English Standard Version
Psalms 119:109
109I hold my life in my hand continually, but I do not forget your law.
Psalms 119:109 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)My soul is continually in my hand: yet do I not forget thy law.
- New International Version (NIV)Though I constantly take my life in my hands, I will not forget your law.
- New King James Version (NKJV)My life is continually in my hand, Yet I do not forget Your law.
- New Living Translation (NLT)My life constantly hangs in the balance, but I will not stop obeying your instructions.
Context of Psalms 119:109
107I am severely afflicted; give me life, O Lord, according to your word! 108Accept my freewill offerings of praise, O Lord, and teach me your rules. I hold my life in my hand continually, but I do not forget your law. 110The wicked have laid a snare for me, but I do not stray from your precepts. 111Your testimonies are my heritage forever, for they are the joy of my heart.
Read all of Psalms 119Psalms 119:109 word by word
נַפְשִׁ֣י בְכַפִּ֣י תָמִ֑יד וְ֝תֽוֹרָתְךָ֗ לֹ֣א שָׁכָֽחְתִּי׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Psalms 119:109
- Judges 12:3And when I saw that you would not save me, I took my life in my hand and crossed over against the Ammonites, and the Lord gave them into my hand. Why then have you come up to me this day to fight against me?"
- 1 Samuel 19:5For he took his life in his hand and he struck down the Philistine, and the Lord worked a great salvation for all Israel. You saw it, and rejoiced. Why then will you sin against innocent blood by killing David without cause?"
- 1 Samuel 20:3But David vowed again, saying, "Your father knows well that I have found favor in your eyes, and he thinks, 'Do not let Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved.' But truly, as the Lord lives and as your soul lives, there is but a step between me and death."
- Job 13:14Why should I take my flesh in my teeth and put my life in my hand?
- Romans 8:36As it is written, "For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered."
- 1 Corinthians 15:31I protest, brothers, by my pride in you, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die every day!
- 2 Corinthians 11:23Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death.
- Psalms 119:83For I have become like a wineskin in the smoke, yet I have not forgotten your statutes.
Commentaries on Psalms 119:109
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 109My soul is continually in my hand - נפשי naphshi, my life; that is, it is in constant danger, every hour I am on the confines of death. The expression signifies to be in continual danger. So Xenarchus in Athenaeus, lib. xiii., c. 4: ͅ , "having the life in the hand;" which signifies continual danger and jeopardy. There is some thing like this in the speech of Achilles to Ulysses, Hom. Il. ix., ver. 322: - · "Always presenting my life to the dangers of the…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 109My soul is continually in my hand - The Septuagint renders this, “My soul is always in thy hands,” but the Hebrew will not admit of this construction. The idea in the original is that his soul - his life - was always in jeopardy. The expression seems to be proverbial. Anything taken in the hand is liable to be rudely snatched away. Thus a casket of jewels, or a purse of gold in the hand, may at any moment be seized by robbers. See the notes at Job 13:14…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 105-112Verses 105-112 The word of God directs us in our work and way, and a dark place indeed the world would be without it. The commandment is a lamp kept burning with the oil of the Spirit, as a light to direct us in the choice of our way, and the steps we take in that way. The keeping of God's commands here meant, was that of a sinner under a dispensation of mercy, of a believer having part in the covenant of grace. The psalmist is often afflicted; but with…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 108-112freewill offerings of my mouth: This Hebrew expression is unique in the Old Testament (compare Psalm 50:23). The psalmist is vulnerable to his opponents because of his commitment to a wise life.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 109-110109-110. In the midst of deadly perils (the phrase is drawn from the fact that what we carry in our hands may easily slip from them, Jud 12:3; 1Sa 28:21; Job 13:14; compare 1Sa 19:5), and exposed to crafty enemies, his safety and guidance is in the truth and promises of God.Read the comment
Topics related to Psalms 119:109
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Psalms 119
- 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
English Standard Version — © 2001 Crossway Bibles
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