Ryðfjónar gekk reynir
randa suðr á landi
beðs í bœnar smiðju
Baldrs sigtólum halda.

"The Baldr of the bed of rust-hate (i.e. god of bed of whetstone = god
of sword = warrior) went south, the tester/rowan of shields (i.e.
warrior), to direct victory-tools (i.e. his weapons) into the smithy
of prayer (i.e. breast [of his enemy])."

beðr ryð-fjónar – bed of rust-hate = bed of whetstone = sword (where
the whetstone lies when it's being used).

bœnar smiðja – smithy of prayer = breast (conceived of as the place
where prayers and wishes are formed).

halda – to hold (with a dative object indicating what is held), here
more specifically "to aim, move, direct" (see Lex. Poet. 8: rette,
bevæge, styre).

reynir randa – either "tester of shields" or "rowan tree of shields",
both of which = warrior. No real way to decide between them, as they
each follow a conventional pattern of making kennings and the meaning
of the whole kenning would be exactly the same either way.

sig-tól, n.pl. – victory-tools = weapons.

suðr á landi – south, southwards.

Siðreynir lét síðan
snjallr morðhamar gjalla
hauðrs í hattar steðja
hjaldrs Vetrliða skaldi.

"The bold custom-tester/rowan of battle (i.e. the tester/rowan of the
custom/practice of battle = warrior) made [his] murder-hammer (i.e.
his sword) resound, set [it] in the land of the hood (i.e. head) of
the poet Vetrliði."

gjalla – shriek, resound.

hauðr, n. - land, earth.
höttr, m. - hood (gen. hattar)
hauðr hattar – land of hood = head.

morð-hamarr – murder-hammer = sword (it's accusative, hamar, in the
verse, although this isn't apparent from the modern spelling where
nominative has become `hamar' too).

sið-reynir hjaldrs – custom-tester/rowan of battle = tester/rowan of
the custom/practice of battle = warrior.

snjallr – bold (notice that it's nominative in the verse, agreeing
with sið-reynir).

steðja – to place, set.


* SECOND POEM *

Yggs bjálfa mun ek Úlfi
Endils um boð senda,
mér er við stála stýri
stugglaust, syni Ugga,

"I'll send instructions from the Odin of the pelt of Endill (i.e. god
of armour = warrior) to Úlfr, Uggi's son... (I'm not averse to the
wielder of swords.)" (In other words: I send this message to my
friend, Úlfr...)

bjálfi Endils – pelt of Endill = armour. Endill is one of many
interchangeable "sea-kings" (legendary pirate leaders) whose names
form the basis of kennings for anything related to war or the sea.

boð – message, order, instructions.

Yggr bjálfa Endils – Odin of armour = warrior. I think he's referring
to himself here; and, unless I'm mistaken, the genitive is being used
in an ablative sense to mean "from".

stál, n. – steel, sword.

stýrir stála – steerer/director of swords = warrior.

stugglauss – `mér er stugglaust við e-n' "I am without aversion
towards, I am friendly towards".

um - here, as often in verse, a meaningless filler word, used to help
out the metre (`of' can be used in the same way).

at gnýskúta Geitis
goðvarg fyrir argan,
þann er við rögn um regnir,
reki hann en ek annan.

...(instructions) that he drive the cowardly transgressor against the
gods, he who blasphemes against the divine powers (gods), over the
giant's din-cave (i.e. force him over a cliff), and I [will drive] the
other [over too].

argr – cowardly, effeminate.
Geitir – name of a giant.

gný-skúti – "din-cave, cave of roaring storms"; cliffs are
traditionally characterised as the homes of giants; Lex. Poet.
buldrende klipehule, hule med de omgivende kipper "roaring cliff-cave,
cave with the surrounding cliffs"; according to Lex. Poet. `reka fyr
gnýskúta Geitis' synes ar være ensbetydande med "seems to be
synonymous with" `reka fyr björg' "drive over a cliff". Likewise, Jón
Hnefill Aðalsteinsson paraphrases `fyrir gnýskúta Geitis' = `fyrir
hamra' "over cliffs" (Fórnarblót í fornum sið [
http://www2.hi.is/Apps/WebObjects/HI.woa/1/swdocument/1007072/J%C3%B3n+Hnefill_+F%C3%B3rnarbl%C3%B3t+.pdf?wosid=false
]). He quotes Ólafur Lárusson: "Örlögin sem Þorvaldur ætlaði
Þangbrandi og Guðleifi geta verið hvorttveggja í senn, refsing og
blót, því dauðarefsing var blót." (The fate which Þorvaldr intended
for Þangbrandr and Guðleifr may have been simultaneously punishment
and offering, since the death penalty was [also] and offering).

goð-vargr – wolf of the gods, enemy of the gods, transgressor against
the gods.

regnir – some versions have `rignir' here; Lex Poet. synes at betyde
`strides' (seems to mean "fights, struggles, strives [against]"); CV
`rigna við rögn' "to blaspheme against the gods". Lex. Poet. gives
this one-off verb `rigna' a separate entry from `rigna' "to rain",
while CV includes it in the entry for `rigna' "to rain".

rögn, n.pl. – powers, gods.