New Living Translation
Psalms 74:14
14You crushed the heads of Leviathan and let the desert animals eat him.
Psalms 74:14 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Thou brakest the heads of leviathan in pieces, and gavest him to be meat to the people inhabiting the wilderness.
- New International Version (NIV)It was you who crushed the heads of Leviathan and gave it as food to the creatures of the desert.
- English Standard Version (ESV)You crushed the heads of Leviathan; you gave him as food for the creatures of the wilderness.
- New King James Version (NKJV)You broke the heads of Leviathan in pieces, And gave him as food to the people inhabiting the wilderness.
Context of Psalms 74:14
12You, O God, are my king from ages past, bringing salvation to the earth. 13You split the sea by your strength and smashed the heads of the sea monsters. You crushed the heads of Leviathan and let the desert animals eat him. 15You caused the springs and streams to gush forth, and you dried up rivers that never run dry. 16Both day and night belong to you; you made the starlight and the sun.
Read all of Psalms 74Psalms 74:14 word by word
אַתָּ֣ה רִ֭צַּצְתָּ רָאשֵׁ֣י לִוְיָתָ֑ן תִּתְּנֶ֥נּוּ מַ֝אֲכָ֗ל לְעָ֣ם לְצִיִּֽים׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Psalms 74:14
- Psalms 104:25Here is the ocean, vast and wide, teeming with life of every kind, both large and small.
- Job 3:8Let those who are experts at cursing— whose cursing could rouse Leviathan— curse that day.
- Job 41:1“Can you catch Leviathan with a hook or put a noose around its jaw?
- Isaiah 27:1In that day the Lord will take his terrible, swift sword and punish Leviathan, the swiftly moving serpent, the coiling, writhing serpent. He will kill the dragon of the sea.
- Revelation 20:2He seized the dragon—that old serpent, who is the devil, Satan—and bound him in chains for a thousand years.
- Psalms 72:9Desert nomads will bow before him; his enemies will fall before him in the dust.
- Exodus 12:35And the people of Israel did as Moses had instructed; they asked the Egyptians for clothing and articles of silver and gold.
- Exodus 14:30That is how the Lord rescued Israel from the hand of the Egyptians that day. And the Israelites saw the bodies of the Egyptians washed up on the seashore.
- Numbers 14:9Do not rebel against the Lord, and don’t be afraid of the people of the land. They are only helpless prey to us! They have no protection, but the Lord is with us! Don’t be afraid of them!”
Commentaries on Psalms 74:14
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 14The heads of leviathan - Leviathan might be intended here as a personification of the Egypttan government; and its heads, Pharaoh and his chief captains. To the people inhabiting the wilderness - Probably meaning the birds and beasts of prey. These were the people of the wilderness, which fed on the dead bodies of the Egyptians, which the tides had cast ashore. The Vulgate, Septuagint, Ethiopic, and Arabic read, "Thou hast given him for meat to the…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 14Thou brakest the heads of leviathan in pieces - On the meaning of the word “leviathan,” see the notes at Job 41:1. The word is used here as descriptive of sea monsters. And gavest him to be meat - Gavest him for “food.” To the people inhabiting the wilderness - That is, the sea monsters were killed, and, being thrown on shore, were gathered for food. The “inhabitants of the wilderness” or the desert, may refer either to the wild and savage tribes of men…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-17Verses 12-17 The church silences her own complaints. What God had done for his people, as their King of old, encouraged them to depend on him. It was the Lord's doing, none besides could do it. This providence was food to faith and hope, to support and encourage in difficulties. The God of Israel is the God of nature. He that is faithful to his covenant about the day and the night, will never cast off those whom he has chosen. We have as much reason to…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 14Leviathan: See Psalm 104:26; Job 3:8; 41:1, 12, 22, 31; Isaiah 27:1. Here, the creature’s multiple heads suggest a mythical monster.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 13-1513-15. Examples of the "salvation wrought" are cited. divide the sea--that is, Red Sea. brakest ... waters--Pharaoh and his host (compare Is 51:9, 10; Eze 29:3, 4).Read the comment
Topics related to Psalms 74:14
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Psalms 74
- 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
New Living Translation — © 1996, 2004, 2015 Tyndale House Foundation
Commentaries