But God will wound the head of His enemies, The hairy scalp of the one who still goes on in his trespasses.
Parallel translations
- WEB But God will strike through the head of his enemies, the hairy scalp of such a one as still continues in his guiltiness.
- KJV But God shall wound the head of his enemies, and the hairy scalp of such an one as goeth on still in his trespasses.
- BSB Surely God will crush the heads of His enemies, the hairy crowns of those who persist in guilty ways.
- NASB God certainly will shatter the heads of His enemies, The hairy head of one who goes about in his guilt.
- NLT But God will smash the heads of his enemies, crushing the skulls of those who love their guilty ways.
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 will surely crush the heads of his enemies, namely those who persist in their guilt and rebellion. It assures us that unrepentant evil cannot stand before him.
Overview
In this triumphal psalm celebrating God's victories, David affirms that the Lord himself will shatter the skull of his foes. The picture of striking the head recalls the promise of Genesis 3:15 that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent's head, ultimately fulfilled in Christ's decisive victory over sin and Satan. Judgment falls not arbitrarily but on those who continue in guiltiness, refusing to repent.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- Hab 3:13You went out for the salvation of your people, for the salvation of your anointed. You crushed the head of the land of wickedness. You stripped them head to foot. Selah.
- Ps 7:12If a man doesn’t relent, he will sharpen his sword; he has bent and strung his bow.
- Luke 13:5I tell you, no, but, unless you repent, you will all perish in the same way.”
- Ps 110:6He will judge among the nations. He will heap up dead bodies. He will crush the ruler of the whole earth.
- Heb 12:25See that you don’t refuse him who speaks. For if they didn’t escape when they refused him who warned on the earth, how much more will we not escape who turn away from him who warns from heaven,
- Ezek 18:27–30Again, when the wicked man turns away from his wickedness that he has committed, and does that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive.
- Rev 2:14–16But I have a few things against you, because you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to throw a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality.
- Heb 2:1–3Therefore we ought to pay greater attention to the things that were heard, lest perhaps we drift away.
- Prov 1:24–33Because I have called, and you have refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no one has paid attention;
- Ps 55:23But you, God, will bring them down into the pit of destruction. Bloodthirsty and deceitful men shall not live out half their days, but I will trust in you.
- Mark 12:4Again, he sent another servant to them; and they threw stones at him, wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully treated.
- Ps 68:18You have ascended on high. You have led away captives. You have received gifts among men, yes, among the rebellious also, that Yah God might dwell there.
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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 68:21 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.