The two lines of this verse are parallel and are in the form of a question, to show how foolish and useless are the rebellion and the plots being planned against Yahweh and his chosen king. The second line repeats the first one, adding the affirmation that the plots will not succeed. The question is not a request for information but is a way of expressing contempt and astonishment at the attempt of Israel’s enemies to defeat Israel’s king. “How dare the nations plan rebellion?” Or, as a statement, “It is completely useless for the nations to plan rebellion.” The French common language version (Bible en français courant) uses a question and a statement: “The nations are in an uproar–but why? The peoples plot, but it is useless!”

It is not necessary to have two different words in translation to represent the nations and the peoples, since the two refer to the same group. In the context of this psalm, these are Gentile nations, who were considered pagans (Biblia Dios Habla Hoy translates “Why are the pagan peoples in turmoil? Why do they…?”).

In some languages there is no term for “nation” as a large, independent political unit. The largest political group may be called a “tribe.” It is sometimes unnatural to say that tribes are planning rebellions, and so one must speak of the leaders of the tribes rebelling. It may also be necessary to indicate against whom the people are conspiring. Hence, “Why do the chiefs of the foreign tribes conspire against God and his people?”

Conspire translates a verb found only here in the Old Testament; it is variously defined: “rage” (An American Translation, New American Bible [New American Bible]), “uproar” (New Jerusalem Bible, Bible en français courant), “assemble,” and Briggs has “consult together.” It would seem that a meaning such as conspire (or Good News Translation “plan rebellion”) more readily fits the context, as a closer parallel to the verb in line b.

The verb translated plot is the same that in 1.2 is translated “meditates”; here it is a whispering, a murmuring, of conspirators. And the phrase in vain means “without success,” “useless” (Good News Translation). New Jerusalem Bible has “impotent muttering.”

In these two parallel lines only the second contains in vain. Although it is true that conspiring in line a is equally useless, the addition of in vain in the second line serves to heighten the element of failure in relation to the verbs of both lines. It is not implied that the nations conspire with some degree of success, and that only the peoples fail in their plotting. If the translation gives this impression, the translator is advised to make clear that what is done in both lines is without success.

It may not be possible in some languages to maintain the parallelism of the two clauses; and in these cases they may have to be reduced to one; for example, “Why do the leaders of the foreign tribes plot against God and his chosen king? Their plotting will fail,” or as a statement, “The chiefs of the pagan tribes conspire against God and his chosen leader, but they will not succeed.”

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Reyburn, William D. A Handbook on the Book of Psalms. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1991. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .