The righteous shall rejoice when he sees the vengeance. He shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked;
Parallel translations
- KJV The righteous shall rejoice when he seeth the vengeance: he shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked.
- BSB The righteous will rejoice when they see they are avenged; they will wash their feet in the blood of the wicked.
- NKJV The righteous shall rejoice when he sees the vengeance; He shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked,
- NASB ¶The righteous will rejoice when he sees vengeance; He will wash his feet in the blood of the wicked.
- NLT The godly will rejoice when they see injustice avenged. They will wash their feet in the blood 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
The righteous will rejoice when God's justice is finally seen, vindicated rather than vengeful. It affirms that God's judgment is a cause for worship, not personal triumph.
Overview
The striking image of washing feet in the blood of the wicked depicts complete victory over evil through God's judgment, not the believer's own revenge. The rejoicing is over God's vindicated righteousness and the defeat of oppression. Christians read such language in light of the cross and final judgment, where God's justice and mercy fully meet.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Ps 68:23That you may crush them, dipping your foot in blood, that the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from your enemies.”
- Ps 91:8You will only look with your eyes, and see the recompense of the wicked.
- Rev 11:17–18saying: “We give you thanks, Lord God, the Almighty, the one who is and who was; because you have taken your great power, and reigned.
- Prov 11:10When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices. When the wicked perish, there is shouting.
- Ps 64:10The righteous shall be glad in Yahweh, and shall take refuge in him. All the upright in heart shall praise him!
- Deut 32:43Rejoice, you nations, with his people, for he will avenge the blood of his servants. He will take vengeance on his adversaries, and will make atonement for his land and for his people.
- Ps 107:42The upright will see it, and be glad. All the wicked will shut their mouths.
- Ps 68:1–3For the Chief Musician. A Psalm by David. A song. Let God arise! Let his enemies be scattered! Let them who hate him also flee before him.
- Rev 18:20“Rejoice over her, O heaven, you saints, apostles, and prophets; for God has judged your judgment on her.”
- Job 29:6when my steps were washed with butter, and the rock poured out streams of oil for me,
- Ps 52:6The righteous also will see it, and fear, and laugh at him, saying,
- Judg 5:31“So let all your enemies perish, Yahweh, but let those who love him be as the sun when it rises in its strength.” Then the land had rest forty years.
- Job 22:19The righteous see it, and are glad. The innocent ridicule them,
- Rev 14:20The wine press was trodden outside of the city, and blood came out of the wine press, even to the bridles of the horses, as far as one thousand six hundred stadia.
- Rev 19:1–6After these things I heard something like a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Hallelujah! Salvation, power, and glory belong to our God:
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 58:10 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.