Psalms 50:16

Psalms 50:16 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)But unto the wicked God saith, What hast thou to do to declare my statutes, or that thou shouldest take my covenant in thy mouth?
• New International Version (NIV)But to the wicked person, God says: “What right have you to recite my laws or take my covenant on your lips?
• English Standard Version (ESV)But to the wicked God says: "What right have you to recite my statutes or take my covenant on your lips?
• New Living Translation (NLT)But God says to the wicked: “Why bother reciting my decrees and pretending to obey my covenant?

Context of Psalms 50:16

14Offer to God thanksgiving, And pay your vows to the Most High. 15Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.” But to the wicked God says: “What right have you to declare My statutes, Or take My covenant in your mouth, 17Seeing you hate instruction And cast My words behind you? 18When you saw a thief, you consented with him, And have been a partaker with adulterers.

Psalms 50:16 word by word

וְלָ֤רָשָׁ֨ע׀ אָ֘מַ֤ר אֱלֹהִ֗ים מַה־לְּ֭ךָ לְסַפֵּ֣ר חֻקָּ֑י וַתִּשָּׂ֖א בְרִיתִ֣י עֲלֵי־פִֽיךָ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• But unto the wickedרָשָׁעrâshâ‛ · wickedH7563
• Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• saithאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• What hast thou to do to declareסָפַרsâphar · to recountH5608
• my statutesחֹקchôq · statute: decreeH2706
• thou shouldest takeנָשָׂאnâώâ' nâsâh · to lift: raiseH5375
• my covenantבְּרִיתberîyth · covenantH1285
• in thy mouthפֶּהpeh · lipH6310

Cross-references for Psalms 50:16

• Isaiah 48:22“There is no peace,” says the Lord, “for the wicked.”
• Isaiah 55:6Seek the Lord while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near.
• Ezekiel 18:27Again, when a wicked man turns away from the wickedness which he committed, and does what is lawful and right, he preserves himself alive.
• Proverbs 26:7Like the legs of the lame that hang limp Is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
• Isaiah 1:11“To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me?” Says the Lord. “I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams And the fat of fed cattle. I do not delight in the blood of bulls, Or of lambs or goats.
• Isaiah 48:1“Hear this, O house of Jacob, Who are called by the name of Israel, And have come forth from the wellsprings of Judah; Who swear by the name of the Lord, And make mention of the God of Israel, But not in truth or in righteousness;
• Isaiah 58:1“Cry aloud, spare not; Lift up your voice like a trumpet; Tell My people their transgression, And the house of Jacob their sins.
• Jeremiah 7:4Do not trust in these lying words, saying, ‘The temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord are these.’
• Matthew 7:3And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?
• John 4:24God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”
• Acts 19:13Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.”
• Romans 2:17Indeed you are called a Jew, and rest on the law, and make your boast in God,
• 1 Corinthians 9:27But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.
• 2 Peter 2:15They have forsaken the right way and gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness;
• Psalms 25:14The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him, And He will show them His covenant.
• Psalms 78:36Nevertheless they flattered Him with their mouth, And they lied to Him with their tongue;

Commentaries on Psalms 50:16

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16But unto the wicked - The bloodthirsty priests, proud Pharisees, and ignorant scribes of the Jewish people.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16But unto the wicked God saith - This commences a second part of the subject. See the introduction. Thus far the psalm had reference to those who were merely external worshippers, or mere formalists, as showing that such could not be approved and accepted in the day of judgment; that spiritual religion - the offering of the “heart” - was necessary in order to acceptance with God. In this part of the psalm the same principles are applied to those who…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 16-23Verses 16-23 Hypocrisy is wickedness, which God will judge. And it is too common, for those who declare the Lord's statutes to others, to live in disobedience to them themselves. This delusion arises from the abuse of God's long-suffering, and a wilful mistake of his character and the intention of his gospel. The sins of sinners will be fully proved on them in the judgment of the great day. The day is coming when God will set their sins in order, sins of…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16-21This message is against the wicked, who only pretend to listen to God.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 16-2016-20. the wicked--that is, the formalists, as now exposed, and who lead vicious lives (compare Ro 2:21, 23). They are unworthy to use even the words of God's law. Their hypocrisy and vice are exposed by illustrations from sins against the seventh, eighth, and ninth commandments.Read the comment

Topics related to Psalms 50:16

• Hypocrisy
• Wicked (People)
• Word of God

In the dictionaries

• God
• Asaph
• Psalms
• Reprove
• Bible, the
• Korahites; Sons of Korah
• Psalms, Book of
• Sacrifice

Commentaries on Psalms 50

• 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
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings