Christian Standard Bible
Psalms 73:11
11The wicked say, “How can God know? Does the Most High know everything?”
Psalms 73:11 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And they say, How doth God know? and is there knowledge in the most High?
- New International Version (NIV)They say, “How would God know? Does the Most High know anything?”
- English Standard Version (ESV)And they say, "How can God know? Is there knowledge in the Most High?"
- New King James Version (NKJV)And they say, “How does God know? And is there knowledge in the Most High?”
Context of Psalms 73:11
9They set their mouths against heaven, and their tongues strut across the earth. 10Therefore his people turn to them and drink in their overflowing words. The wicked say, “How can God know? Does the Most High know everything?” 12Look at them — the wicked! They are always at ease, and they increase their wealth. 13Did I purify my heart and wash my hands in innocence for nothing?
Read all of Psalms 73Psalms 73:11 word by word
וְֽאָמְר֗וּ אֵיכָ֥ה יָדַֽע־אֵ֑ל וְיֵ֖שׁ דֵּעָ֣ה בְעֶלְיֽוֹן׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Psalms 73:11
- Psalms 73:9They set their mouths against heaven, and their tongues strut across the earth.
- Psalms 10:11He says to himself, “God has forgotten; he hides his face and will never see.”
- Psalms 94:7They say, “The Lord doesn’t see it. The God of Jacob doesn’t pay attention.”
- Job 22:13Yet you say, “What does God know? Can he judge through total darkness?
- Ezekiel 8:12He said to me, “Son of man, do you see what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the darkness, each at the shrine of his idol? For they are saying, ‘The Lord does not see us. The Lord has abandoned the land.’”
- Zephaniah 1:12And at that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps and punish those who settle down comfortably, who say to themselves: The Lord will do nothing — good or bad.
- Psalms 44:21wouldn’t God have found this out, since he knows the secrets of the heart?
- Psalms 139:1Lord, you have searched me and known me.
- Hosea 7:2But they never consider that I remember all their evil. Now their actions are all around them; they are right in front of my face.
Commentaries on Psalms 73:11
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 11They say, How doth God know? - My people are so stumbled with the prosperity of the wicked, that they are ready in their temptation to say, "Surely, God cannot know these things, or he would never dispense his favors thus." Others consider these words as the saying of the wicked: "We may oppress these people as we please, and live as we list; God knows nothing about it."Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 11And they say - His people say. The connection demands this interpretation. The meaning is, that his people, as they return again and again to this subject Psalm 73:10, are constrained to put this question. They are compelled by these facts to start such painful inquiries about God; and distressing as the inquiries are, and as are the doubts which they involve, these thoughts will pass through their mind, even though to avoid giving needless pain to those…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4-12The psalmist gives an exaggerated picture of the happiness of the wicked (compare Psalm 1).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 10-1210-12. Hence God's people are confounded, turned hither (or back) and thither, perplexed with doubts of God's knowledge and care, and filled with sorrow.Read the comment
Topics related to Psalms 73:11
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Psalms 73
- 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
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