Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil, when the iniquity of my heels shall compass me about?
Parallel translations
- WEB Why should I fear in the days of evil, when iniquity at my heels surrounds me?
- BSB Why should I fear in times of trouble, when wicked usurpers surround me?
- NKJV Why should I fear in the days of evil, When the iniquity at my heels surrounds me?
- NASB ¶Why should I fear in days of adversity, When the injustice of those who betray me surrounds me,
- NLT Why should I fear when trouble comes, when enemies surround me?
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
The believer need not fear in evil times, even when surrounded by the wickedness of deceitful foes. Faith in God removes dread.
Overview
The psalmist asks rhetorically why he should fear when treacherous, wealthy enemies hem him in. His confidence rests not in his own resources but in God, who will redeem him (v. 15). This is the heart of the psalm: those who trust God need not fear the rich and ruthless, whose power ends at the grave.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 17
- Acts 27:24Saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must be brought before Caesar: and, lo, God hath given thee all them that sail with thee.
- Prov 24:10If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small.
- Phil 1:28And in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God.
- Rom 8:33–34Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth.
- Gen 49:17Dan shall be a serpent by the way, an adder in the path, that biteth the horse heels, so that his rider shall fall backward.
- Amos 5:13Therefore the prudent shall keep silence in that time; for it is an evil time.
- Ps 27:1–2The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
- Ps 38:4For mine iniquities are gone over mine head: as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me.
- Ps 23:4Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
- Ps 22:16For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.
- Hos 7:2And they consider not in their hearts that I remember all their wickedness: now their own doings have beset them about; they are before my face.
- Isa 41:10–11Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.
- Prov 5:22His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords of his sins.
- Ps 56:6–7They gather themselves together, they hide themselves, they mark my steps, when they wait for my soul.
- Ps 46:1–2God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
- 1 Sam 26:20Now therefore, let not my blood fall to the earth before the face of the LORD: for the king of Israel is come out to seek a flea, as when one doth hunt a partridge in the mountains.
- Eph 5:16Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
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 49:5 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
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