Mazmur 55:22

55:22 Throw your burden ¹  upon the Lord,

and he will sustain you. ² 

He will never allow the godly to be upended. ³ 

Yesaya 49:2

49:2 He made my mouth like a sharp sword,

he hid me in the hollow of his hand;

he made me like a sharpened ⁴  arrow,

he hid me in his quiver. ⁵ 

[55:22]  ¹ tn The Hebrew noun occurs only here.

[55:22]  ² tn The pronoun is singular; the psalmist addresses each member of his audience individually.

[55:22]  ³ tn Heb “he will never allow swaying for the righteous.”

[49:2]  ⁴ tn Or perhaps, “polished” (so KJV, ASV, NAB, NIV, NRSV); NASB “a select arrow.”

[49:2]  ⁵ sn The figurative language emphasizes the servant’s importance as the Lord’s effective instrument. The servant’s mouth, which stands metonymically for his words, is compared to a sharp sword because he will be an effective spokesman on God’s behalf (see 50:4). The Lord holds his hand on the servant, ready to draw and use him at the appropriate time. The servant is like a sharpened arrow reserved in a quiver for just the right moment.