Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my meditation.
Parallel translations
- WEB For the Chief Musician, with the flutes. A Psalm by David. Give ear to my words, Yahweh. Consider my meditation.
- BSB For the choirmaster, to be accompanied by flutes. A Psalm of David. Give ear to my words, O LORD; consider my groaning.
- NKJV Give ear to my words, O Lord, Consider my meditation.
- NASB Listen to my words, Lord, Consider my sighing.
- NLT O Lord, hear me as I pray; pay attention to my groaning.
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 the Lord to listen to his words and consider his unspoken meditation. God attends to both our spoken and silent prayers.
Overview
This morning prayer opens with David pleading that God give ear even to his sighing or whispered thoughts. He knows the Lord hears not only formed words but the groanings of the heart. This assurance frees believers to bring God their deepest, half-formed cries, knowing the Spirit Himself intercedes for us (Romans 8:26).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- 1 Jn 5:14–15And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:
- Ps 54:2Hear my prayer, O God; give ear to the words of my mouth.
- Ps 19:14Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.
- Ps 55:1–2Give ear to my prayer, O God; and hide not thyself from my supplication.
- 1 Pet 3:12For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.
- Ps 64:1Hear my voice, O God, in my prayer: preserve my life from fear of the enemy.
- Ps 86:1Bow down thine ear, O LORD, hear me: for I am poor and needy.
- Rom 8:26Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
- Ps 17:1Hear the right, O LORD, attend unto my cry, give ear unto my prayer, that goeth not out of feigned lips.
- 1 Sam 1:16Count not thine handmaid for a daughter of Belial: for out of the abundance of my complaint and grief have I spoken hitherto.
- Ps 80:1Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; thou that dwellest between the cherubims, shine forth.
- 1 Sam 1:13Now Hannah, she spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard: therefore Eli thought she had been drunken.
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 5:1 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.