Do good, O LORD, unto those that be good, and to them that are upright in their hearts.
Parallel translations
- WEB Do good, Yahweh, to those who are good, to those who are upright in their hearts.
- BSB Do good, O LORD, to those who are good, and to the upright in heart.
- NKJV Do good, O Lord, to those who are good, And to those who are upright in their hearts.
- NASB ¶Do good, Lord, to those who are good And to those who are upright in their hearts.
- NLT O Lord, do good to those who are good, whose hearts are in tune with you.
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 asks God to do good to the upright in heart. It reminds us that genuine inward integrity, not mere outward conformity, marks the people God blesses.
Overview
Here the prayer turns to petition, asking Yahweh to deal kindly with those who are good and upright in heart. Scripture consistently locates true goodness in the heart, which God alone sees and renews. Only in Christ are sinners given clean hearts, making this prayer answerable for all who trust Him.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Ps 7:10My defence is of God, which saveth the upright in heart.
- Ps 84:11For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.
- Ps 94:15But judgment shall return unto righteousness: and all the upright in heart shall follow it.
- Ps 119:68Thou art good, and doest good; teach me thy statutes.
- Ps 51:18Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion: build thou the walls of Jerusalem.
- Ps 36:10O continue thy lovingkindness unto them that know thee; and thy righteousness to the upright in heart.
- Ps 119:80Let my heart be sound in thy statutes; that I be not ashamed.
- 1 Jn 3:17–24But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?
- Rev 14:5And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God.
- Lam 3:25The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.
- Ps 32:2Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile.
- Heb 6:10For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.
- John 1:47Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!
- Ps 73:1Truly God is good to Israel, even to such as are of a clean heart.
- Isa 58:10–11And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and thy darkness be as the noon day:
- Ps 41:1–3Blessed is he that considereth the poor: the LORD will deliver him in time of trouble.
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 125:4 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.