saying, “Come, let us erase them as a nation; may the name of Israel be remembered no more.”
Parallel translations
- WEB “Come,” they say, “let’s destroy them as a nation, that the name of Israel may be remembered no more.”
- KJV They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.
- NKJV They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation, That the name of Israel may be remembered no more.”
- NASB They have said, “Come, and let’s wipe them out as a nation, So that the name of Israel will no longer be remembered.”
- NLT “Come,” they say, “let us wipe out Israel as a nation. We will destroy the very memory of its existence.”
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 enemies plot to destroy Israel as a nation so its name is forgotten forever. Their goal is the complete annihilation of God's people.
Overview
The conspirators aim not merely to defeat but to erase Israel from history. Behind this lies an attack on God's covenant promises, for to blot out Israel would seem to nullify God's word. Such genocidal intent ultimately fails because God has bound His name and purposes to the preservation of His people.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Jer 48:2There is no longer praise for Moab; in Heshbon they devise evil against her: ‘Come, let us cut her off from nationhood.’ You too, O people of Madmen, will be silenced; the sword will pursue you.
- Jer 11:19For I was like a gentle lamb led to slaughter; I did not know that they had plotted against me: “Let us destroy the tree with its fruit; let us cut him off from the land of the living, that his name may be remembered no more.”
- Ps 74:8They said in their hearts, “We will crush them completely.” They burned down every place where God met us in the land.
- Esth 3:6–9And when he learned the identity of Mordecai’s people, he scorned the notion of laying hands on Mordecai alone. Instead, he sought to destroy all of Mordecai’s people, the Jews, throughout the kingdom of Xerxes.
- Dan 7:25He will speak out against the Most High and oppress the saints of the Most High, intending to change the appointed times and laws; and the saints will be given into his hand for a time, and times, and half a time.
- Acts 9:1–2Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the disciples of the Lord. He approached the high priest
- Exod 1:10Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase even more; and if a war breaks out, they may join our enemies, fight against us, and leave the country.”
- Jer 31:36“Only if this fixed order departed from My presence, declares the LORD, would Israel’s descendants ever cease to be a nation before Me.”
- Matt 27:62–66The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and Pharisees assembled before Pilate.
- Prov 1:12let us swallow them alive like Sheol, and whole like those descending into the Pit.
- Acts 4:17But to keep this message from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them not to speak to anyone in this name.”
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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 83:4 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.