108:7 God has spoken in his sanctuary: 1
“I will triumph! I will parcel out Shechem,
the valley of Succoth I will measure off. 2
108:8 Gilead belongs to me,
as does Manasseh! 3
Ephraim is my helmet, 4
Judah my royal scepter. 5
1 tn Heb “in his holy place.”
2 sn Shechem stands for the territory west of the Jordan River; the valley of Succoth represents the region east of the Jordan.
3 tn Gilead was located east of the Jordan River. Half of the tribe of Manasseh lived east of the Jordan in the region of Bashan.
4 tn Heb “the protection of my head.”
sn Ephraim, one of Joseph’s sons, was one of two major tribes located west of the Jordan River. By comparing Ephraim to a helmet, the Lord suggests that the Ephraimites played a primary role in the defense of his land.
5 sn Judah, like Ephraim, was the other major tribe west of the Jordan River. The Davidic king, symbolized here by the royal scepter, came from this tribe.