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Psalms 56:9

WEBKJVBSBESVNKJVNASBNLT
When I cry unto thee, then shall mine enemies turn back: this I know; for God is for me.
Psalms 56:9 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB Then my enemies shall turn back in the day that I call. I know this, that God is for me.
  • BSB Then my enemies will retreat on the day I cry for help. By this I will know that God is on my side.
  • NKJV When I cry out to You, Then my enemies will turn back; This I know, because God is for me.
  • NASB Then my enemies will turn back on the day when I call; This I know, that God is for me.
  • NLT My enemies will retreat when I call to you for help. This I know: God is on my side!

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 is sure his enemies will retreat when he calls, for God is for him. It expresses confident assurance of God's favor.

Overview

David trusts that the moment he prays, his foes will be turned back, because God is on his side. The settled conviction 'God is for me' is the heart of his courage. Paul echoes this very assurance, declaring that if God is for us, no one can stand against us (Romans 8:31).

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 13

  • Rom 8:31What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
  • Ps 118:6The LORD is on my side; I will not fear: what can man do unto me?
  • Ps 102:2Hide not thy face from me in the day when I am in trouble; incline thine ear unto me: in the day when I call answer me speedily.
  • Ps 46:11The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.
  • Isa 8:9–10Associate yourselves, O ye people, and ye shall be broken in pieces; and give ear, all ye of far countries: gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces; gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces.
  • Ps 118:11–13They compassed me about; yea, they compassed me about: but in the name of the LORD I will destroy them.
  • Ps 9:3When mine enemies are turned back, they shall fall and perish at thy presence.
  • Jer 33:3Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.
  • Ps 46:7The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.
  • John 18:6As soon then as he had said unto them, I am he, they went backward, and fell to the ground.
  • Ps 27:2When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell.
  • Ps 18:38–42I have wounded them that they were not able to rise: they are fallen under my feet.
  • Exod 17:9–11And Moses said unto Joshua, Choose us out men, and go out, fight with Amalek: to morrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in mine hand.

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Psalms videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Psalms 56:9YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on PsalmsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 56:9 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.

WhenיוֹםI cryקָרָאunto thee, then shall mine enemiesאֹיֵבturnשׁוּבbackאָחוֹרthis I knowיָדַעfor Godאֱלֹהִים
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