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The Daily Audio Bible Reading for Friday July 24, 2020 (NIV)

2 Chronicles 11-13

11 When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he summoned 180,000 skilled warriors from Judah and Benjamin[a] to attack Israel and restore the kingdom to Rehoboam. 2 But the Lord’s message came to the prophet[b] Shemaiah, 3 “Say this to King Rehoboam son of Solomon of Judah and to all the Israelites in Judah and Benjamin, 4 ‘The Lord says this: “Do not attack and make war with your brothers. Each of you go home, for I have caused this to happen.”’”[c] They obeyed the Lord and called off the attack against Jeroboam.[d]

Rehoboam’s Reign

5 Rehoboam lived in Jerusalem; he built up these fortified cities throughout Judah: 6 Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa, 7 Beth Zur, Soco, Adullam, 8 Gath, Mareshah, Ziph, 9 Adoraim, Lachish, Azekah, 10 Zorah, Aijalon, and Hebron. These were the fortified cities in Judah and Benjamin. 11 He fortified these cities and placed officers in them, as well as storehouses of food, olive oil, and wine. 12 In each city there were shields and spears; he strongly fortified them.[e] Judah and Benjamin belonged to him.

13 The priests and Levites who lived throughout Israel supported him, no matter where they resided.[f] 14 The Levites even left their pasturelands and their property behind and came to Judah and Jerusalem, for Jeroboam and his sons prohibited them from serving as the Lord’s priests. 15 Jeroboam[g] appointed his own priests to serve at the worship centers[h] and to lead in the worship of the goat idols and calf idols he had made.[i] 16 Those among all the Israelite tribes who were determined to worship the Lord God of Israel followed them to Jerusalem[j] to sacrifice to the Lord God of their ancestors.[k] 17 They supported[l] the kingdom of Judah and were loyal to[m] Rehoboam son of Solomon for three years; they followed the edicts of[n] David and Solomon for three years.

18 Rehoboam married[o] Mahalath the daughter of David’s son Jerimoth and of[p] Abihail, the daughter of Jesse’s son Eliab. 19 She bore him sons named Jeush, Shemariah, and Zaham. 20 He later married Maacah the daughter of Absalom. She bore to him Abijah, Attai, Ziza, and Shelomith. 21 Rehoboam loved Maacah daughter of Absalom more than his other wives and concubines.[q] He had eighteen wives and sixty concubines; he fathered twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters.

22 Rehoboam appointed Abijah son of Maacah as the leader over his brothers, for he intended to name him his successor.[r] 23 He wisely placed some of his many sons throughout the regions of Judah and Benjamin in the various fortified cities.[s] He supplied them with abundant provisions and acquired many wives for them.[t]

12 After Rehoboam’s rule was established and solidified, he and all Israel rejected the law of the Lord. 2 Because they were unfaithful to the Lord, in King Rehoboam’s fifth year, King Shishak of Egypt attacked Jerusalem. 3 He had 1,200 chariots, 60,000 horsemen, and an innumerable number of soldiers who accompanied him from Egypt, including Libyans, Sukkites, and Cushites. 4 He captured the fortified cities of Judah and marched against Jerusalem.

5 Shemaiah the prophet visited Rehoboam and the leaders of Judah who were assembled in Jerusalem because of Shishak. He said to them, “This is what the Lord says: ‘You have rejected me, so I have rejected you and will hand you over to Shishak.’”[u] 6 The leaders of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “The Lord is just.”[v] 7 When the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, the Lord’s message came to Shemaiah: “They have humbled themselves, so I will not destroy them. I will deliver them soon.[w] My anger will not be unleashed against[x] Jerusalem through Shishak. 8 Yet they will become his subjects, so they can experience how serving me differs from serving the surrounding nations.”[y]

9 King Shishak of Egypt attacked Jerusalem and took away the treasures of the Lord’s temple and of the royal palace; he took everything, including the gold shields that Solomon had made. 10 King Rehoboam made bronze shields to replace them and assigned them to the officers of the royal guard[z] who protected the entrance to the royal palace. 11 Whenever the king visited the Lord’s temple, the royal guards carried them and then brought them back to the guardroom.[aa]

