² tn Grk “kept.” The implication of this verb is that the man has obeyed the commandments without fail throughout his life, so the adverb “wholeheartedly” has been added to the translation to bring out this nuance.

⁵ sn The custom of Jesus and his family going to Jerusalem every year for the Feast of the Passover shows their piety in obeying the law (Exod 23:14-17).

⁴ sn “No! He must be named John.” By insisting on the name specified by the angel, Elizabeth (v. 60) and Zechariah (v. 63) have learned to obey God (see Luke 1:13).

² tn Grk “kept.” The implication of this verb is that the man has obeyed the commandments without fail throughout his life, so the adverb “wholeheartedly” has been added to the translation to bring out this nuance.

¹ tn Grk “kept.” The implication of this verb is that the man has obeyed the commandments without fail, so the adverb “wholeheartedly” has been added to the translation to bring out this nuance.

¹ tn Heb “Because you [masc. pl.] sinned against the Lord and did not hearken to his voice [a common idiom for “obey him”], this thing has happened to you [masc. pl.].”

⁵ tn Heb “Obey me and carry them out.” The “them” refers back to the terms of the covenant which they were charged to keep, according to the preceding sentence. The referent is made specific to avoid ambiguity.

¹ tn The verb שָׁמַר (shamar) is repeated twice in this line but with two different senses, creating a polysemantic wordplay: “he who obeys/keeps (ֹֹשֹמֵר, shomer) the commandment safeguards/keeps (שֹׁמֵר, shomer) his life.”

² tn Heb “did not listen to the voice of.” The picture is that of treating the teacher’s instruction as background noise instead of paying attention to it or obeying it.

¹ tn Heb “and because of your instructions my heart trembles.” The psalmist’s healthy “fear” of the consequences of violating God’s instructions motivates him to obey them. See v. 120.

⁴ tn Heb “in his commands he delights very much.” The words “in keeping” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Taking delight in the law is metonymic here for obeying God’s moral will. See Ps 1:2.

¹ tn Heb “will fear the name of the Lord.” To “fear” God’s name means to have a healthy respect for his revealed reputation which in turn motivates one to obey God’s commands (see Ps 86:11).

² tn Heb “to those who know you.” The Hebrew verb יָדַע (yadaʿ, “know”) is used here of those who “know” the Lord in the sense that they recognize his royal authority and obey his will (see Jer 22:16).

¹ tn The Hebrew perfect verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here carries the same characteristic force as the imperfect in the preceding verse. According to the psalmist, the one who studies and obeys God’s commands typically prospers.

¹ tn Heb “obey my commandments and rules according to all the law which I commanded your fathers and which I sent to you by the hand of my servants the prophets.”

¹ tn Heb “If you obey.” In the Hebrew text v. 38 is actually one long conditional sentence, which has been broken into two parts in the translation for stylistic purposes.

¹ tn Heb “listen to the voice of the Lord your God.” Here “listen” (NAB “hearken”) means “obey” (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB). The pronoun has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons to avoid redundancy.

¹ tn Heb “if listening you listen to the voice of.” The infinitive absolute is used for emphasis, which the translation indicates with “carefully.” The idiom “listen to the voice” means “obey.”

⁴ sn The word “law” here properly means “direction” at this point (S. R. Driver, Exodus, 146), but their obedience here would indicate also whether or not they would be willing to obey when the Law was given at Sinai.

² tn The Piel infinitive serves as the direct object of the verb, answering the question of what Pharaoh would refuse to do. The command and refusal to obey are the grounds for the announcement of death for Pharaoh’s son.