Amplified Bible
Psalms 62:9
9Men of low degree are only a breath (emptiness), and men of [high] rank are a lie (delusion). In the balances they go up [because they have no measurable weight or value]; They are together lighter than a breath.
Psalms 62:9 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Surely men of low degree are vanity, and men of high degree are a lie: to be laid in the balance, they are altogether lighter than vanity.
- New International Version (NIV)Surely the lowborn are but a breath, the highborn are but a lie. If weighed on a balance, they are nothing; together they are only a breath.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Those of low estate are but a breath; those of high estate are a delusion; in the balances they go up; they are together lighter than a breath.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Surely men of low degree are a vapor, Men of high degree are a lie; If they are weighed on the scales, They are altogether lighter than vapor.
Context of Psalms 62:9
7On God my salvation and my glory rest; He is my rock of [unyielding] strength, my refuge is in God. 8Trust [confidently] in Him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before Him. God is a refuge for us. Selah. Men of low degree are only a breath (emptiness), and men of [high] rank are a lie (delusion). In the balances they go up [because they have no measurable weight or value]; They are together lighter than a breath. 10Do not trust in oppression, And do not vainly hope in robbery; If riches increase, do not set your heart on them. 11God has spoken once, Twice I have heard this: That power belongs to God.
Read all of Psalms 62Psalms 62:9 word by word
אַ֤ךְ׀ הֶ֥בֶל בְּנֵֽי־אָדָם֮ כָּזָ֪ב בְּנֵ֫י אִ֥ישׁ בְּמֹאזְנַ֥יִם לַעֲל֑וֹת הֵ֝֗מָּה מֵהֶ֥בֶל יָֽחַד׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Psalms 62:9
- Psalms 39:5Behold, You have made my days as [short as] hand widths, And my lifetime is as nothing in Your sight. Surely every man at his best is a mere breath [a wisp of smoke, a vapor that vanishes]! Selah.
- 1 Samuel 18:5So David went out wherever Saul sent him, and he acted wisely and prospered; and Saul appointed him over the men of war. And it pleased all the people and also Saul’s servants.
- 1 Samuel 23:12Then David asked, “Will the men of Keilah surrender me and my men to Saul?” The Lord said, “They will surrender you.”
- 2 Samuel 15:6This is how Absalom dealt with everyone in Israel who came to the king for judgment. So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.
- Matthew 21:9The crowds that went ahead of Him, and those that followed Him, were shouting [in praise and adoration], “Hosanna to the Son of David (Messiah); Blessed [praised, glorified] is He who comes in the name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest [heaven]!”
- John 19:15But they shouted, “Away with Him, away with Him, crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!”
- Psalms 55:13But it is you, a man my equal and my counsel, My companion and my familiar friend;
- Psalms 118:9It is better to take refuge in the Lord Than to trust in princes.
- 1 Samuel 18:21Saul said, “I will give her to him so that she may become a snare (bad influence, source of trouble) to him, and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him.” So Saul said to David for a second time, “You shall be my son-in-law today.”
- 1 Samuel 26:21Then Saul said, “I have sinned. Return, my son David, for I will not harm you again because my life was precious in your sight this day. Hear me, I have played the fool and have done a very great wrong [to you].”
- 2 Samuel 15:31David was told, “Ahithophel [your counselor] is among the conspirators with Absalom.” David said, “O Lord, I pray You, turn Ahithophel’s counsel into foolishness.”
- Romans 3:4Certainly not! Let God be found true [as He will be], though every person be found a liar, just as it is written [in Scripture], “That You may be justified in Your words, And prevail when You are judged [by sinful men].”
- Daniel 5:27‘tekel’—you have been weighed on the scales [of righteousness] and found deficient;
- Isaiah 40:15In fact, the nations are like a drop from a bucket, And are regarded as a speck of dust on the scales; Now look, He lifts up the islands like fine dust.
Commentaries on Psalms 62:9
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9Men of low degree are vanity - אדם בני beney Adam, which we here translate men of low degree, literally, sons of Adam, are put in opposition to איש בני beney ish, men of high degree, literally, the sons of substance, or children of substantial men. Adam was the name of the first man when formed out of the earth; Ish was his name when united to his wife, and they became one flesh. Before, he was the incomplete man; after, he was the complete man; for it…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9Surely men of low degree are vanity - literally, “vanity are the sons of Adam,” but the word Adam here is used evidently to represent men, or the race. The same word is also employed particularly to represent common men, or men of the humbler rank, in contradistinction to the word אישׁ 'ı̂ysh - which is the other word used here, and rendered “men of high degree.” Compare, for this use of the word, Hosea 6:7. The same antithesis between the two words is…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 8-12Verses 8-12 Those who have found the comfort of the ways of God themselves, will invite others into those ways; we shall never have the less for others sharing with us. the good counsel given is, to trust wholly in God. We must so trust in him at all times, as not at any time to put that trust in ourselves, or in any creature, which is to be put in him only. Trust in him to guide us when in doubt, to protect us when in danger, to supply us when in want…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 9are but a lie: People often try to appear stronger and better than they truly are.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. No kind of men are reliable, compared with God (Is 2:22; Jr 17:5). altogether--alike, one as the other (Psa 34:3).Read the comment
Topics related to Psalms 62:9
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Psalms 62
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- The Treasury of David
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
Amplified Bible — © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631
Commentaries