The LORD is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me?
Parallel translations
- WEB Yahweh is on my side. I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?
- BSB The LORD is on my side; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?
- NKJV The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?
- NASB The Lord is for me; I will not fear; What can man do to me?
- NLT The Lord is for me, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to 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
With the Lord on his side, the psalmist will not fear what man can do. It matters because God's presence removes the fear of human threats.
Overview
Confidence in God's nearness banishes the dread of human opposition. The verse is quoted in Hebrews 13:6 to assure believers of God's faithful help. Because the Lord stands with his people, ultimately in Christ who is Immanuel, they may face hostility without fear.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Heb 13:6So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.
- Rom 8:31What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
- Ps 56:4In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.
- Ps 56:11In God have I put my trust: I will not be afraid what man can do unto me.
- Mic 7:8–10Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD shall be a light unto me.
- Ps 56:9When I cry unto thee, then shall mine enemies turn back: this I know; for God is for me.
- Ps 27:1–3The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
- Jer 20:11But the LORD is with me as a mighty terrible one: therefore my persecutors shall stumble, and they shall not prevail: they shall be greatly ashamed; for they shall not prosper: their everlasting confusion shall never be forgotten.
- Ps 23:4Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
- Isa 51:12I, even I, am he that comforteth you: who art thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of a man that shall die, and of the son of man which shall be made as grass;
- Ps 46:11The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.
- Ps 146:5Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the LORD his God:
- Ps 46:1God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
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
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 118:6 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.