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The wicked, in the pride of his face, has no room in his thoughts for God.
Psalms 10:4 · World English Bible
Parallel translations
  • KJV The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts.
  • BSB In his pride the wicked man does not seek Him; in all his schemes there is no God.
  • NKJV The wicked in his proud countenance does not seek God; God is in none of his thoughts.
  • NASB The wicked, in his haughtiness, does not seek Him. There is no God in all his schemes.
  • NLT The wicked are too proud to seek God. They seem to think that God is dead.

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

In his pride the wicked has no room for God in his thoughts. Practical atheism flows from arrogance.

Overview

The psalmist locates the source of evil in pride that crowds God out of one's thinking. This is not always denial of God's existence but a life lived as though He were irrelevant. Scripture calls such heart-attitude folly (Psalm 14:1), the opposite of the fear of the Lord that begins wisdom.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 27

  • Ps 14:1–2For the Chief Musician. By David. The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt. They have done abominable deeds. There is no one who does good.
  • Rom 1:28Even as they refused to have God in their knowledge, God gave them up to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not fitting;
  • Acts 8:22Repent therefore of this, your wickedness, and ask God if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you.
  • Gen 6:5Yahweh saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of man’s heart was continually only evil.
  • Rom 1:21Because, knowing God, they didn’t glorify him as God, neither gave thanks, but became vain in their reasoning, and their senseless heart was darkened.
  • Deut 8:14then your heart might be lifted up, and you forget Yahweh your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage;
  • Job 22:17who said to God, ‘Depart from us;’ and, ‘What can the Almighty do for us?’
  • Exod 5:2Pharaoh said, “Who is Yahweh, that I should listen to his voice to let Israel go? I don’t know Yahweh, and moreover I will not let Israel go.”
  • Ps 53:1For the Chief Musician. To the tune of “Mahalath.” A contemplation by David. The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, and have done abominable iniquity. There is no one who does good.
  • Isa 65:2I have spread out my hands all day to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, after their own thoughts;
  • Mark 7:21For from within, out of the hearts of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, sexual sins, murders, thefts,
  • Prov 21:4A high look, and a proud heart, the lamp of the wicked, is sin.
  • Prov 30:9lest I be full, deny you, and say, ‘Who is Yahweh?’ or lest I be poor, and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.
  • Ps 18:27For you will save the afflicted people, but the haughty eyes you will bring down.
  • Ps 36:1For the Chief Musician. By David, the servant of Yahweh. An inner sanctuary is within my heart about the disobedience of the wicked: “There is no fear of God before his eyes.”
  • Prov 6:17haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood;
  • Ps 27:8When you said, “Seek my face,” my heart said to you, “I will seek your face, Yahweh.”
  • Zeph 2:3Seek Yahweh, all you humble of the land, who have kept his ordinances. Seek righteousness. Seek humility. It may be that you will be hidden in the day of Yahweh’s anger.
  • Isa 59:7Their feet run to evil, and they hurry to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity. desolation and destruction are in their paths.
  • Prov 30:13There is a generation, oh how lofty are their eyes! Their eyelids are lifted up.
  • Isa 3:9The look of their faces testify against them. They parade their sin like Sodom. They don’t hide it. Woe to their soul! For they have brought disaster upon themselves.
  • Jer 2:31Generation, consider Yahweh’s word. Have I been a wilderness to Israel? Or a land of thick darkness? Why do my people say, ‘We have broken loose. We will come to you no more?’
  • Ps 101:5I will silence whoever secretly slanders his neighbor. I won’t tolerate one who is haughty and conceited.
  • Isa 2:11The lofty looks of man will be brought low, the haughtiness of men will be bowed down, and Yahweh alone will be exalted in that day.
  • Eph 2:12that you were at that time separate from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of the promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
  • Jer 4:14Jerusalem, wash your heart from wickedness, that you may be saved. How long shall your evil thoughts lodge within you?
  • Dan 5:22–23You, his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, though you knew all this,

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (5)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Psalms videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Psalms 10:4YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on PsalmsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.

How Psalms 10:4 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.