7:16 He becomes the victim of his own destructive plans 1
and the violence he intended for others falls on his own head. 2
10:8 He waits in ambush near the villages; 3
in hidden places he kills the innocent.
His eyes look for some unfortunate victim. 4
10:14 You have taken notice, 5
for 6 you always see 7 one who inflicts pain and suffering. 8
The unfortunate victim entrusts his cause to you; 9
you deliver 10 the fatherless. 11
1 tn Heb “his harm [i.e., the harm he conceived for others, see v. 14] returns on his head.”
2 tn Heb “and on his forehead his violence [i.e., the violence he intended to do to others] comes down.”
3 tn Heb “he sits in the ambush of the villages.”
4 tn Heb “his eyes for an unfortunate person lie hidden.” The language may picture a lion (see v. 9) peering out from its hiding place in anticipation that an unsuspecting victim will soon come strolling along.
5 tn Heb “you see.” One could translate the perfect as generalizing, “you do take notice.”
6 tn If the preceding perfect is taken as generalizing, then one might understand כִּי (ki) as asseverative: “indeed, certainly.”
7 tn Here the imperfect emphasizes God’s typical behavior.
8 tn Heb “destruction and suffering,” which here refers metonymically to the wicked, who dish out pain and suffering to their victims.
9 tn Heb “to give into your hand, upon you, he abandons, [the] unfortunate [one].” The syntax is awkward and the meaning unclear. It is uncertain who or what is being given into God’s hand. Elsewhere the idiom “give into the hand” means to deliver into one’s possession. If “to give” goes with what precedes (as the accentuation of the Hebrew text suggests), then this may refer to the wicked man being delivered over to God for judgment. The present translation assumes that “to give” goes with what follows (cf. NEB, NIV, NRSV). The verb יַעֲזֹב (ya’azov) here has the nuance “entrust” (see Gen 39:6; Job 39:11); the direct object (“[his] cause”) is implied.
10 tn Or “help.”
11 tn Heb “[for] one who is fatherless, you are a deliverer.” The noun יָתוֹם (yatom) refers to one who has lost his father (not necessarily his mother, see Ps 109:9).
sn The fatherless. Because they were so vulnerable and were frequently exploited, fatherless children are often mentioned as epitomizing the oppressed (see Pss 68:5; 82:3; 94:6; 146:9; as well as Job 6:27; 22:9; 24:3, 9; 29:12; 31:17, 21).