their fulfilment. It would therefore be very strange if here this same man were saying, ‘Forget what I did in former days, and consider it no more.’ What is the meaning of ‘remember’ and ‘consider’ in v. 18? Here we return to the question raised at the beginning of the present section. The structure of a proclamation of salvation leads us to expect it to start with an allusion to a community lament. The part of the latter to which the allusion is made may vary. Verses 16b and 17 could conceivably