Mazmur 78:42

78:42 They did not remember what he had done, ¹ 

how he delivered them from the enemy, ² 

Mazmur 118:12

118:12 They surrounded me like bees.

But they disappeared as quickly ³  as a fire among thorns. ⁴ 

Indeed, in the name of the Lord I pushed them away.

[78:42]  ¹ tn Heb “his hand,” symbolizing his saving activity and strength, as the next line makes clear.

[78:42]  ² tn Heb “[the] day [in] which he ransomed them from [the] enemy.”

[118:12]  ³ tn Heb “were extinguished.”

[118:12]  ⁴ tn The point seems to be that the hostility of the nations (v. 10) is short-lived, like a fire that quickly devours thorns and then burns out. Some, attempting to create a better parallel with the preceding line, emend דֹּעֲכוּ (do’akhu, “they were extinguished”) to בָּעֲרוּ (ba’aru, “they burned”). In this case the statement emphasizes their hostility.