New King James Version
Psalms 33:17
17A horse is a vain hope for safety; Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength.
Psalms 33:17 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)An horse is a vain thing for safety: neither shall he deliver any by his great strength.
- New International Version (NIV)A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save.
- English Standard Version (ESV)The war horse is a false hope for salvation, and by its great might it cannot rescue.
- New Living Translation (NLT)Don’t count on your warhorse to give you victory— for all its strength, it cannot save you.
Context of Psalms 33:17
15He fashions their hearts individually; He considers all their works. 16No king is saved by the multitude of an army; A mighty man is not delivered by great strength. A horse is a vain hope for safety; Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength. 18Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, On those who hope in His mercy, 19To deliver their soul from death, And to keep them alive in famine.
Read all of Psalms 33Psalms 33:17 word by word
שֶׁ֣קֶר הַ֭סּוּס לִתְשׁוּעָ֑ה וּבְרֹ֥ב חֵ֝יל֗וֹ לֹ֣א יְמַלֵּֽט׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Psalms 33:17
- Psalms 20:7Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; But we will remember the name of the Lord our God.
- Judges 4:15And the Lord routed Sisera and all his chariots and all his army with the edge of the sword before Barak; and Sisera alighted from his chariot and fled away on foot.
- 2 Kings 7:6For the Lord had caused the army of the Syrians to hear the noise of chariots and the noise of horses—the noise of a great army; so they said to one another, “Look, the king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites and the kings of the Egyptians to attack us!”
- Proverbs 21:31The horse is prepared for the day of battle, But deliverance is of the Lord.
- Ecclesiastes 9:11I returned and saw under the sun that— The race is not to the swift, Nor the battle to the strong, Nor bread to the wise, Nor riches to men of understanding, Nor favor to men of skill; But time and chance happen to them all.
- Isaiah 30:16And you said, “No, for we will flee on horses”— Therefore you shall flee! And, “We will ride on swift horses”— Therefore those who pursue you shall be swift!
- Hosea 14:3Assyria shall not save us, We will not ride on horses, Nor will we say anymore to the work of our hands, ‘You are our gods.’ For in You the fatherless finds mercy.”
- Psalms 147:10He does not delight in the strength of the horse; He takes no pleasure in the legs of a man.
- Job 39:19“Have you given the horse strength? Have you clothed his neck with thunder?
Commentaries on Psalms 33:17
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17A horse is a vain thing for safety - Even the horse, with all his fleetness, is no sure means of escape from danger: the lion or the tiger can overtake him or he may stumble, fall, and destroy his rider.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 17An horse - The reference here is undoubtedly to the war-horse. See the notes at Psalm 20:7. Is a vain thing - literally, is a “lie.” That is, he cannot be confided in. For safety - For securing safety in battle. He is liable to be stricken down, or to become wild and furious so as to be beyond the control of his rider; and however strong or fleet he may be, or however well he may be “broken,” yet none of these things make it certain that the rider will be…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-22Verses 12-22 All the motions and operations of the souls of men, which no mortals know but themselves, God knows better than they do. Their hearts, as well as their times, are all in his hand; he formed the spirit of each man within him. All the powers of the creature depend upon him, and are of no account, of no avail at all, without him. If we make God's favour sure towards us, then we need not fear whatever is against us. We are to give to him the…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16-17army …great strength. … horse: Even military power is under God's control (see Psalm 33:10–11; Ecclesiastes 9:11).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 12-1912-19. The inference from the foregoing in Psa 33:12 is illustrated by God's special providence, underlying which is His minute knowledge of all men.Read the comment
Topics related to Psalms 33:17
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Psalms 33
- 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
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries