Mazmur 58:11

58:11 Then ¹  observers ²  will say,

“Yes indeed, the godly are rewarded! ³ 

Yes indeed, there is a God who judges ⁴  in the earth!”

Mazmur 83:18

83:18 Then they will know ⁵  that you alone are the Lord, ⁶ 

the sovereign king ⁷  over all the earth.

Mazmur 85:9

85:9 Certainly his loyal followers will soon experience his deliverance; ⁸ 

then his splendor will again appear in our land. ⁹ 

Mazmur 103:20

103:20 Praise the Lord, you angels of his,

you powerful warriors who carry out his decrees

and obey his orders! ¹⁰ 

Mazmur 145:19

145:19 He satisfies the desire ¹¹  of his loyal followers; ¹² 

he hears their cry for help and delivers them.

[58:11]  ¹ tn Following the imperfects of v. 10, the prefixed verbal form with vav (ו) conjunctive probably indicates a result or consequence of what precedes.

[58:11]  ² tn Heb “man.” The singular is representative here.

[58:11]  ³ tn Heb “surely [there] is fruit for the godly.”

[58:11]  ⁴ tn The plural participle is unusual here if the preceding אֱלֹהִים (’elohim) is here a plural of majesty, referring to the one true God. Occasionally the plural of majesty does take a plural attributive (see GKC 428-29 §132.h). It is possible that the final mem (ם) on the participle is enclitic, and that it was later misunderstood as a plural ending. Another option is to translate, “Yes indeed, there are gods who judge in the earth.” In this case, the statement reflects the polytheistic mindset of pagan observers who, despite their theological ignorance, nevertheless recognize divine retribution when they see it.

[83:18]  ⁵ tn After the preceding jussives (v. 17), the prefixed verbal form with prefixed vav (ו) indicates purpose (“so that they may know”) or result.

[83:18]  ⁶ tn Heb “that you, your name [is] the Lord, you alone.”

[83:18]  ⁷ tn Traditionally “the Most High.”

[85:9]  ⁸ tn Heb “certainly his deliverance [is] near to those who fear him.”

[85:9]  ⁹ tn Heb “to dwell, glory, in our land.” “Glory” is the subject of the infinitive. The infinitive with -לְ (lÿ), “to dwell,” probably indicates result here (“then”). When God delivers his people and renews his relationship with them, he will once more reveal his royal splendor in the land.

[103:20]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “[you] mighty ones of strength, doers of his word, by listening to the voice of his word.”

[145:19]  ¹¹ tn In this context “desire” refers to the followers’ desire to be delivered from wicked enemies.

[145:19]  ¹² tn Heb “the desire of those who fear him, he does.”