It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes.
Parallel translations
- WEB It is better to take refuge in Yahweh, than to put confidence in princes.
- KJV It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in princes.
- NKJV It is better to trust in the Lord Than to put confidence in princes.
- NASB It is better to take refuge in the Lord Than to trust in noblemen.
- NLT It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.
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
It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes. It matters because even the most powerful people cannot be trusted as God can.
Overview
Intensifying the previous verse, the psalm warns against relying even on rulers, who are mortal and limited. Earthly power is no substitute for God's protection. This redirects hope from human authorities to the Lord, and ultimately to Christ the King, whose reign never fails.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Ps 146:3–5Put not your trust in princes, in mortal man, who cannot save.
- Isa 31:1Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, who rely on horses, who trust in their abundance of chariots and in their multitude of horsemen. They do not look to the Holy One of Israel; they do not seek the LORD.
- Isa 30:2–3They set out to go down to Egypt without asking My advice, to seek shelter under Pharaoh’s protection and take refuge in Egypt’s shade.
- Ezek 29:7When Israel took hold of you with their hands, you splintered, tearing all their shoulders; when they leaned on you, you broke, and their backs were wrenched.
- Isa 31:8“Then Assyria will fall, but not by the sword of man; a sword will devour them, but not one made by mortals. They will flee before the sword, and their young men will be put to forced labor.
- Isa 30:15–17For the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said: “By repentance and rest you would be saved; your strength would lie in quiet confidence—but you were not willing.”
- Isa 36:6–7Look now, you are trusting in Egypt, that splintered reed of a staff that will pierce the hand of anyone who leans on it. Such is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust in him.
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 118:9 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.