“The waves of death overwhelmed me; floods of destruction swept over me.
Parallel translations
- WEB For the waves of death surrounded me. The floods of ungodliness made me afraid.
- KJV When the waves of death compassed me, the floods of ungodly men made me afraid;
- BSB For the waves of death engulfed me; the torrents of chaos overwhelmed me.
- NKJV “When the waves of death surrounded me, The floods of ungodliness made me afraid.
- NASB “For the waves of death encompassed me; The floods of destruction terrified me;
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
David pictures death's waves and floods of ungodliness engulfing him. He vividly conveys the terror of his mortal danger.
Overview
Using imagery of overwhelming waters, David describes how close he came to destruction at the hands of wicked men. The language captures both physical peril and spiritual dread. It gives voice to every believer who has felt overwhelmed, and it foreshadows the deeper waters of death that Christ entered and overcame.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Jonah 2:3For you threw me into the depths, in the heart of the seas. The flood was all around me. All your waves and your billows passed over me.
- Ps 69:14–15Deliver me out of the mire, and don’t let me sink. Let me be delivered from those who hate me, and out of the deep waters.
- Isa 59:19So shall they fear Yahweh’s name from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun; for he will come as a rushing stream, which Yahweh’s breath drives.
- Jer 46:7–8“Who is this who rises up like the Nile, whose waters toss themselves like the rivers?
- Rev 12:15–16The serpent spewed water out of his mouth after the woman like a river, that he might cause her to be carried away by the stream.
- Ps 18:4The cords of death surrounded me. The floods of ungodliness made me afraid.
- 1 Th 5:3For when they are saying, “Peace and safety,” then sudden destruction will come on them, like birth pains on a pregnant woman; and they will in no way escape.
- Rev 17:1One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here. I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who sits on many waters,
- Ps 93:3–4The floods have lifted up, Yahweh, the floods have lifted up their voice. The floods lift up their waves.
- Rev 17:15He said to me, “The waters which you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and languages.
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
God's covenant with David — a son whose throne and kingdom would last forever (7:12–16) — finds its yes in Jesus, the Son of David who reigns without end.
How 2 Samuel 22:5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.