Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.
Parallel translations
- WEB You will tread on the lion and cobra. You will trample the young lion and the serpent underfoot.
- BSB You will tread on the lion and cobra; you will trample the young lion and serpent.
- NKJV You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra, The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot.
- NASB You will walk upon the lion and cobra, You will trample the young lion and the serpent.
- NLT You will trample upon lions and cobras; you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet!
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 one who trusts God will overcome even the deadliest dangers, pictured as lions and serpents.
Overview
Lions and cobras symbolize fierce, lethal threats that the protected believer will tread underfoot. The imagery promises triumph over deadly evil through God's power. It anticipates the crushing of the serpent (Gen. 3:15) and Christ's victory, who gives His people authority over the enemy (Luke 10:19; Rom. 16:20).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 14
- Luke 10:19Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
- Dan 6:22My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions’ mouths, that they have not hurt me: forasmuch as before him innocency was found in me; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt.
- Mark 16:18They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
- 1 Sam 17:37David said moreover, The LORD that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go, and the LORD be with thee.
- Rom 16:20And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.
- Judg 14:5–6Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath, and came to the vineyards of Timnath: and, behold, a young lion roared against him.
- 2 Tim 4:17Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.
- Acts 28:3–6And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand.
- Isa 27:1In that day the LORD with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent; and he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea.
- Rev 20:1–2And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
- Ps 58:4Their poison is like the poison of a serpent: they are like the deaf adder that stoppeth her ear;
- Job 5:23For thou shalt be in league with the stones of the field: and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with thee.
- Rev 12:9And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
- Rom 3:13Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips:
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
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 91:13 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.