12 So when Rehoboam[ab] humbled himself, the Lord relented from his anger and did not annihilate him;[ac] Judah experienced some good things.[ad] 13 King Rehoboam solidified his rule in Jerusalem;[ae] he[af] was forty-one years old when he became king, and he ruled for seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the Lord chose from all the tribes of Israel to be his home.[ag] Rehoboam’s[ah] mother was an Ammonite named Naamah. 14 He did evil because he was not determined to follow the Lord.[ai]

15 The events of Rehoboam’s reign, from start to finish, are recorded[aj] in the Annals of Shemaiah the Prophet and of Iddo the Seer that include genealogical records. There were wars between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually. 16 Then Rehoboam passed away[ak] and was buried in the City of David.[al] His son Abijah replaced him as king.

Abijah’s Reign

13 In the eighteenth year of the reign of King Jeroboam, Abijah became king over Judah. 2 He ruled for three years in Jerusalem. His mother[am] was Michaiah, the daughter of Uriel from Gibeah.[an]

There was war between Abijah and Jeroboam. 3 Abijah launched the attack with 400,000 well-trained warriors,[ao] while Jeroboam deployed against him 800,000 well-trained warriors.[ap]

4 Abijah ascended Mount Zemaraim, in the Ephraimite hill country, and said: “Listen to me, Jeroboam and all Israel! 5 Don’t you realize that the Lord God of Israel has given David and his dynasty lasting dominion over Israel by a formal covenant?[aq] 6 Jeroboam son of Nebat, a servant of Solomon son of David, rose up and rebelled against his master. 7 Lawless good-for-nothing men[ar] gathered around him and conspired[as] against Rehoboam son of Solomon, when Rehoboam was an inexperienced young man[at] and could not resist them. 8 Now you are declaring that you will resist the Lord’s rule through the Davidic dynasty.[au] You have a huge army,[av] and bring with you the gold calves that Jeroboam made for you as gods. 9 But you banished[aw] the Lord’s priests, Aaron’s descendants, and the Levites, and appointed your own priests just as the surrounding nations do! Anyone who comes to consecrate himself with a young bull or seven rams becomes a priest of these fake gods![ax] 10 But as for us, the Lord is our God and we have not rejected him. Aaron’s descendants serve as the Lord’s priests, and the Levites assist them with the work.[ay] 11 They offer burnt sacrifices to the Lord every morning and every evening, along with fragrant incense. They arrange the Bread of the Presence on a ritually clean table and light the lamps on the gold lampstand every evening. Certainly[az] we are observing the Lord our God’s regulations, but you have rejected him. 12 Now look, God is with us as our leader. His priests are ready to blow the trumpets to signal the attack against you.[ba] You Israelites, don’t fight against the Lord God of your ancestors,[bb] for you will not win!”

13 Now Jeroboam had sent some men to ambush the Judahite army from behind.[bc] The main army was in front of the Judahite army;[bd] the ambushers were behind it. 14 The men of Judah turned around and realized they were being attacked from the front and the rear.[be] So they cried out to the Lord for help. The priests blew their trumpets, 15 and the men of Judah gave the battle cry. As the men of Judah gave the battle cry, God struck down Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah. 16 The Israelites fled from before the Judahite army,[bf] and God handed them over to the men of Judah.[bg] 17 Abijah and his army thoroughly defeated them;[bh] 500,000 well-trained Israelite men fell dead.[bi] 18 That day[bj] the Israelites were defeated; the men of Judah prevailed because they relied on the Lord God of their ancestors.

19 Abijah chased Jeroboam; he seized from him these cities: Bethel and its surrounding towns, Jeshanah and its surrounding towns, and Ephron and its surrounding towns. 20 Jeroboam did not regain power during the reign of Abijah.[bk] The Lord struck him down and he died. 21 Abijah’s power grew; he had[bl] fourteen wives and fathered twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters.

22 The rest of the events of Abijah’s reign, including his deeds and sayings,[bm] are recorded in the writings of the prophet Iddo.

Footnotes:

  1. 2 Chronicles 11:1 tn Heb “he summoned the house of Judah and Benjamin, 180,000 chosen men, accomplished in war.”
  2. 2 Chronicles 11:2 tn Heb “man of God.”
  3. 2 Chronicles 11:4 tn Heb “for this thing is from me.”
  4. 2 Chronicles 11:4 tn Heb “and they heard the words of the Lord and returned from going against Jeroboam.”
  5. 2 Chronicles 11:12 tn Heb “he strengthened them greatly, very much.”
  6. 2 Chronicles 11:13 tn Heb “and the priests and the Levites who were in all Israel supported him from all their territory.”
  7. 2 Chronicles 11:15 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jeroboam) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  8. 2 Chronicles 11:15 tn Heb “for the high places.”
  9. 2 Chronicles 11:15 tn Heb “and for the goats and for the calves that he had made.”
  10. 2 Chronicles 11:16 tn Heb “and after them from all the tribes of Israel, the ones giving their heart[s] to seek the Lord God of Israel came [to] Jerusalem.”
  11. 2 Chronicles 11:16 tn Heb “fathers.”
  12. 2 Chronicles 11:17 tn Or “strengthened.”
  13. 2 Chronicles 11:17 tn Or “strengthened.”
  14. 2 Chronicles 11:17 tn Heb “they walked in the way of.”
  15. 2 Chronicles 11:18 tn Heb “took for himself a wife.”
  16. 2 Chronicles 11:18 tn The words “and of” are supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.
  17. 2 Chronicles 11:21 sn Concubines were slave women in ancient Near Eastern societies who were the legal property of their master, but who could have legitimate sexual relations with their master. A concubine’s status was more elevated than a mere servant, but she was not free and did not have the legal rights of a free wife. The children of a concubine could, in some instances, become equal heirs with the children of the free wife. After the period of the Judges concubines may have become more of a royal prerogative (2 Sam 21:10-14; 1 Kgs 11:3).
  18. 2 Chronicles 11:22 tn Heb “and Rehoboam appointed for a head Abijah son of Maacah for ruler among his brothers, indeed to make him king.”
  19. 2 Chronicles 11:23 tn Heb “and he was discerning and broke up from all his sons to all the lands of Judah and Benjamin, to all the fortified cities.”
  20. 2 Chronicles 11:23 tn “and he asked for a multitude of wives.”
  21. 2 Chronicles 12:5 tn Heb “also I have rejected you into the hand of Shishak.”
  22. 2 Chronicles 12:6 tn Or “fair,” meaning the Lord’s punishment of them was just or fair.
  23. 2 Chronicles 12:7 tn Heb “I will give them deliverance soon.”
  24. 2 Chronicles 12:7 tn Heb “pour out on.”
  25. 2 Chronicles 12:8 tn Heb “so they may know my service and the service of the kingdoms of the lands.”
  26. 2 Chronicles 12:10 tn Heb “runners” (also in v. 11).
  27. 2 Chronicles 12:11 tn Heb “to the chamber of the runners.”
  28. 2 Chronicles 12:12 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Rehoboam) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  29. 2 Chronicles 12:12 tn Heb “the anger of the Lord turned from him and did not destroy completely.”
  30. 2 Chronicles 12:12 tn Heb “and also in Judah there were good things.”
  31. 2 Chronicles 12:13 tn Heb “and the king, Rehoboam, strengthened himself in Jerusalem and ruled.”
  32. 2 Chronicles 12:13 tn Heb “Rehoboam.” The recurrence of the proper name here is redundant in terms of contemporary English style, so the pronoun has been used in the translation instead.
  33. 2 Chronicles 12:13 tn Heb “the city where the Lord chose to place his name from all the tribes of Israel.”
  34. 2 Chronicles 12:13 tn Heb “his”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  35. 2 Chronicles 12:14 tn Heb “because he did not set his heart to seek the Lord.”
  36. 2 Chronicles 12:15 tn Heb “As for the events of Rehoboam, the former and the latter, are they not written?”
  37. 2 Chronicles 12:16 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
  38. 2 Chronicles 12:16 sn The phrase the City of David refers here to the fortress of Zion in Jerusalem, not to Bethlehem. See 2 Sam 5:7.
  39. 2 Chronicles 13:2 tnHeb “The name of his mother.”
  40. 2 Chronicles 13:2 tn The parallel text in 1 Kgs 15:2 identifies his mother as “Maacah, the daughter of Abishalom” (=Absalom, 2 Chr 11:20). Although most English versions identify the mother’s father as Uriel of Gibeah, a number of English versions substitute the name “Maacah” here for the mother (e.g., NIV, NCV, CEV, NLT).
  41. 2 Chronicles 13:3 tn Heb “and Abijah bound [i.e., began] the battle with a force of men of war, 400,000 chosen men.”
  42. 2 Chronicles 13:3 tn Heb “and Jeroboam arranged with him [for] battle with 800,000 chosen men, strong warrior[s].”
  43. 2 Chronicles 13:5 tn Heb “Do you not know that the Lord God of Israel has given kingship to David over Israel permanently, to him and to his sons [by] a covenant of salt?”sn For other references to a “covenant of salt,” see Lev 2:13 and Num 18:19.
  44. 2 Chronicles 13:7 tn Heb “empty men, sons of wickedness.”
  45. 2 Chronicles 13:7 tn Heb “strengthened themselves.”
  46. 2 Chronicles 13:7 tn Heb “a young man and tender of heart.”
  47. 2 Chronicles 13:8 tn Heb “the kingdom of the Lord by the hand of the sons of David.”
  48. 2 Chronicles 13:8 tn Or “horde”; or “multitude.”
  49. 2 Chronicles 13:9 tn In the Hebrew text this is phrased as a rhetorical question, “Did you not banish?” The rhetorical question expects the answer, “Of course you did,” the force of which is reflected in the translation “But you banished.”
  50. 2 Chronicles 13:9 tn Heb “whoever comes to fill his hand with a bull, a son of cattle, and seven rams, and he is a priest to no-gods.”
  51. 2 Chronicles 13:10 tn Heb “and priests serving the Lord [are] the sons of Aaron and the Levites in the work.”
  52. 2 Chronicles 13:11 tn Or “for.”
  53. 2 Chronicles 13:12 tn Heb “and his priests and the trumpets of the war alarm [are ready] to sound out against you.”
  54. 2 Chronicles 13:12 tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 18).
  55. 2 Chronicles 13:13 tn Heb “and Jeroboam had caused to circle around an ambush to come from behind them.”
  56. 2 Chronicles 13:13 tn Heb “Judah.”
  57. 2 Chronicles 13:14 tn Heb “and Judah turned, and, look, to them [was] the battle in front and behind.”
  58. 2 Chronicles 13:16 tn Heb “Judah.”
  59. 2 Chronicles 13:16 tn Heb “them”; the referent (the men of Judah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  60. 2 Chronicles 13:17 tn Heb “struck them down with a great striking down.”
  61. 2 Chronicles 13:17 tn Heb “and [the] slain from Israel fell, 500,000 chosen men.”
  62. 2 Chronicles 13:18 tn Heb “at that time.”
  63. 2 Chronicles 13:20 tn Heb “and the strength of Jeroboam was not retained again in the days of Abijah.”
  64. 2 Chronicles 13:21 tn Heb “lifted up for himself.”
  65. 2 Chronicles 13:22 tn Heb “and his ways and his words.”
New English Translation (NET)

NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.

Romans 8:26-39

26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how we should pray,[a] but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with inexpressible groanings. 27 And he[b] who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit[c] intercedes on behalf of the saints according to God’s will. 28 And we know that all things work together[d] for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose, 29 because those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that his Son[e] would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.[f] 30 And those he predestined, he also called; and those he called, he also justified; and those he justified, he also glorified.

31 What then shall we say about these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 Indeed, he who[g] did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, freely give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against God’s elect?[h] It is God who justifies. 34 Who is the one who will condemn? Christ[i] is the one who died (and more than that, he was raised), who is at the right hand of God, and who also is interceding for us. 35 Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will trouble, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?[j] 36 As it is written, “For your sake we encounter death all day long; we were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”[k] 37 No, in all these things we have complete victory[l] through him[m] who loved us! 38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor heavenly rulers,[n] nor things that are present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Footnotes:

  1. Romans 8:26 tn Or “for we do not know what we ought to pray for.”
  2. Romans 8:27 sn He refers to God here; Paul has not specifically identified him for the sake of rhetorical power (for by leaving the subject slightly ambiguous, he draws his audience into seeing God’s hand in places where he is not explicitly mentioned).
  3. Romans 8:27 tn Grk “he,” or “it”; the referent (the Spirit) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  4. Romans 8:28 tc ὁ θεός (ho theos, “God”) is found after the verb συνεργεῖ (sunergei, “work”) in v. 28 in P46 A B 81 sa; the shorter reading is found in א C D F G Ψ 33 1175 1241 1505 1739 1881 2464 M latt sy bo. Although the inclusion is supported by a significant early papyrus, the alliance of significant Alexandrian and Western witnesses favors the shorter reading. As well, the longer reading is evidently motivated by a need for clarification. Since ὁ θεός is textually suspect, it is better to read the text without it. This leaves two good translational options: either “he works all things together for good” or “all things work together for good.” In the first instance the subject is embedded in the verb and “God” is clearly implied (as in v. 29). In the second instance, πάντα (panta) becomes the subject of an intransitive verb. In either case, “What is expressed is a truly biblical confidence in the sovereignty of God” (C. E. B. Cranfield, Romans [ICC], 1:427).
  5. Romans 8:29 tn Grk “he”; the referent (God’s Son) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  6. Romans 8:29 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:13.
  7. Romans 8:32 tn Grk “[he] who.” The relative clause continues the question of v. 31 in a way that is awkward in English. The force of v. 32 is thus: “who indeed did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—How will he not also with him give us all things?”
  8. Romans 8:33 sn An allusion to Isa 50:8 where the reference is singular; Paul applies this to all believers (“God’s elect” is plural here).
  9. Romans 8:34 tc ‡ A number of significant and early witnesses, along with several others (P46vid א A C F G L Ψ 6 33 81 104 365 1505 al lat bo), read ᾿Ιησοῦς (Iēsous, “Jesus”) after Χριστός (Christos, “Christ”) in v. 34. But the shorter reading is not unrepresented (B D 0289 1175 1241 1739 1881 M sa). Once ᾿Ιησοῦς got into the text, what scribe would omit it? Although the external evidence is on the side of the longer reading, internally such an expansion seems suspect. The shorter reading is thus preferred. NA28 has the word in brackets, indicating doubt as to its authenticity.tn Grk “who also.”
  10. Romans 8:35 tn Here “sword” is a metonymy that includes both threats of violence and acts of violence, even including death (although death is not necessarily the only thing in view here).
  11. Romans 8:36 sn A quotation from Ps 44:22.
  12. Romans 8:37 tn BDAG 1034 s.v. ὑπερνικάω states, “as a heightened form of νικᾶν prevail completely ὑπερνικῶμεν we are winning a most glorious victory Ro 8:37.”
  13. Romans 8:37 tn Here the referent could be either God or Christ, but in v. 39 it is God’s love that is mentioned.
  14. Romans 8:38 tn BDAG 138 s.v. ἀρχή 6 takes this term as a reference to angelic or transcendent powers (as opposed to merely human rulers). To clarify this, the adjective “heavenly” has been supplied in the translation. Some interpreters see this as a reference to fallen angels or demonic powers, and this view is reflected in some recent translations (NIV, NLT).
New English Translation (NET)

NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.

