Ulangan 32:4

32:4 As for the Rock, ¹  his work is perfect,

for all his ways are just.

He is a reliable God who is never unjust,

he is fair ²  and upright.

Ulangan 32:30-31

32:30 How can one man chase a thousand of them, ³ 

and two pursue ten thousand;

unless their Rock had delivered them up, ⁴ 

and the Lord had handed them over?

32:31 For our enemies’ ⁵  rock is not like our Rock,

as even our enemies concede.

Ulangan 32:1

Invocation of Witnesses

32:1 Listen, O heavens, and I will speak;

hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.

1 Samuel 2:2

2:2 No one is holy ⁶  like the Lord!

There is no one other than you!

There is no rock ⁷  like our God!

Mazmur 18:1

Psalm 18 ⁸ 

For the music director; by the Lord’s servant David, who sang ⁹  to the Lord the words of this song when ¹⁰  the Lord rescued him from the power ¹¹  of all his enemies, including Saul. ¹² 

18:1 He said: ¹³ 

“I love ¹⁴  you, Lord, my source of strength! ¹⁵ 

[32:4]  ¹ tc The LXX reads Θεός (qeos, “God”) for the MT’s “Rock.”

[32:4]  sn The Hebrew term depicts God as a rocky summit where one may find safety and protection. Within a covenantal context it serves as a reminder to the people that their God has committed himself to their protection in return for their allegiance.

[32:4]  ² tn Or “just” (KJV, NAB, NRSV, NLT) or “righteous” (NASB).

[32:30]  ³ tn The words “man” and “of them” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[32:30]  ⁴ tn Heb “sold them” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT).

[32:31]  ⁵ tn Heb “their,” but the referent (enemies) is specified in the translation for the sake of clarity.

[2:2]  ⁶ sn In this context God’s holiness refers primarily to his sovereignty and incomparability. He is unique and distinct from all other so-called gods.

[2:2]  ⁷ tn The LXX has “and there is none righteous like our God.” The Hebrew term translated “rock” refers to a rocky cliff where one can seek refuge from enemies. Here the metaphor depicts God as a protector of his people. Cf. TEV “no protector like our God”; CEV “We’re safer with you than on a high mountain.”

[18:1]  ⁸ sn Psalm 18. In this long song of thanks, the psalmist (a Davidic king, traditionally understood as David himself) affirms that God is his faithful protector. He recalls in highly poetic fashion how God intervened in awesome power and delivered him from death. The psalmist’s experience demonstrates that God vindicates those who are blameless and remain loyal to him. True to his promises, God gives the king victory on the battlefield and enables him to subdue nations. A parallel version of the psalm appears in 2 Sam 22:1-51.

[18:1]  ⁹ tn Heb “spoke.”

[18:1]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “in the day,” or “at the time.”

[18:1]  ¹¹ tn Heb “hand.”

[18:1]  ¹² tn Heb “and from the hand of Saul.”

[18:1]  ¹³ tn A number of translations (e.g., NASB, NIV, NRSV) assign the words “he said” to the superscription, in which case the entire psalm is in first person. Other translations (e.g., NAB) include the introductory “he said” at the beginning of v. 1.

[18:1]  ¹⁴ tn The verb רָחַם (rakham) elsewhere appears in the Piel (or Pual) verbal stem with the basic meaning, “have compassion.” The verb occurs only here in the basic (Qal) stem. The basic stem of the verbal root also occurs in Aramaic with the meaning “love” (see DNWSI 2:1068-69; Jastrow 1467 s.v. רָחַם; G. Schmuttermayr, “rhm: eine lexikalische Studie,” Bib 51 [1970]: 515-21). Since this introductory statement does not appear in the parallel version in 2 Sam 22:1-51, it is possible that it is a later addition to the psalm, made when the poem was revised for use in worship.

[18:1]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “my strength.” “Strength” is metonymic here, referring to the Lord as the one who bestows strength to the psalmist; thus the translation “my source of strength.”