New International Version
Psalms 53:5
5But there they are, overwhelmed with dread, where there was nothing to dread. God scattered the bones of those who attacked you; you put them to shame, for God despised them.
Psalms 53:5 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)There were they in great fear, where no fear was: for God hath scattered the bones of him that encampeth against thee: thou hast put them to shame, because God hath despised them.
- English Standard Version (ESV)There they are, in great terror, where there is no terror! For God scatters the bones of him who encamps against you; you put them to shame, for God has rejected them.
- New King James Version (NKJV)There they are in great fear Where no fear was, For God has scattered the bones of him who encamps against you; You have put them to shame, Because God has despised them.
- New Living Translation (NLT)Terror will grip them, terror like they have never known before. God will scatter the bones of your enemies. You will put them to shame, for God has rejected them.
Context of Psalms 53:5
3Everyone has turned away, all have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one. 4Do all these evildoers know nothing? They devour my people as though eating bread; they never call on God. But there they are, overwhelmed with dread, where there was nothing to dread. God scattered the bones of those who attacked you; you put them to shame, for God despised them. 6Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion! When God restores his people, let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!
Read all of Psalms 53Psalms 53:5 word by word
שָׁ֤ם׀ פָּֽחֲדוּ־פַחַד֮ לֹא־הָ֪יָה֫ פָ֥חַד כִּֽי־אֱלֹהִ֗ים פִּ֭זַּר עַצְמ֣וֹת חֹנָ֑ךְ הֱ֝בִשֹׁ֗תָה כִּֽי־אֱלֹהִ֥ים מְאָסָֽם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- There were they in greatפַּ֫חַדpachad · dreadH6343
- fearפָּחַדpâchad · to dreadH6342
- was: for Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- hath scatteredפָּזַרpâzar · to scatterH6340
- the bonesעֶ֫צֶם‛etsem · boneH6106
- of him that encampethחָנָהchânâh · to campH2583
- to shameבּוֹשׁbûsh · be ashamedH954
- hath despisedמָאַסmâ'as · to rejectH3988
Cross-references for Psalms 53:5
- Leviticus 26:17I will set my face against you so that you will be defeated by your enemies; those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee even when no one is pursuing you.
- Deuteronomy 28:65Among those nations you will find no repose, no resting place for the sole of your foot. There the Lord will give you an anxious mind, eyes weary with longing, and a despairing heart.
- 1 Samuel 14:15Then panic struck the whole army—those in the camp and field, and those in the outposts and raiding parties—and the ground shook. It was a panic sent by God.
- 2 Kings 7:6for the Lord had caused the Arameans to hear the sound of chariots and horses and a great army, so that they said to one another, “Look, the king of Israel has hired the Hittite and Egyptian kings to attack us!”
- Job 15:21Terrifying sounds fill his ears; when all seems well, marauders attack him.
- Proverbs 28:1The wicked flee though no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion.
- Psalms 14:5But there they are, overwhelmed with dread, for God is present in the company of the righteous.
- Psalms 141:7They will say, “As one plows and breaks up the earth, so our bones have been scattered at the mouth of the grave.”
- Ezekiel 6:5I will lay the dead bodies of the Israelites in front of their idols, and I will scatter your bones around your altars.
- Ezekiel 37:1The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones.
- Psalms 35:4May those who seek my life be disgraced and put to shame; may those who plot my ruin be turned back in dismay.
- Psalms 40:14May all who want to take my life be put to shame and confusion; may all who desire my ruin be turned back in disgrace.
- Psalms 83:16Cover their faces with shame, Lord, so that they will seek your name.
- Psalms 2:4The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them.
- Psalms 73:20They are like a dream when one awakes; when you arise, Lord, you will despise them as fantasies.
- Isaiah 37:22this is the word the Lord has spoken against him: “Virgin Daughter Zion despises and mocks you. Daughter Jerusalem tosses her head as you flee.
Commentaries on Psalms 53:5
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5For God hath scattered the bones of him that encampeth against thee: thou hast put them to shame, because God hath despised them - The reader will see, on comparing this with the fifth and sixth verses of Psalm 14:1-7, that the words above are mostly added here to what is said there; and appear to be levelled against the Babylonians, who sacked and ruined Jerusalem, and who were now sacked and ruined in their turn. The sixth verse of Psalm 14:1-7, "Ye…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5There were they in great fear - Margin, as in Hebrew, “they feared a fear.” For the general meaning of the verse, see the notes at Psalm 14:5. There is, however, an important change introduced here - the most important in the psalm. The general sentiment of two verses Psalm 14:5-6 in Psalm 14:1-7 is here compressed into one, and yet with such an important change as to show that it was by design, and apparently to adapt it to some new circumstance. The…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5scattered the bones: Israel's enemies would face a shameful defeat and would not have the peaceful rest of a proper burial (compare Psalm 141:7; 2 Kings 9:10; Jeremiah 8:1–2; Ezekiel 6:5).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 55. Instead of assurances of God's presence with the pious, and a complaint of the wicked, Psa 14:5, 6 portrays the ruin of the latter, whose "bones" even "are scattered" (compare Psa 141:7), and who are put to shame as contemptuously rejected of God.Read the comment
Topics related to Psalms 53:5
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Psalms 53
- 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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