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Take hold of shield and buckler, And stand up for my help.
Psalms 35:2 · New King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB Take hold of shield and buckler, and stand up for my help.
  • KJV Take hold of shield and buckler, and stand up for mine help.
  • BSB Take up Your shield and buckler; arise and come to my aid.
  • NASB Take hold of buckler and shield And rise up as my help.
  • NLT Put on your armor, and take up your shield. Prepare for battle, and come to my aid.

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 calls on God to take up shield and armor and rise to his aid.

Overview

Using vivid military imagery, David pictures God arming himself to defend him. He longs for the Lord to actively intervene as his protector. This portrayal of God as warrior-defender finds its fulfillment in Christ, who fights and conquers on behalf of his people.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 6

  • Ps 91:4He will cover you with his feathers. Under his wings you will take refuge. His faithfulness is your shield and rampart.
  • Exod 15:3Yahweh is a man of war. Yahweh is his name.
  • Isa 42:13Yahweh will go out like a mighty man. He will stir up zeal like a man of war. He will raise a war cry. Yes, he will shout aloud. He will triumph over his enemies.
  • Deut 32:41–42if I sharpen my glittering sword, my hand grasps it in judgment; I will take vengeance on my adversaries, and will repay those who hate me.
  • Ps 7:12–13If a man doesn’t relent, he will sharpen his sword; he has bent and strung his bow.
  • Isa 13:5They come from a far country, from the uttermost part of heaven, even Yahweh, and the weapons of his indignation, to destroy the whole land.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

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 35:2YouTube · 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 35:2 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.