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Psalm 18:16-18
New English Translation
Psalm 18:16-18
New English Translation
16 He reached down[a] from above and took hold of me;
he pulled me from the surging water.[b]
17 He rescued me from my strong enemy,[c]
from those who hate me,
for they were too strong for me.
18 They confronted[d] me in my day of calamity,
but the Lord helped me.[e]
Footnotes
- Psalm 18:16 tn Heb “stretched.” Perhaps “his hand” should be supplied by ellipsis (see Ps 144:7). In this poetic narrative context the three prefixed verbal forms in this verse are best understood as preterites indicating past tense, not imperfects.
- Psalm 18:16 tn Heb “mighty waters.” The waters of the sea symbolize the psalmist’s powerful enemies, as well as the realm of death they represent (see v. 4 and Ps 144:7).
- Psalm 18:17 tn The singular refers either to personified death or collectively to the psalmist’s enemies. The following line, which refers to “those [plural] who hate me,” favors the latter.
- Psalm 18:18 tn The same verb is translated “trapped” in v. 5. In this poetic narrative context the prefixed verbal form is best understood as a preterite indicating past tense, not imperfect.
- Psalm 18:18 tn Heb “became my support.”
New English Translation (NET)
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