You have enlarged my steps under me, My feet have not slipped.
Parallel translations
- KJV Thou hast enlarged my steps under me, that my feet did not slip.
- BSB You broaden the path beneath me so that my ankles do not give way.
- NKJV You enlarged my path under me, So my feet did not slip.
- NASB You enlarge my steps under me, And my feet have not slipped.
- NLT You have made a wide path for my feet to keep them from slipping.
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
God widens David's path so he can stride freely without stumbling. The Lord gives room to walk securely amid danger.
Overview
A broad path under one's feet pictures freedom, stability, and unhindered progress, the opposite of being hemmed in or trapped. God removes the obstacles that would cause David to slip. The imagery of secure footing recurs throughout the Psalms as a sign of God's faithful keeping of those who trust him (cf. Ps 121).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Prov 4:12When you go, your steps will not be hampered. When you run, you will not stumble.
- 2 Sam 22:37You have enlarged my steps under me. My feet have not slipped.
- Job 36:16Yes, he would have allured you out of distress, into a wide place, where there is no restriction. That which is set on your table would be full of fatness.
- Ps 4:1For the Chief Musician; on stringed instruments. A Psalm by David. Answer me when I call, God of my righteousness. Give me relief from my distress. Have mercy on me, and hear my prayer.
- Job 18:7The steps of his strength shall be shortened. His own counsel shall cast him down.
- Luke 12:50But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am until it is accomplished!
- Luke 24:46–48He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day,
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 18:36 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.