He will pay back the evil to my enemies; Destroy them in Your faithfulness.
Parallel translations
- WEB He will repay the evil to my enemies. Destroy them in your truth.
- KJV He shall reward evil unto mine enemies: cut them off in thy truth.
- BSB He will reward my enemies with evil. In Your faithfulness, destroy them.
- NKJV He will repay my enemies for their evil. Cut them off in Your truth.
- NLT May the evil plans of my enemies be turned against them. Do as you promised and put an end to them.
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 God to repay his enemies' evil and destroy them according to his truth. It commits justice to God rather than personal revenge.
Overview
David prays that God would requite the wickedness of his foes, appealing to God's faithfulness ('truth') as the standard. Such imprecatory pleas entrust judgment to God instead of taking it up himself. They express longing for evil to be answered, finally satisfied at the cross and the last judgment.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Ps 143:12In your loving kindness, cut off my enemies, and destroy all those who afflict my soul, For I am your servant.
- Ps 89:49Lord, where are your former loving kindnesses, which you swore to David in your faithfulness?
- Ps 94:23He has brought on them their own iniquity, and will cut them off in their own wickedness. Yahweh, our God, will cut them off.
- Ps 31:23Oh love Yahweh, all you his saints! Yahweh preserves the faithful, and fully recompenses him who behaves arrogantly.
- Rev 18:6Return to her just as she returned, and repay her double as she did, and according to her works. In the cup which she mixed, mix to her double.
- Ps 137:8Daughter of Babylon, doomed to destruction, he will be happy who rewards you, as you have served us.
- 2 Tim 4:14Alexander, the coppersmith, did much evil to me. The Lord will repay him according to his deeds,
- Ps 5:8Lead me, Yahweh, in your righteousness because of my enemies. Make your way straight before my face.
- Ps 27:11Teach me your way, Yahweh. Lead me in a straight path, because of my enemies.
- Ps 143:1A Psalm by David. Hear my prayer, Yahweh. Listen to my petitions. In your faithfulness and righteousness, relieve me.
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 54:5 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
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.