Psalm 18:37-50

37 I chase my enemies and catch[a] them;
I do not turn back until I wipe them out.
38 I beat them[b] to death;[c]
they fall at my feet.[d]
39 You give me strength[e] for battle;
you make my foes kneel before me.[f]
40 You make my enemies retreat;[g]
I destroy those who hate me.[h]
41 They cry out, but there is no one to help them;[i]
they cry out to the Lord,[j] but he does not answer them.
42 I grind them as fine windblown dust;[k]
I beat them underfoot[l] like clay[m] in the streets.
43 You rescue me from a hostile army.[n]
You make me[o] a leader of nations;
people over whom I had no authority are now my subjects.[p]
44 When they hear of my exploits, they submit to me.[q]
Foreigners are powerless[r] before me.
45 Foreigners lose their courage;[s]
they shake with fear[t] as they leave[u] their strongholds.[v]
46 The Lord is alive![w]
My Protector[x] is praiseworthy.[y]
The God who delivers me[z] is exalted as king.[aa]
47 The one true God[ab] completely vindicates me;[ac]
he makes nations submit to me.[ad]
48 He delivers me[ae] from my enemies.
You snatch me away[af] from those who attack me;[ag]
you rescue me from violent men.
49 So I will give you thanks before the nations,[ah] O Lord.
I will sing praises to you.[ai]
50 He[aj] gives his king magnificent victories;[ak]
he is faithful[al] to his chosen ruler,[am]
to David and his descendants[an] forever.”[ao]

Footnotes:

