Therefore shalt thou make them turn their back, when thou shalt make ready thine arrows upon thy strings against the face of them.
Parallel translations
- WEB For you will make them turn their back, when you aim drawn bows at their face.
- BSB For You will put them to flight when Your bow is trained upon them.
- NKJV Therefore You will make them turn their back; You will make ready Your arrows on Your string toward their faces.
- NASB For You will make them turn their back; You will take aim at their faces with Your bowstrings.
- NLT For they will turn and run when they see your arrows aimed at them.
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 will make the enemies retreat as he aims his drawn bow at their faces. They are driven back in defeat before his power.
Overview
The Lord, pictured as a warrior with bow drawn, forces the enemies to turn and flee. Their hostile advance is reversed by God's direct intervention. The image assures God's people that those who war against his king will be routed, a victory consummated in Christ's defeat of every enemy.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Ps 7:12–13If he turn not, he will whet his sword; he hath bent his bow, and made it ready.
- Ps 18:40Thou hast also given me the necks of mine enemies; that I might destroy them that hate me.
- Lam 3:12He hath bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow.
- Ps 64:7But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; suddenly shall they be wounded.
- Ps 56:9When I cry unto thee, then shall mine enemies turn back: this I know; for God is for me.
- Job 16:12–13I was at ease, but he hath broken me asunder: he hath also taken me by my neck, and shaken me to pieces, and set me up for his mark.
- Ps 9:3When mine enemies are turned back, they shall fall and perish at thy presence.
- Job 7:20I have sinned; what shall I do unto thee, O thou preserver of men? why hast thou set me as a mark against thee, so that I am a burden to myself?
- Ps 44:10Thou makest us to turn back from the enemy: and they which hate us spoil for themselves.
- Ps 18:14Yea, he sent out his arrows, and scattered them; and he shot out lightnings, and discomfited them.
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 21:12 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.