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Oh keep my soul, and deliver me. Let me not be disappointed, for I take refuge in you.
Psalms 25:20 · World English Bible
Parallel translations
  • KJV O keep my soul, and deliver me: let me not be ashamed; for I put my trust in thee.
  • BSB Guard my soul and deliver me; let me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in You.
  • NKJV Keep my soul, and deliver me; Let me not be ashamed, for I put my trust in You.
  • NASB Guard my soul and save me; Do not let me be ashamed, for I take refuge in You.
  • NLT Protect me! Rescue my life from them! Do not let me be disgraced, for in you I take refuge.

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 asks God to guard and deliver his soul, that he not be put to shame, for he takes refuge in God. He grounds his plea in his trust in the Lord.

Overview

David prays for protection and rescue, asking that his hope in God not end in disgrace. His confidence rests entirely on taking refuge in the Lord. The repeated theme of not being shamed assures believers that those who shelter in God, and supremely in Christ their refuge, will never be disappointed in their hope.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 8

  • Ps 121:7Yahweh will keep you from all evil. He will keep your soul.
  • Ps 71:1–2In you, Yahweh, I take refuge. Never let me be disappointed.
  • Ps 17:8Keep me as the apple of your eye. Hide me under the shadow of your wings,
  • Joel 2:26–27You will have plenty to eat, and be satisfied, and will praise the name of Yahweh, your God, who has dealt wondrously with you; and my people will never again be disappointed.
  • Ps 86:2Preserve my soul, for I am godly. You, my God, save your servant who trusts in you.
  • Ps 22:20–21Deliver my soul from the sword, my precious life from the power of the dog.
  • Luke 23:46Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” Having said this, he breathed his last.
  • Acts 7:59They stoned Stephen as he called out, saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!”

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Psalms videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Psalms 25:20YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on PsalmsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 25:20 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.