  1. Psalm 18:37 tn 2 Sam 22:38 reads “destroy.”
  2. Psalm 18:38 tn Or “smash them.” 2 Sam 22:39 reads, “and I wiped them out and smashed them.”
  3. Psalm 18:38 tn Heb “until they are unable to rise.” 2 Sam 22:39 reads, “until they do not rise.”
  4. Psalm 18:38 sn They fall at my feet. For ancient Near Eastern parallels, see O. Keel, The Symbolism of the Biblical World, 294-97.
  5. Psalm 18:39 tn Heb “clothed me.” See v. 32.
  6. Psalm 18:39 tn Heb “you make those who rise against me kneel beneath me.”sn My foes kneel before me. For ancient Near Eastern parallels, see R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological Study of Psalm 18/2 Samuel 22” (Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983), 268.
  7. Psalm 18:40 tn Heb “and [as for] my enemies, you give to me [the] back [or “neck”].” The idiom “give [the] back” means “to cause [one] to turn the back and run away.” Cf. Exod 23:27.
  8. Psalm 18:40 sn Those who hate me. See v. 17, where it is the Lord who delivered the psalmist from those who hated him.
  9. Psalm 18:41 tn Heb “but there is no deliverer.”
  10. Psalm 18:41 tn Heb “to the Lord.” The words “they cry out” are supplied in the translation because they are understood by ellipsis (see the preceding line).sn They cry out. This reference to the psalmist’s enemies crying out for help to the Lord suggests that the psalmist refers here to enemies within the covenant community, rather than foreigners. However, the militaristic context suggests foreign enemies are in view. Ancient Near Eastern literature indicates that defeated enemies would sometimes cry out for mercy to the god(s) of their conqueror. See R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological Study of Psalm 18/2 Samuel 22” (Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983), 271.
  11. Psalm 18:42 tn Heb “I pulverize them like dust upon the face of the wind.” The phrase “upon the face of” here means “before.” 2 Sam 22:43 reads, “like dust of the earth.”
  12. Psalm 18:42 tc Ps 18:42 reads, “I empty them out” (Hiphil of ריק), while 2 Sam 22:43 reads, “I crush them, I stomp on them” (juxtaposing the synonyms דקק and רקע). It is likely that the latter is a conflation of variants. One, but not both, of the verbs in 2 Sam 22:43 is probably original; “empty out” does not form as good a parallel with “grind, pulverize” in the parallel line.
  13. Psalm 18:42 tn Or “mud.”
  14. Psalm 18:43 tn Heb “from the strivings of a people.” In this context the Hebrew term רִיב (riv, “striving”) probably has a militaristic sense (as in Judg 12:2; Isa 41:11), and עָם (ʿam, “people”) probably refers more specifically to an army (for other examples, see the verses listed in BDB 766 s.v. I עַם, עָם 2.d). Some understand the phrase as referring to attacks by the psalmist’s own countrymen, the “nation” being Israel. However, foreign enemies appear to be in view; note the reference to “nations” in the following line.
  15. Psalm 18:43 tn 2 Sam 22:44 reads, “you keep me.”
  16. Psalm 18:43 tn Heb “a people whom I did not know serve me.” In this context “know” (יָדַע, yadaʿ) probably refers to formal recognition by treaty. People who were once not under the psalmist’s authority now willingly submit to his rulership to avoid being conquered militarily (see vv. 44-45). The language may recall the events recorded in 2 Sam 8:9-10 and 10:19.
  17. Psalm 18:44 tn Heb “at a report of an ear they submit to me.” The report of the psalmist’s exploits is so impressive that those who hear it submit to his rulership without putting up a fight.
  18. Psalm 18:44 tn For the meaning “be weak, powerless” for כָּחַשׁ (kakhash), see Ps 109:24. The next line (see v. 45a), in which “foreigners” are also mentioned, favors this interpretation. Another option is to translate “cower in fear” (see Deut 33:29; Pss 66:3; 81:15; cf. NIV “cringe”; NRSV “came cringing”).
  19. Psalm 18:45 tn Heb “wither, wear out.”
