Mazmur 47:2

47:2 For the sovereign Lord ¹  is awe-inspiring; ² 

he is the great king who rules the whole earth! ³ 

Mazmur 66:5

66:5 Come and witness ⁴  God’s exploits! ⁵ 

His acts on behalf of people are awesome! ⁶ 

Mazmur 91:5

91:5 You need not fear the terrors of the night, ⁷ 

the arrow that flies by day,

Mazmur 145:6

145:6 They will proclaim ⁸  the power of your awesome acts!

I will declare your great deeds!

[47:2]  ¹ tn Heb “the Lord Most High.” The divine title “Most High” (עֶלְיוֹן, ’elyon) pictures the Lord as the exalted ruler of the universe who vindicates the innocent and judges the wicked.

[47:2]  ² tn Or “awesome.” The Niphal participle נוֹרָא (nora’), when used of God in the psalms, focuses on the effect that his royal splendor and powerful deeds have on those witnessing his acts (Pss 66:3, 5; 68:35; 76:7, 12; 89:7; 96:4; 99:3; 111:9). Here it refers to his capacity to fill his defeated foes with terror and his people with fearful respect.

[47:2]  ³ tn Heb “a great king over all the earth.”

[66:5]  ⁴ tn Or “see.”

[66:5]  ⁵ tn Or “acts” (see Ps 46:8).

[66:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “awesome [is] an act toward the sons of man.” It is unclear how the prepositional phrase relates to what precedes. If collocated with “act,” it may mean “on behalf of” or “toward.” If taken with “awesome” (see 1 Chr 16:25; Pss 89:7; 96:4; Zeph 2:11), one might translate “his awesome acts are beyond human comprehension” or “his awesome acts are superior to anything men can do.”

[91:5]  ⁷ tn This probably alludes to a sneak attack by enemies in the darkness of night (see Song 3:8).

[145:6]  ⁸ tn The prefixed verbal form is understood as an imperfect, indicating how the psalmist expects his audience to respond to his praise. Another option is to take the forms as a jussive, indicating the psalmist’s wish, “may they proclaim.”