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The LORD is righteous: he hath cut asunder the cords of the wicked.
Psalms 129:4 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB Yahweh is righteous. He has cut apart the cords of the wicked.
  • BSB The LORD is righteous; He has cut me from the cords of the wicked.
  • NKJV The Lord is righteous; He has cut in pieces the cords of the wicked.
  • NASB The Lord is righteous; He has cut up the ropes of the wicked.
  • NLT But the Lord is good; he has cut me free from the ropes of the ungodly.

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

Yahweh is righteous and has cut the cords that bound His people to the wicked. It declares God's just intervention to free the oppressed.

Overview

The tone shifts to deliverance: the righteous Lord severs the ropes by which the wicked held His people captive. God's justice does not leave oppression unanswered but acts to liberate. This points to Christ, who breaks the bonds of sin and sets His people free.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 8

  • Ps 119:137Righteous art thou, O LORD, and upright are thy judgments.
  • Lam 3:22It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.
  • Dan 9:7O LORD, righteousness belongeth unto thee, but unto us confusion of faces, as at this day; to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and unto all Israel, that are near, and that are far off, through all the countries whither thou hast driven them, because of their trespass that they have trespassed against thee.
  • Neh 9:33Howbeit thou art just in all that is brought upon us; for thou hast done right, but we have done wickedly:
  • Ps 124:6–7Blessed be the LORD, who hath not given us as a prey to their teeth.
  • Ps 140:5–11The proud have hid a snare for me, and cords; they have spread a net by the wayside; they have set gins for me. Selah.
  • Ezra 9:15O LORD God of Israel, thou art righteous: for we remain yet escaped, as it is this day: behold, we are before thee in our trespasses: for we cannot stand before thee because of this.
  • Lam 1:18The LORD is righteous; for I have rebelled against his commandment: hear, I pray you, all people, and behold my sorrow: my virgins and my young men are gone into captivity.

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Psalms videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Psalms 129:4YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on PsalmsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 129:4 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.