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“And now, Lord, what do I wait for? My hope is in You.
Psalms 39:7 · New King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB Now, Lord, what do I wait for? My hope is in you.
  • KJV And now, Lord, what wait I for? my hope is in thee.
  • BSB And now, O Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in You.
  • NASB ¶“And now, Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in You.
  • NLT And so, Lord, where do I put my hope? My only hope is in you.

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

Turning from vanity, David asks what he can wait for and answers: his hope is in the Lord. God alone is worth hoping in.

Overview

Having seen life's emptiness, David fixes his expectation on God rather than on fleeting things. This is the pivot of the psalm from despair to faith. True hope is not in earthly gain but in the living God who endures.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 8

  • Rom 15:13Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope, in the power of the Holy Spirit.
  • Ps 38:15For in you, Yahweh, do I hope. You will answer, Lord my God.
  • Ps 119:81My soul faints for your salvation. I hope in your word.
  • Gen 49:18I have waited for your salvation, Yahweh.
  • Ps 119:166I have hoped for your salvation, Yahweh. I have done your commandments.
  • Job 13:15Behold, he will kill me. I have no hope. Nevertheless, I will maintain my ways before him.
  • Ps 130:5–6I wait for Yahweh. My soul waits. I hope in his word.
  • Luke 2:25Behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (2)

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 39:7YouTube · 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 39:7 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.