Net English TranslationPsalms 76 =
Psalm 761
76

1 For the music director; to be accompanied by stringed instruments; a psalm of Asaph, a song.

God has revealed himself in Judah;2
in Israel his reputation3 is great.
2 He lives in Salem;4
he dwells in Zion.5
3 There he shattered the arrows,6
the shield, the sword, and the rest of the weapons of war.7 (Selah)
4 You shine brightly and reveal your majesty,
as you descend from the hills where you killed your prey.8
5 The bravehearted9 were plundered;10
they “fell asleep.”11
All the warriors were helpless.12
6 At the sound of your battle cry,13 O God of Jacob,
both rider14 and horse “fell asleep.”15
7 You are awesome! Yes, you!
Who can withstand your intense anger?16
8 From heaven you announced what their punishment would be.17
The earth18 was afraid and silent
9 when God arose to execute judgment,
and to deliver all the oppressed of the earth. (Selah)
10 Certainly19 your angry judgment upon men will bring you praise;20
you reveal your anger in full measure.21
11 Make vows to the Lord your God and repay them!
Let all those who surround him22 bring tribute to the awesome one!
12 He humbles princes;23
the kings of the earth regard him as awesome.24
1sn Psalm 76. The psalmist depicts God as a mighty warrior who destroys Israel’s enemies. 2tn Or “God is known in Judah.” 3tn Heb “name,” which here stands metonymically for God’s reputation. 4sn Salem is a shorter name for Jerusalem (see Gen 14:18). 5tn Heb “and his place of refuge is in Salem, and his lair in Zion.” God may be likened here to a lion (see v. 4). 6tn Heb “flames of the bow,” i.e., arrows. 7tn Heb “shield and sword and battle.” “Battle” probably here stands by metonymy for the weapons of war in general.sn This verse may allude to the miraculous defeat of the Assyrians in 701 b.c. (see Isa 36-37). 8tn Heb “radiant [are] you, majestic from the hills of prey.” God is depicted as a victorious king and as a lion that has killed its victims. 9tn Heb “strong of heart.” In Isa 46:12, the only other text where this phrase appears, it refers to those who are stubborn, but here it seems to describe brave warriors (see the next line). 10tn The verb is a rare Aramaized form of the Hitpolel (see GKC 149 §54.a, n. 2); the root is שָׁלַל (shalal, “to plunder”). 11tn Heb “they slept [in] their sleep.” “Sleep” here refers to the “sleep” of death. A number of modern translations take the phrase to refer to something less than death, however: NASB “cast into a deep sleep”; NEB “fall senseless”; NIV “lie still”; NRSV “lay stunned.” 12tn Heb “and all the men of strength did not find their hands.” 13tn Heb “from your shout.” The noun is derived from the Hebrew verb גָּעַר (ga’ar), which is often understood to mean “rebuke.” In some cases it is apparent that scolding or threatening is in view (see Gen 37:10; Ruth 2:16; Zech 3:2). However, in militaristic contexts this translation is inadequate, for the verb refers in this setting to the warrior’s battle cry, which terrifies and paralyzes the enemy. See A. Caquot, TDOT 3:53, and note the use of the verb in Pss 68:30; 106:9; Nah 1:4, as well as the related noun in Job 26:11; Pss 9:5; 18:15; 104:7; Isa 50:2; 51:20; 66:15. 14tn Or “chariot,” but even so the term is metonymic for the charioteer. 15tn Heb “he fell asleep, and [the] chariot and [the] horse.” Once again (see v. 5) “sleep” refers here to the “sleep” of death. 16tc Heb “and who can stand before you from the time of your anger?” The Hebrew expression מֵאָז (me’az, “from the time of”) is better emended to מֵאֹז (me’oz, “from [i.e., “because of”] the strength of your anger”; see Ps 90:11). 17tn Heb “a [legal] decision,” or “sentence.” 18tn “The earth” stands here by metonymy for its inhabitants. 19tn Or “for.” 20tn Heb “the anger of men will praise you.” This could mean that men’s anger (subjective genitive), when punished by God, will bring him praise, but this interpretation does not harmonize well with the next line. The translation assumes that God’s anger is in view here (see v. 7) and that “men” is an objective genitive. God’s angry judgment against men brings him praise because it reveals his power and majesty (see vv. 1-4). 21tn Heb “the rest of anger you put on.” The meaning of the statement is not entirely clear. Perhaps the idea is that God, as he prepares for battle, girds himself with every last ounce of his anger, as if it were a weapon. 22tn The phrase “all those who surround him” may refer to the surrounding nations (v. 12 may favor this), but in Ps 89:7 the phrase refers to God’s heavenly assembly. 23tn Heb “he reduces the spirit of princes.” According to HALOT 148 s.v. II בצר, the Hebrew verb בָּצַר (batsar) is here a hapax legomenon meaning “reduce, humble.” The statement is generalizing, with the imperfect tense highlighting God’s typical behavior. 24tn Heb “[he is] awesome to the kings of the earth.”
=