9:18 for the needy are not permanently ignored, 1
the hopes of the oppressed are not forever dashed. 2
37:29 The godly will possess the land
and will dwell in it permanently.
81:15 (May those who hate the Lord 3 cower in fear 4 before him!
May they be permanently humiliated!) 5
89:2 For I say, “Loyal love is permanently established; 6
in the skies you set up your faithfulness.” 7
1 tn Or “forgotten.”
2 tn Heb “the hope of the afflicted does [not] perish forever.” The negative particle is understood by ellipsis; note the preceding line. The imperfect verbal forms express what typically happens.
3 tn “Those who hate the
4 tn See Deut 33:29; Ps 66:3 for other uses of the verb כָּחַשׁ (kakhash) in the sense “cower in fear.” In Ps 18:44 the verb seems to carry the nuance “to be weak; to be powerless” (see also Ps 109:24). The prefixed verbal form is taken as a jussive, parallel to the jussive form in the next line.
5 tc Heb “and may their time be forever.” The Hebrew term עִתָּם (’ittam, “their time”) must refer here to the “time” of the demise and humiliation of those who hate the
tn The verb form at the beginning of the line is jussive, indicating that this is a prayer. The translation assumes that v. 15 is a parenthetical “curse” offered by the psalmist. Having heard the reference to Israel’s enemies (v. 14), the psalmist inserts this prayer, reminding the Lord that they are God’s enemies as well.
6 tn Heb “built.”
7 sn You set up your faithfulness. This may allude to the Lord’s heavenly throne, which symbolizes his just rule and from which the Lord decrees his unconditional promises (see vv. 8, 14).