They have now surrounded us in our steps; They have set their eyes, crouching down to the earth,
Parallel translations
- WEB They have now surrounded us in our steps. They set their eyes to cast us down to the earth.
- KJV They have now compassed us in our steps: they have set their eyes bowing down to the earth;
- BSB They have tracked us down, and now surround us; their eyes are set to cast us to the ground,
- NASB They have now surrounded us in our steps; They set their eyes to cast us down to the ground.
- NLT They track me down and surround me, watching for the chance to throw me to the ground.
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 enemies have surrounded David, intent on bringing him down to the ground. It matters because it portrays the real and pressing danger from which only God can rescue.
Overview
David's adversaries now hem in his every step, fixing their eyes to cast him down to the earth. The imagery conveys relentless, aggressive pursuit. In such danger David's only hope is God's intervention, a hope ultimately secured for the righteous through Christ's victory over every enemy.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Prov 6:13–14who winks with his eyes, who signals with his feet, who motions with his fingers;
- Ps 37:14The wicked have drawn out the sword, and have bent their bow, to cast down the poor and needy, to kill those who are upright on the path.
- Ps 10:8–10He lies in wait near the villages. From ambushes, he murders the innocent. His eyes are secretly set against the helpless.
- 1 Sam 23:26Saul went on this side of the mountain, and David and his men on that side of the mountain; and David hurried to get away for fear of Saul; for Saul and his men surrounded David and his men to take them.
- 1 Sam 26:2–3Then Saul arose, and went down to the wilderness of Ziph, having three thousand chosen men of Israel with him, to seek David in the wilderness of Ziph.
- Ps 88:17They came around me like water all day long. They completely engulfed me.
- 1 Sam 24:2–3Then Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and went to seek David and his men on the rocks of the wild goats.
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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 17:11 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.