But my eyes are fixed on You, O GOD the Lord. In You I seek refuge; do not leave my soul defenseless.
Parallel translations
- WEB For my eyes are on you, Yahweh, the Lord. In you, I take refuge. Don’t leave my soul destitute.
- KJV But mine eyes are unto thee, O GOD the Lord: in thee is my trust; leave not my soul destitute.
- NKJV But my eyes are upon You, O GOD the Lord; In You I take refuge; Do not leave my soul destitute.
- NASB ¶For my eyes are toward You, God, the Lord; In You I take refuge; do not leave me defenseless.
- NLT I look to you for help, O Sovereign Lord. You are my refuge; don’t let them kill 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
David fixes his eyes on Yahweh, takes refuge in Him, and asks not to be left destitute. It expresses steadfast trust amid danger.
Overview
Despite surrounding threats, David turns his gaze to the Lord as his refuge and source of life. This Godward focus is the antidote to fear. Keeping our eyes on the Lord finds its fullest form in fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith (Hebrews 12:2).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Ps 123:1–2A song of ascents. I lift up my eyes to You, the One enthroned in heaven.
- 2 Chr 20:12Our God, will You not judge them? For we are powerless before this vast army that comes against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.”
- Isa 41:17The poor and needy seek water, but there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. I, the LORD, will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them.
- Ps 102:17He will turn toward the prayer of the destitute; He will not despise their prayer.
- Ps 25:15–17My eyes are always on the LORD, for He will free my feet from the mesh.
- Ps 2:12Kiss the Son, lest He be angry and you perish in your rebellion, when His wrath ignites in an instant. Blessed are all who take refuge in Him.
- John 14:18I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.
- Ps 143:3–4For the enemy has pursued my soul, crushing my life to the ground, making me dwell in darkness like those long since dead.
- Ps 11:1For the choirmaster. Of David. In the LORD I take refuge. How then can you say to me: “Flee like a bird to your mountain!
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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 141:8 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.