Sharp arrows will come from the warrior, with burning coals of the broom tree!
Parallel translations
- WEB Sharp arrows of the mighty, with coals of juniper.
- KJV Sharp arrows of the mighty, with coals of juniper.
- NKJV Sharp arrows of the warrior, With coals of the broom tree!
- NASB Sharp arrows of the warrior, With the burning coals of the broom tree!
- NLT You will be pierced with sharp arrows and burned with glowing coals.
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 answer to the deceitful tongue is sharp warrior's arrows and burning coals. God's judgment on lies is sure and severe.
Overview
This verse completes the previous question, picturing God's recompense on the liar as 'sharp arrows' and glowing 'coals.' The imagery conveys decisive, penetrating, and lasting judgment. It assures the slandered that God will deal justly with deceit, leaving vengeance in His hands rather than ours.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 18
- Jas 3:5–8In the same way, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it boasts of great things. Consider how small a spark sets a great forest ablaze.
- Prov 18:21Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.
- Prov 19:9A false witness will not go unpunished, and one who pours out lies will perish.
- Ps 45:5Your arrows pierce the hearts of the king’s foes; the nations fall beneath your feet.
- Prov 12:22Lying lips are detestable to the LORD, but those who deal faithfully are His delight.
- Prov 19:5A false witness will not go unpunished, and one who utters lies will not escape.
- Prov 16:27A worthless man digs up evil, and his speech is like a scorching fire.
- Ps 140:9–11May the heads of those who surround me be covered in the trouble their lips have caused.
- Ps 52:5Surely God will bring you down to everlasting ruin; He will snatch you up and tear you away from your tent; He will uproot you from the land of the living. Selah
- Ps 59:7See what they spew from their mouths—sharp words from their lips: “For who can hear us?”
- Prov 11:9With his mouth the ungodly man destroys his neighbor, but through knowledge the righteous are rescued.
- Ps 57:4My soul is among the lions; I lie down with ravenous beasts—with men whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords.
- Prov 11:12Whoever shows contempt for his neighbor lacks judgment, but a man of understanding remains silent.
- Prov 11:18The wicked man earns an empty wage, but he who sows righteousness reaps a true reward.
- Deut 32:23–24I will heap disasters upon them; I will spend My arrows against them.
- Ps 7:13He has prepared His deadly weapons; He ordains His arrows with fire.
- Rev 21:8But to the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and sexually immoral and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. This is the second death.”
- Prov 18:8The words of a gossip are like choice morsels that go down into the inmost being.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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 120:4 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.