For the needy shall not alway be forgotten: the expectation of the poor shall not perish for ever.
Parallel translations
- WEB For the needy shall not always be forgotten, nor the hope of the poor perish forever.
- BSB For the needy will not always be forgotten; nor the hope of the oppressed forever dashed.
- NKJV For the needy shall not always be forgotten; The expectation of the poor shall not perish forever.
- NASB For the needy will not always be forgotten, Nor the hope of the afflicted perish forever.
- NLT But the needy will not be ignored forever; the hopes of the poor will not always be crushed.
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 needy will not always be forgotten, nor the hope of the poor perish forever. God will surely vindicate the afflicted in time.
Overview
Against the apparent triumph of the wicked, David assures that God will not permanently overlook the poor. Their hope, anchored in God, will not be disappointed. This confidence sustains believers amid delayed justice and anticipates the kingdom in which the poor in spirit are blessed (Matthew 5:3).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Ps 12:5For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the LORD; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.
- Prov 23:18For surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off.
- Prov 24:14So shall the knowledge of wisdom be unto thy soul: when thou hast found it, then there shall be a reward, and thy expectation shall not be cut off.
- Jas 2:5Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?
- Luke 1:53He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away.
- Luke 6:20And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said, Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God.
- Ps 102:20To hear the groaning of the prisoner; to loose those that are appointed to death;
- Ps 109:31For he shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save him from those that condemn his soul.
- Ps 72:4He shall judge the poor of the people, he shall save the children of the needy, and shall break in pieces the oppressor.
- Ps 102:17He will regard the prayer of the destitute, and not despise their prayer.
- Ps 71:5For thou art my hope, O Lord GOD: thou art my trust from my youth.
- Ps 9:12When he maketh inquisition for blood, he remembereth them: he forgetteth not the cry of the humble.
- Ps 72:12–14For he shall deliver the needy when he crieth; the poor also, and him that hath no helper.
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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 9:18 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
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