Translations
Turn again our captivity, O LORD, as the streams in the south.
Restore our fortunes, O YHWH, like the streambeds of the Negev.
Restore our fortunes, O Yahweh, like the sudden rushing rivers of the Negev!
Restore our captives, O LORD, like streams in the Negev.
Footnotes
Afiqim ba-Negev ("wadis/streambeds of the Negev") are the bone-dry riverbeds of the southern wilderness that explode into full, roaring torrents the instant the rains come—then vanish as suddenly. It is one of Scripture's most visceral images of impossible, instant reversal. The shift in v. 4 from celebration (vv. 1–3) to petition is theologically honest: the return is real but incomplete, and more restoration is yet needed. F.O.G. renders "streambeds" for topographical accuracy; F.O.G.M. uses "sudden rushing rivers" to capture the overwhelming, explosive abundance the image conveys to ancient readers who knew the Negev.