  20. Psalm 18:45 tn The meaning of חָרַג (kharag, “shake”) is established on the basis of cognates in Arabic and Aramaic. 2 Sam 22:46 reads חָגַר (khagar), which might mean here, “[they] come limping” (on the basis of a cognate in postbiblical Hebrew). The normal meaning for חָגַר (“gird”) makes little sense here.
  21. Psalm 18:45 tn Heb “from.”
  22. Psalm 18:45 tn Heb “their prisons.” The besieged cities of the foreigners are compared to prisons.
  23. Psalm 18:46 tn Elsewhere the construction חַי־יְהוָה (khay yehvah) is used exclusively as an oath formula, “as surely as the Lord lives,” but this is not the case here, for no oath follows. Here the statement is an affirmation of the Lord’s active presence and intervention. In contrast to pagan deities, he demonstrates he is the living God by rescuing and empowering the psalmist.
  24. Psalm 18:46 tn Heb “my rocky cliff,” which is a metaphor for protection. See similar phrases in vv. 2, 31.
  25. Psalm 18:46 tn Or “blessed [i.e., praised] be.”
  26. Psalm 18:46 tn Heb “the God of my deliverance.” 2 Sam 22:48 reads, “the God of the rocky cliff of my deliverance.”
  27. Psalm 18:46 tn The words “as king” are supplied in the translation for clarification. Elsewhere in the psalms the verb רוּם (rum, “be exalted”), when used of God, refers to his exalted position as king (Pss 99:2; 113:4; 138:6) and/or his self-revelation as king through his mighty deeds of deliverance (Pss 21:13; 46:10; 57:5, 11).
  28. Psalm 18:47 tn Heb “the God.” See v. 32.
  29. Psalm 18:47 tn Heb “is the one who grants vengeance to me.” The plural form of the noun indicates degree here, suggesting complete vengeance or vindication.sn Completely vindicates me. In the ancient Near East military victory was sometimes viewed as a sign that one’s God had judged in favor of the victor, avenging and/or vindicating him. See, for example, Judg 11:27, 32-33, 36.
  30. Psalm 18:47 tn Heb “he subdues nations beneath me.” On the meaning of the verb דָּבַר (davar, “subdue,” a homonym of דָּבַר, davar, “speak”), see HALOT 209-10 s.v. I דבר. See also Ps 47:3 and 2 Chr 22:10. 2 Sam 22:48 reads “and [is the one who] brings down nations beneath me.”
  31. Psalm 18:48 tn Heb “[the one who] delivers me.” 2 Sam 22:49 reads “and [the one who] brings me out.”
  32. Psalm 18:48 tn Heb “lifts me up.” In light of the preceding and following references to deliverance, the verb רום probably here refers to being rescued from danger (see Ps 9:13). However, it could mean “exalt, elevate” here, indicating that the Lord has given the psalmist victory over his enemies and forced them to acknowledge the psalmist’s superiority (cf. NIV, NRSV).
  33. Psalm 18:48 tn Heb “from those who rise against me.”
  34. Psalm 18:49 sn I will give you thanks before the nations. This probably alludes to the fact that the psalmist will praise the Lord in the presence of the defeated nations when they, as his subjects, bring their tribute payments. Ideally the Davidic king was to testify to the nations of God’s greatness. See J. H. Eaton, Kingship and the Psalms (SBT), 182-85.
  35. Psalm 18:49 tn Heb “to your name.” God’s “name” refers metonymically to his divine characteristics as suggested by his name, in this case “Lord,” the primary name of Israel’s covenant God which suggests his active presence with his people (see Exod 3:12-15).
  36. Psalm 18:50 tn Or “the one who.”
  37. Psalm 18:50 tn Heb “magnifies the victories of his king.” “His king” refers to the psalmist, the Davidic king whom God has chosen to rule Israel.
  38. Psalm 18:50 tn Heb “[the one who] does loyalty.”
  39. Psalm 18:50 tn Heb “his anointed [one],” i.e., the psalmist/Davidic king. See Ps 2:2.
  40. Psalm 18:50 tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”
  41. Psalm 18:50 sn If David is the author of the psalm (see the superscription), then he here anticipates that God will continue to demonstrate loyalty to his descendants who succeed him. If the author is a later Davidic king, then he views the divine favor he has experienced as the outworking of God’s faithful promises to David his ancestor.
New English Translation (NET)

