⁴ tn Heb “prey does not depart.”

¹ tn Heb “would be a prey.”

¹ tn Heb “without having prey [or “food”].”

¹ tn Heb “forehead,” picturing Gad attacking prey.

⁶ tn Heb “I will cut off your prey from the land.”

¹ tn The words “its prey” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

¹ tn Or, more generally, “a bird of prey” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV; see 18:6).

¹ tn Heb “fly.” Ephraim/Judah are compared to a bird of prey.

² tn Heb “over it”; the referent (the prey) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹ sn The reference to lions is here a metaphor for the Assyrians (and later the Babylonians; see Jer 50:17). The statement about lions roaring over their prey implies that the prey has been vanquished.

² tn Heb “Are birds of prey around her?” The question is again rhetorical and expects a positive answer. The birds of prey are, of course, the hostile nations surrounding her. The metaphor involved in these two lines may be interpreted differently. God could consider Israel a proud bird of prey (hence the word for speckled) but one surrounded and under attack by other birds of prey. The fact that the sentences are divided into two rhetorical questions speaks somewhat against this.

³ tn The Hiphal of פָּלַט (palat) is used in Isa 5:29 of an animal carrying its prey to a secure place.

⁴ tn The precise meaning of דַּיָּה (dayyah) is uncertain, though the term appears to refer to some type of bird of prey, perhaps a vulture.

¹ tn Heb “radiant [are] you, majestic from the hills of prey.” God is depicted as a victorious king and as a lion that has killed its victims.

⁶ tn Heb “they fly like a vulture/an eagle quickly to devour.” The direct object “their prey” is not included in the Hebrew text but is implied, and has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

⁶ tn Heb “his anger tore continually.” The Hebrew verb טָרַף (taraf, “tear apart”) is often used of an animal tearing apart its prey. The word picture here is that of a vicious predator’s feeding frenzy.

⁴ sn As in 11:1-9 the prophet anticipates a time when the categories predator-prey no longer exist. See the note at the end of 11:8.

² sn The verb means “to growl, groan.” It refers to a lion when it devours its prey, and to a sufferer in pain or remorse (e.g., Ezek 24:23).

² sn Elsewhere in the psalms this verb is used (within a metaphorical framework) of a lion tearing its prey (see Pss 7:2; 17:12; 22:13).

¹ tn The word rendered “fangs” actually means “teeth,” i.e., the molars probably; it is used frequently of the teeth of wild beasts. Of course, the language is here figurative, comparing the oppressing enemy to a preying animal.