For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee.
Parallel translations
- WEB For you are not a God who has pleasure in wickedness. Evil can’t live with you.
- BSB For You are not a God who delights in wickedness; no evil can dwell with You.
- NKJV For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness, Nor shall evil dwell with You.
- NASB ¶For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; No evil can dwell with You.
- NLT O God, you take no pleasure in wickedness; you cannot tolerate the sins of the wicked.
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
God takes no pleasure in wickedness, and evil cannot dwell with Him. His perfect holiness excludes all sin from His presence.
Overview
David grounds his prayer in God's character: the Lord delights in no wrongdoing and evil can find no home in His presence. This holiness is both comfort to the oppressed and warning to the wicked. It also exposes humanity's need, for none can dwell with the holy God except through the cleansing provided in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- Ps 11:5The LORD trieth the righteous: but the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul hateth.
- Heb 12:14Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:
- Mal 2:17Ye have wearied the LORD with your words. Yet ye say, Wherein have we wearied him? When ye say, Every one that doeth evil is good in the sight of the LORD, and he delighteth in them; or, Where is the God of judgment?
- Rev 21:27And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
- Ps 50:21These things hast thou done, and I kept silence; thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thyself: but I will reprove thee, and set them in order before thine eyes.
- Ps 101:7He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight.
- Ps 140:13Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto thy name: the upright shall dwell in thy presence.
- Ps 92:15To shew that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.
- Hab 1:13Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he?
- 2 Pet 3:13Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.
- Ps 94:20Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?
- John 14:23Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.
- Rev 21:23And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
- 1 Chr 29:17I know also, my God, that thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of mine heart I have willingly offered all these things: and now have I seen with joy thy people, which are present here, to offer willingly unto thee.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
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 5:4 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.