O Lord, do not stay far away! You are my strength; come quickly to my aid!
Parallel translations
- WEB But don’t be far off, Yahweh. You are my help: hurry to help me.
- KJV But be not thou far from me, O LORD: O my strength, haste thee to help me.
- BSB But You, O LORD, be not far off; O my Strength, come quickly to help me.
- NKJV But You, O Lord, do not be far from Me; O My Strength, hasten to help Me!
- NASB ¶But You, Lord, do not be far away; You who are my help, hurry to my assistance.
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
In the depths of suffering, the psalmist turns from describing his pain to urgent prayer, pleading for God to draw near and help quickly. It models faith that cries out even in abandonment.
Overview
After describing his affliction, David pivots to direct petition, addressing Yahweh as his strength and begging him not to remain distant. The cry mirrors the earlier 'why have you forsaken me,' yet still clings to God as 'my help.' This persevering faith amid felt abandonment anticipates Christ, who in his darkest hour entrusted himself to the Father.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Ps 22:11Don’t be far from me, for trouble is near. For there is no one to help.
- Ps 40:13Be pleased, Yahweh, to deliver me. Hurry to help me, Yahweh.
- Ps 40:17But I am poor and needy. May the Lord think about me. You are my help and my deliverer. Don’t delay, my God.
- Ps 21:1For the Chief Musician. A Psalm by David. The king rejoices in your strength, Yahweh! How greatly he rejoices in your salvation!
- Ps 10:1Why do you stand far off, Yahweh? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
- Ps 70:5But I am poor and needy. Come to me quickly, God. You are my help and my deliverer. Yahweh, don’t delay.
- Ps 18:1For the Chief Musician. By David the servant of Yahweh, who spoke to Yahweh the words of this song in the day that Yahweh delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul. He said, I love you, Yahweh, my strength.
- Ps 69:13–18But as for me, my prayer is to you, Yahweh, in an acceptable time. God, in the abundance of your loving kindness, answer me in the truth of your salvation.
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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 22:19 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.