translation_id: net-engnet

book_id: PSA

label: NET study note

text: . The psalmist asks God to deliver Israel from the attacks of foreign nations. Recalling how God defeated Israel’s enemies in the days of Deborah and Gideon, he prays that the hostile nations would be humiliated.


text: The Hagrites are also mentioned in 1 Chr 5:10, 19-20 .


text: Some identify Gebal with the Phoenician coastal city of Byblos (see Ezek 27:9 , where the name is spelled differently), though others locate this site south of the Dead Sea (see BDB 148 s.v. גְּבַל ; HALOT 174 s.v. גְּבַל ).


text: The psalmist alludes here to Gideon’s victory over the Midianites (see Judg 7-8 ) and to Barak’s victory over Jabin’s army, which was led by his general Sisera ( Judg 4-5 ).


text: Endor is not mentioned in the accounts of Gideon’s or Barak’s victories, but both battles took place in the general vicinity of the town. (See Y. Aharoni and M. Avi-Yonah, The Macmillan Bible Atlas , 46, 54.) Because Sisera and Jabin are mentioned in v. 9 b, many understand them to be the subject of the verbs in v. 10 , though they relate v. 10 to Gideon’s victory, which is referred to in v. 9 a, 11. (See, for example, Y. Aharoni, The Land of the Bible , 263.)


text: Oreb and Zeeb were the generals of the Midianite army that was defeated by Gideon. The Ephraimites captured and executed both of them and sent their heads to Gideon ( Judg 7:24-25 ).


text: Zebah and Zalmunna were the Midianite kings. Gideon captured them and executed them ( Judg 8:1-21 ).


text: The imagery of fire and flames suggests unrelenting, destructive judgment.