4).

¹⁰⁸ tn Or “and he will give you what you desire most.” Heb “and he will grant to you the requests of your heart.”

¹⁰⁹ tn Heb “roll your way upon the Lord.” The noun “way” may refer here to one’s activities or course of life.

¹¹⁰ tn Heb “he will act.” Verse 6 explains what is meant; the Lord will vindicate those who trust in him.

¹¹¹ tn Heb “and he will bring out like light your vindication, and your just cause like noonday.”

¹¹² tn Heb “Be quiet before the Lord!”

¹¹³ tc The Hebrew text has וְהִתְחוֹלֵל (vÿhitkholel, Hitpolel of חִיל, khil, “writhe with fear, suffer”) but this idea fits awkwardly here. The text should be changed to וְתוֹחֵל (vÿtokhel; Hiphil of יָחַל, yakhal, “wait”). It appears that the Hebrew text is the product of dittography: (1) the initial וה (vav-he) is accidentally repeated from the preceding word (יְהוָה, yÿhvah) and (2) the final lamed (ל) is accidentally repeated (note the preceding lamed and the initial lamed on the following form, לו).

¹¹⁴ tn Heb “over one who causes his way to be successful.”

¹¹⁵ tn Heb “Refrain from anger! Abandon rage!”

¹¹⁶ tn Heb “for evil men.” The conjunction כִּי (ki, “for”) relates to the exhortations in v. 8; there is no reason to be frustrated, for the evildoers will be punished in due time.

¹¹⁷ tn Or “cut off, removed.”

¹¹⁸ tn Heb “and those who wait on the Lord, they will possess the land.”

¹¹⁹ tn Heb “and yet, a little, there will be no wicked [one].”

¹²⁰ tn Heb “and you will carefully look upon his place, but he will not be [there].” The singular is used here in a representative sense; the typical evildoer is in view.

¹²¹ tn Heb “and they will take delight in (see v. 4) abundance of peace.”

¹²² tn Or “innocent.” The singular is used here in a representative sense; the typical evildoer and the typical godly individual are in view.

¹²³ tn Heb “and gnashes at him with his teeth” (see Ps 35:16). The language may picture the evil men as wild animals. The active participles in v. 12 are used for purposes of dramatic description.

¹²⁴ tn Heb “laughs.” As the next line indicates, this refers to derisive laughter (see 2:4). The Hebrew imperfect verbal form describes the action from the perspective of an eye-witness who is watching the divine response as it unfolds before his eyes.

¹²⁵ tn Heb “for he sees that his day is coming.” As the following context makes clear (vv. 15, 17, 19-20), “his day” refers to the time when God will destroy evildoers.

¹²⁶ tn Heb “to cause to fall.”

¹²⁷ tn Heb “the upright in way,” i.e., those who lead godly lives.

¹²⁸ tn Heb “enter into.”

¹²⁹ tn Heb “Better [is] a little to the godly one than the wealth of many evil ones.” The following verses explain why this is true. Though a godly individual may seem to have only meager possessions, he always has what he needs and will eventually possess the land. The wicked may prosper for a brief time, but will eventually be destroyed by divine judgment and lose everything.

¹³⁰ tn Heb “for the arms of the evil ones will be broken.”

¹³¹ tn The active participle here indicates this is characteristically true.

¹³² tn Heb “the Lord knows the days of the innocent ones.” He “knows” their days in the sense that he is intimately aware of and involved in their daily struggles. He meets their needs and sustains them.

¹³³ tn Heb “and their inheritance is forever.”

¹³⁴ tn Heb “in a time of trouble.”

¹³⁵ tn Heb “in days of famine they will be satisfied.”

¹³⁶ tn Or “for,” but Hebrew כי in this case would have to extend all the way back to v. 17a. Another option is to understand the particle as asseverative, “surely” (see v. 22).

¹³⁷ tc The meaning of the MT (כִּיקַר כָּרִים [kiqar karim], “like what is precious among the pastures/rams”) is uncertain. One possibility is to take the noun כָּרִים as “pastures” and interpret “what is precious” as referring to flowers that blossom but then quickly disappear (see v. 2 and BDB 430 s.v. יָקָר 3). If כָּרִים is taken as “rams,” then “what is precious” might refer to the choicest portions of rams. The present translation follows a reading in the Dead Sea Scrolls (4QpPs37), כיקוד כורם (“like the burning of an oven”). The next line, which pictures the Lord’s enemies being consumed in smoke, supports this reading, which assumes confusion of the Hebrew letters resh (ר) and dalet (ד) at the end of the first word in the sequence.

¹³⁸ tn Heb “they perish in smoke, they perish.” In addition to repeating the verb for emphasis, the psalmist uses the perfect form of the verb to picture the enemies’ demise as if it had already taken place. In this way he draws attention to the certitude of their judgment.

¹³⁹ tn Heb “an evil [man] borrows and does not repay; but a godly [man] is gracious and gives.” The singular forms are used in a representative sense; the typical evildoer and godly individual are in view. The three active participles and one imperfect (“repay”) draw attention to the characteristic behavior of the two types.

¹⁴⁰ tn The particle כִּי is best understood as asseverative or emphatic here.

¹⁴¹ tn Heb “those blessed by him.” The pronoun “him” must refer to the Lord (see vv. 20, 23), so the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁴² tn Heb “cursed.”

