God shall hear, and afflict them, even he that abideth of old. Selah. Because they have no changes, therefore they fear not God.
Parallel translations
- WEB God, who is enthroned forever, will hear, and answer them. Selah. They never change, who don’t fear God.
- BSB God will hear and humiliate them—the One enthroned for the ages—Selah because they do not change and they have no fear of God.
- NKJV God will hear, and afflict them, Even He who abides from of old. Selah Because they do not change, Therefore they do not fear God.
- NASB God will hear and humiliate them— Even the One who sits enthroned from ancient times— Selah With whom there is no change, And who do not fear God.
- NLT God, who has ruled forever, will hear me and humble them. Interlude For my enemies refuse to change their ways; they do not fear God.
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, enthroned forever, will hear and humble those who refuse to fear him. It contrasts God's eternal reign with the unrepentant wicked.
Overview
David appeals to God's everlasting kingship as the ground for confident expectation that he will answer and judge. The wicked 'never change' because they will not fear God, exposing the hardness of unrepentance. God's eternal throne assures believers that he will deal rightly with all who defy him.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Deut 33:27The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms: and he shall thrust out the enemy from before thee; and shall say, Destroy them.
- Zeph 1:12And it shall come to pass at that time, that I will search Jerusalem with candles, and punish the men that are settled on their lees: that say in their heart, The LORD will not do good, neither will he do evil.
- Eccl 8:11Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.
- Mic 5:2But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.
- Col 1:17And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
- Rev 6:10–11And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
- Jer 48:11Moab hath been at ease from his youth, and he hath settled on his lees, and hath not been emptied from vessel to vessel, neither hath he gone into captivity: therefore his taste remained in him, and his scent is not changed.
- 1 Th 2:15–16Who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; and they please not God, and are contrary to all men:
- Ps 78:59When God heard this, he was wroth, and greatly abhorred Israel:
- Prov 1:32For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them.
- Ps 143:12And of thy mercy cut off mine enemies, and destroy all them that afflict my soul: for I am thy servant.
- Isa 36:20Who are they among all the gods of these lands, that have delivered their land out of my hand, that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?
- Ps 65:5By terrible things in righteousness wilt thou answer us, O God of our salvation; who art the confidence of all the ends of the earth, and of them that are afar off upon the sea:
- Ps 73:5–6They are not in trouble as other men; neither are they plagued like other men.
- Ps 90:1–2Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.
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 55:19 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.