I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the LORD.
Parallel translations
- WEB I will not die, but live, and declare Yah’s works.
- BSB I will not die, but I will live and proclaim what the LORD has done.
- NKJV I shall not die, but live, And declare the works of the Lord.
- NASB I will not die, but live, And tell of the works of the Lord.
- NLT I will not die; instead, I will live to tell what the Lord has done.
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
The psalmist declares he will not die but live to proclaim the Lord's works. It matters because God preserves his people for the purpose of witness and praise.
Overview
Spared from death, the worshiper vows to live and testify to what God has done. Deliverance is given so that God may be glorified through the rescued one's witness. This anticipates Christ, who lives after death to declare and accomplish the works of God, and grants his people resurrection life.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- John 11:4When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.
- Ps 71:17–18O God, thou hast taught me from my youth: and hitherto have I declared thy wondrous works.
- Isa 38:16–20O LORD, by these things men live, and in all these things is the life of my spirit: so wilt thou recover me, and make me to live.
- Ps 6:5For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks?
- Hab 1:12Art thou not from everlasting, O LORD my God, mine Holy One? we shall not die. O LORD, thou hast ordained them for judgment; and, O mighty God, thou hast established them for correction.
- Ps 73:28But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.
- Rom 14:7–9For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself.
- Ps 145:4One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts.
- Ps 40:5Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered.
- Ps 107:22And let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare his works with rejoicing.
- Ps 40:10I have not hid thy righteousness within my heart; I have declared thy faithfulness and thy salvation: I have not concealed thy lovingkindness and thy truth from the great congregation.
- Jer 51:10The LORD hath brought forth our righteousness: come, and let us declare in Zion the work of the LORD our God.
- Ps 119:13With my lips have I declared all the judgments of thy mouth.
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 118:17 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.