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Proverbs 19:27-29

27 If you stop listening to[a] instruction, my child,
you will stray[b] from the words of knowledge.
28 A crooked witness[c] scorns justice,
and the mouth of the wicked devours[d] iniquity.
29 Penalties[e] have been prepared[f] for scorners,
and floggings for the backs of fools.

Footnotes:

  1. Proverbs 19:27 tn Heb “Stop listening…!” The infinitive construct לִשְׁמֹעַ (lishmoaʿ) functions as the direct object of the imperative: “stop heeding [or, listening to].” Of course in this proverb which shows the consequences of doing so, this is irony. The sage is instructing not to stop. The conditional protasis construction does not appear in the Hebrew but is supplied in the translation.
  2. Proverbs 19:27 tn The second line has an infinitive construct לִשְׁגוֹת (lishgot), meaning “to stray; to go astray; to err.” It indicates the result of the instruction—stop listening, and as a result you will go astray. The LXX took it differently: “A son who ceases to attend to discipline is likely to stray from words of knowledge.” RSV sees the final clause as the purpose of the instructions to be avoided: “do not listen to instructions to err.”
  3. Proverbs 19:28 tn Heb “a witness who is worthless and wicked” (עֵד בְּלִיַּעַל, ʿed beliyyaʿal). Cf. KJV “an ungodly witness”; NAB “an unprincipled witness”; NCV “an evil witness”; NASB “a rascally witness.”sn These are crooked or corrupt witnesses who willfully distort the facts and make a mockery of the whole legal process.
  4. Proverbs 19:28 tn The parallel line says the mouth of the wicked “gulps down” or “swallows” (יְבַלַּע, yevallaʿ) iniquity. The verb does not seem to fit the line (or the proverb) very well. Some have emended the text to יַבִּיעַ (yabbiaʿ, “gushes”) as in 15:28 (cf. NAB “pours out”). Driver followed an Arabic balaga to get “enunciates,” which works well with the idea of a false witness (W. McKane, Proverbs [OTL], 529). As it stands, however, the line indicates that in what he says the wicked person accepts evil—and that could describe a false witness.
  5. Proverbs 19:29 tc The MT reads שְׁפָטִים (shefatim from שֶׁפֶט, shephet), meaning “penalties; judgments.” The text might be מִשְׁפָּטִים (mishpatim) restoring a mem lost by haplography (the previous word ends with mem), and meaning “judicial decisions” (by extension “penalties”). The LXX reads “scourges,” a gloss it uses for שׁוֹטִים (shotim; cf. Prov 26:3), while some propose emending to שְׁבָטִים (shevatim) “rods” (cf. 23:14). Rods might be the instrument of the flogging mentioned in the second half of the verse, but any of the proposals conforms to the convention of parallelism. The main choice is between the MT as it stands and the LXX.
  6. Proverbs 19:29 tn The verb is a Niphal perfect of כוּן (kun) and may be past, as in “have been prepared,” or focused on the resulting state, as in “are ready.”
New English Translation (NET)

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