¹⁴³ tn Or “cut off”; or “removed” (see v. 9).

¹⁴⁴ tn Heb “from the Lord the steps of a man are established, and in his way he delights.” The second line qualifies the first. The man whose behavior is commendable in God’s sight is the one whose ways are established by God. Another option is that the second line refers to the godly man delighting in God’s “way,” namely the lifestyle which he prescribes for men. In this case one might translate, “The Lord grants success to the one who desires to obey his commands.”

¹⁴⁵ tn Other translation options for כִּי in this context are “when” (so NASB) or “though” (so NEB, NIV, NRSV).

¹⁴⁶ tn Heb “be hurled down.”

¹⁴⁷ tn The active participle indicates this is characteristically true. See v. 17.

¹⁴⁸ tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”

¹⁴⁹ tn Heb “or his offspring searching for food.” The expression “search for food” also appears in Lam 1:11, where Jerusalem’s refugees are forced to search for food and to trade their valuable possessions for something to eat.

¹⁵⁰ tn The active participles describe characteristic behavior.

¹⁵¹ tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”

¹⁵² tn Or “Do good!” The imperatives are singular (see v. 1).

¹⁵³ tn Heb “and dwell permanently.” The imperative with vav (ו) is best taken here as a result clause after the preceding imperatives.

¹⁵⁴ tn Heb “loves.” The verb “loves” is here metonymic; the Lord’s commitment to principles of justice causes him to actively promote these principles as he governs the world. The active participle describes characteristic behavior.

¹⁵⁵ tn The imperfect verbal form draws attention to this generalizing statement.

¹⁵⁶ tn Or “protected forever.”

¹⁵⁷ tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”

¹⁵⁸ tn Or “cut off”; or “removed.” The perfect verbal forms in v. 28b state general truths.

¹⁵⁹ tn Heb “The mouth of the godly [one] utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks justice.” The singular form is used in a representative sense; the typical godly individual is in view. The imperfect verbal forms draw attention to the characteristic behavior of the godly.

¹⁶⁰ tn Heb “the law of his God [is] in his heart.” The “heart” is here the seat of one’s thoughts and motives.

¹⁶¹ tn Heb “his.” The pronoun has been translated as plural to agree with the representative or typical “godly” in v. 30.

¹⁶² tn Heb “an evil [one] watches the godly [one] and seeks to kill him.” The singular forms are used in a representative sense; the typical evildoer and godly individual are in view. The active participles describe characteristic behavior.

¹⁶³ tn Heb “the Lord does not abandon him into his hand or condemn him when he is judged.” The imperfects draw attention to the Lord’s characteristic behavior in this regard.

¹⁶⁴ tn Or “wait.”

¹⁶⁵ tn Heb “keep his way.” The Lord’s “way” refers here to the “conduct required” by the Lord. In Ps 25 the Lord’s “ways” are associated with his covenantal demands (see vv. 4, 9-10). See also Ps 119:3 (cf. vv. 1, 4), as well as Deut 8:6; 10:12; 11:22; 19:9; 26:17; 28:9; 30:16.

¹⁶⁶ tn Heb “and he will lift you up.” The prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) is best taken here as a result clause following the imperatives in the preceding lines.

¹⁶⁷ tn Heb “when evil men are cut off you will see.”

¹⁶⁸ tn The Hebrew uses the representative singular again here.

¹⁶⁹ tn Heb “being exposed [?] like a native, luxuriant.” The Hebrew form מִתְעָרֶה (mit’areh) appears to be a Hitpael participle from עָרָה (’arah, “be exposed”), but this makes no sense in this context. Perhaps the form is a dialectal variant of מִתְעָלָה (“giving oneself an air of importance”; see Jer 51:3), from עָלָה (’alah, “go up”; see P. C. Craigie, Psalms 1-50 [WBC], 296). The noun אֶזְרָח (’ezrakh, “native, full citizen”) refers elsewhere to people, but here, where it is collocated with “luxuriant, green,” it probably refers to a tree growing in native soil.

¹⁷⁰ tn Heb “and he passes by and, look, he is not [there].” The subject of the verb “passes by” is probably indefinite, referring to any passerby. Some prefer to change the form to first person, “and I passed by” (cf. NEB; note the first person verbal forms in preceding verse and in the following line).

¹⁷¹ tn Or “upright.”

¹⁷² tn Heb “for [there is] an end for a man of peace.” Some interpret אַחֲרִית (’akharit, “end”) as referring to offspring (see the next verse and Ps 109:13; cf. NEB, NRSV).

¹⁷³ tn Or “destroyed together.” In this case the psalmist pictures judgment sweeping them away as a group.

¹⁷⁴ tn Heb “the end of evil men is cut off.” As in v. 37, some interpret אַחֲרִית (’akharit, “end”) as referring to offspring (see Ps 109:13). The perfect verbal forms in v. 38 probably express general truths. Another option is that they are used emphatically to state with certitude that the demise of the wicked is as good as done.

¹⁷⁵ tn Heb “and the deliverance of the godly [ones] [is] from the Lord.”

¹⁷⁶ tn Heb “[he is] their place of refuge in a time of trouble.”

¹⁷⁷ tn The prefixed verbal forms with vav (ו) consecutive carry on the generalizing tone of the preceding verse.