56:12 I am obligated to fulfill the vows I made to you, O God; 1
I will give you the thank-offerings you deserve, 2
82:7 Yet you will die like mortals; 3
you will fall like all the other rulers.” 4
82:8 Rise up, O God, and execute judgment on the earth!
For you own 5 all the nations.
88:10 Do you accomplish amazing things for the dead?
Do the departed spirits 6 rise up and give you thanks? (Selah)
91:13 You will subdue 7 a lion and a snake; 8
you will trample underfoot a young lion and a serpent.
118:28 You are my 9 God and I will give you thanks!
You are my God and I will praise you!
1 tn Heb “upon me, O God, [are] your vows.”
2 tn Heb “I will repay thank-offerings to you.”
3 tn Heb “men.” The point in the context is mortality, however, not maleness.
sn You will die like mortals. For the concept of a god losing immortality and dying, see Isa 14:12-15, which alludes to a pagan myth in which the petty god “Shining One, son of the Dawn,” is hurled into Sheol for his hubris.
4 tn Heb “like one of the rulers.” The comparison does not necessarily imply that they are not rulers. The expression “like one of” can sometimes mean “as one of” (Gen 49:16; Obad 11) or “as any other of” (Judg 16:7, 11).
5 tn The translation assumes that the Qal of נָחַל (nakhal) here means “to own; to possess,” and that the imperfect emphasizes a general truth. Another option is to translate the verb as future, “for you will take possession of all the nations” (cf. NIV “all the nations are your inheritance”).
6 tn Heb “Rephaim,” a term that refers to those who occupy the land of the dead (see Isa 14:9; 26:14, 19).
7 tn Heb “walk upon.”
8 tn Or perhaps “cobra” (see Ps 58:4).
9 sn You are my God. The psalmist speaks again (see v. 21), responding to the words of the worshipers (vv. 22-27).