That our oxen may be strong to labour; that there be no breaking in, nor going out; that there be no complaining in our streets.
Parallel translations
- WEB Our oxen will pull heavy loads. There is no breaking in, and no going away, and no outcry in our streets.
- BSB Our oxen will bear great loads. There will be no breach in the walls, no going into captivity, and no cry of lament in our streets.
- NKJV That our oxen may be well laden; That there be no breaking in or going out; That there be no outcry in our streets.
- NASB May our cattle be bred Without mishap and without loss, May there be no outcry in our streets!
- NLT and may our oxen be loaded down with produce. May there be no enemy breaking through our walls, no going into captivity, no cries of alarm in our town squares.
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 envisions strong oxen, no breached walls, and no outcry in the streets. It depicts the peace and security of a well-ordered, protected society.
Overview
The picture of laden oxen and undisturbed streets signifies prosperity, safety, and the absence of invasion or distress. This is the shalom that flows from God's blessing on a people. Such complete peace anticipates the perfect security of God's kingdom under the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6-7; Revelation 21:4).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Zech 8:3–5Thus saith the LORD; I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called a city of truth; and the mountain of the LORD of hosts the holy mountain.
- Deut 28:7The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.
- Deut 28:25The LORD shall cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies: thou shalt go out one way against them, and flee seven ways before them: and shalt be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.
- Isa 24:11There is a crying for wine in the streets; all joy is darkened, the mirth of the land is gone.
- Judg 6:6And Israel was greatly impoverished because of the Midianites; and the children of Israel cried unto the LORD.
- Judg 5:8They chose new gods; then was war in the gates: was there a shield or spear seen among forty thousand in Israel?
- Judg 6:3And so it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the children of the east, even they came up against them;
- Jer 14:2Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish; they are black unto the ground; and the cry of Jerusalem is gone up.
- Jer 13:17–19But if ye will not hear it, my soul shall weep in secret places for your pride; and mine eye shall weep sore, and run down with tears, because the LORD’s flock is carried away captive.
- Jer 14:18If I go forth into the field, then behold the slain with the sword! and if I enter into the city, then behold them that are sick with famine! yea, both the prophet and the priest go about into a land that they know not.
- 1 Sam 31:7And when the men of Israel that were on the other side of the valley, and they that were on the other side Jordan, saw that the men of Israel fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsook the cities, and fled; and the Philistines came and dwelt in them.
- 1 Sam 13:17–23And the spoilers came out of the camp of the Philistines in three companies: one company turned unto the way that leadeth to Ophrah, unto the land of Shual:
- Lam 1:4–6The ways of Zion do mourn, because none come to the solemn feasts: all her gates are desolate: her priests sigh, her virgins are afflicted, and she is in bitterness.
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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 144:14 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.