May his children become fatherless, and his wife a widow.
Parallel translations
- WEB Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow.
- KJV Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow.
- BSB May his children be fatherless and his wife a widow.
- ESV May his children be fatherless and his wife a widow!
- NKJV Let his children be fatherless, And his wife a widow.
- NASB May his children be fatherless, And his wife a widow.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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 asks that the consequences of the wicked man's sin fall on his household. It reflects the sober reality that persistent evil brings ruin on a family.
Overview
In Israel's world, the loss of a husband and father left a family destitute and exposed. The petition is severe, yet it mirrors how unrepentant wickedness brings devastation in its wake. Scripture elsewhere shows God's special care for the very widows and orphans named here (Psalm 68:5), so the prayer ultimately appeals to God as righteous judge over oppressors.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Exod 22:24and my wrath will grow hot, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless.
- Jer 18:21Therefore deliver up their children to the famine, and give them over to the power of the sword. Let their wives become childless, and widows; and let their men be slain of death, and their young men struck by the sword in battle.
- Lam 5:3We are orphans and fatherless; Our mothers are as widows.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 109:9 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.