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who said, “Let us possess for ourselves the pastures of God.”
Psalms 83:12 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB who said, “Let us take possession of God’s pasture lands.”
  • KJV Who said, Let us take to ourselves the houses of God in possession.
  • NKJV Who said, “Let us take for ourselves The pastures of God for a possession.”
  • NASB Who said, “Let’s possess for ourselves The pastures of God.”
  • NLT for they said, “Let us seize for our own use these pasturelands of 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

These enemies had boasted, 'Let us seize God's pasture lands for ourselves.' Their sin is presuming to take what belongs to God.

Overview

The enemies' aim is to possess the land God gave Israel, which the psalmist calls 'God's pasture lands.' Their assault is thus an act of theft against God Himself, who owns the land and shepherds His people there. This frames their downfall as just recompense for grasping at what is God's.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 3

  • 2 Chr 20:11See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession that You gave us as an inheritance.
  • Ps 83:4saying, “Come, let us erase them as a nation; may the name of Israel be remembered no more.”
  • Ps 74:7–8They have burned Your sanctuary to the ground; they have defiled the dwelling place of Your Name.

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 83:12YouTube · 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 83:12 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.