29:12 for I rescued the poor who cried out for help,
and the orphan who 1 had no one to assist him;
29:16 I was a father 2 to the needy,
and I investigated the case of the person I did not know;
1 tn The negative introduces a clause that serves as a negative attribute; literally the following clause says, “and had no helper” (see GKC 482 §152.u).
2 sn The word “father” does not have a wide range of meanings in the OT. But there are places that it is metaphorical, especially in a legal setting like this where the poor need aid.