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Let them be horrified by their shame, for they said, “Aha! We’ve got him now!”
Psalms 70:3 · New Living Translation
Parallel translations
  • WEB Let them be turned because of their shame Who say, “Aha! Aha!”
  • KJV Let them be turned back for a reward of their shame that say, Aha, aha.
  • BSB May those who say, “Aha, aha!” retreat because of their shame.
  • NKJV Let them be turned back because of their shame, Who say, “Aha, aha!”
  • NASB May those who say, “Aha, aha!” be turned back Because of their shame.

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 prays that those who mock him with Aha be turned back in shame. It asks God to silence and shame his scornful enemies.

Overview

David requests that his mockers, who gloat over his troubles with cries of derision, be turned back in their own shame. He longs for God to overturn their scorn. The mockery David endured foreshadows the taunts Christ faced at the cross, and the assurance that God will reverse such scorn upholds all who suffer ridicule for righteousness.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 8

  • Ps 40:15Let them be desolate by reason of their shame that tell me, “Aha! Aha!”
  • Prov 24:17–18Don’t rejoice when your enemy falls. Don’t let your heart be glad when he is overthrown;
  • Acts 1:18Now this man obtained a field with the reward for his wickedness, and falling headlong, his body burst open, and all his intestines gushed out.
  • Ezek 25:3and tell the children of Ammon, Hear the word of the Lord Yahweh: Thus says the Lord Yahweh, Because you said, Aha, against my sanctuary, when it was profaned; and against the land of Israel, when it was made desolate; and against the house of Judah, when they went into captivity:
  • Ps 35:21Yes, they opened their mouth wide against me. They said, “Aha! Aha! Our eye has seen it!”
  • Ezek 26:2Son of man, because Tyre has said against Jerusalem, Aha, she is broken: the gate of the peoples; she is turned to me; I shall be replenished, now that she is laid waste:
  • Ps 35:25Don’t let them say in their heart, “Aha! That’s the way we want it!” Don’t let them say, “We have swallowed him up!”
  • Ezek 36:2Thus says the Lord Yahweh: Because the enemy has said against you, Aha! and, The ancient high places are ours in possession;

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

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 70:3YouTube · 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 70:3 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.