10:15 Break the arm 1 of the wicked and evil man!
Hold him accountable for his wicked deeds, 2
which he thought you would not discover. 3
A psalm.
98:1 Sing to the Lord a new song, 5
for he performs 6 amazing deeds!
His right hand and his mighty arm
accomplish deliverance. 7
1 sn The arm symbolizes the strength of the wicked, which they use to oppress and exploit the weak.
2 tn Heb “you seek his wickedness.” As in v. 13, the verb דָרַשׁ (darash, “seek”) is used here in the sense of “seek an accounting.” One could understand the imperfect as describing a fact, “you hold him accountable,” or as anticipating divine judgment, “you will hold him accountable.” However, since the verb is in apparent parallelism with the preceding imperative (“break”), it is better to understand the imperfect as expressing the psalmist’s desire or request.
3 tn Heb “you will not find.” It is uncertain how this statement relates to what precedes. Some take בַל (bal), which is used as a negative particle in vv. 4, 6, 11, 18, as asseverative here, “Indeed find (i.e., judge his wickedness).” The translation assumes that the final words are an asyndetic relative clause which refers back to what the wicked man boasted in God’s face (“you will not find [i.e., my wickedness]”). See v. 13.
4 sn Psalm 98. The psalmist summons the whole earth to praise God because he reveals his justice and delivers Israel.
5 sn A new song is appropriate because the Lord is constantly intervening in the world as its just king. See Ps 96:1.
6 tn The perfect verbal forms in vv. 1-3 are understood here as describing characteristic divine activities. Another option is to translate them as present perfects, “has performed…has accomplished deliverance, etc.” referring to completed actions that have continuing results.
7 tn Heb “his right hand delivers for him and his holy arm.” The right hand and arm symbolize his power as a warrior-king (see Isa 52:10). His arm is “holy” in the sense that it is in a category of its own; God’s power is incomparable.