Psalms 59 · Verse 11

Psalms 59:11

Slay them not, lest my people forget: scatter them by thy power; and bring them down, O Lord our shield.
Psalms 59:11, King James Version

Psalms 59:11 in other translations

BSBDo not kill them, or my people will forget. Scatter them by Your power, and bring them down, O Lord, our shield.
WEBDon’t kill them, or my people may forget. Scatter them by your power, and bring them down, Lord our shield.
ASVSlay them not, lest my people forget: Scatter them by thy power, and bring them down, O Lord our shield.
YLTSlay them not, lest my people forget, Shake them by Thy strength, And bring them down, O Lord our shield.
DARBYSlay them not, lest my people forget; by thy power make them wander, and bring them down, O Lord, our shield.
BBEPut them not to death, for so my people will keep the memory of them: let them be sent in all directions by your power; make them low, O Lord our saviour.
WebsterSlay them not, lest my people forget: scatter them by thy power; and bring them down, O Lord our shield.

What does Psalms 59:11 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
11. Slay them not--at once (Jud 2:21-23); but perpetuate their punishment (Ge 4:12; Nu 32:13), by scattering or making them wander, and humble them.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 11 Slay them not, lest my people forget - I believe the Chaldee gives the true sense of this verse: "Do not slay them suddenly, lest my people should forget. Drive them from their habitations by thy power, and reduce them to poverty by the loss of their property." Preserve them long in a state of chastisement that Israel may see thou hast undertaken for them: that thy hand is on the wicked for evil and on them for good. The Canaanites were not suddenly destroyed; they were left to be pricks in the eyes and thorns in the sides of the Israelites. It is in a sense somewhat similar that the words are used here.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Psalms 59:8-17

It is our wisdom and duty, in times of danger and difficulty, to wait upon God; for he is our defence, in whom we shall be safe. It is very comfortable to us, in prayer, to look to God as the God of our mercy, the Author of all good in us, and the Giver of all good to us. The wicked can never be satisfied, which is the greatest misery in a poor condition. A contented man, if he has not what he would have, yet he…

Read the full comment on Psalms 59:8-17 →

Psalms 59:11 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

אַל\־'al-may notH408
תַּהַרְגֵ֤ם\׀ta.har.Gemyou kill themH2026
פֶּֽן\־pen-lestH6435
יִשְׁכְּח֬וּyish.ke.Chuthey should forgetH7911
עַמִּ֗י'a.Mipeople myH5971
הֲנִיעֵ֣מוֹha.ni.'E.movmake wander about themH5128
בְ֭חֵילְךָVe.chei.le.khaby strength yourH2428
וְהוֹרִידֵ֑מוֹve.ho.ri.De.movand bring down themH3381
מָֽגִנֵּ֣נוּma.gi.Ne.nuO shield ourH4043
אֲדֹנָֽי\׃'a.do.NaiO LordH136

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Psalms 59:11

  • Psalms 3:3

    But thou, O Lord, art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head.

  • Deuteronomy 28:64

    And the Lord shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other; and there thou shalt serve other gods, which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone.

  • Revelation 9:6

    And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.

  • Luke 1:51-52

    He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree.

  • Deuteronomy 4:27

    And the Lord shall scatter you among the nations, and ye shall be left few in number among the heathen, whither the Lord shall lead you.

  • Judges 1:6-7

    But Adoni–bezek fled; and they pursued after him, and caught him, and cut off his thumbs and his great toes. And Adoni–bezek said, Threescore and ten kings, having their thumbs and their great toes cut off, gathered their meat under my table: as I have done, so God hath requited me. And they brought him to Jerusalem, and there he died.

  • Leviticus 26:33

    And I will scatter you among the heathen, and will draw out a sword after you: and your land shall be desolate, and your cities waste.

  • Ezekiel 12:15-16

    And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I shall scatter them among the nations, and disperse them in the countries. But I will leave a few men of them from the sword, from the famine, and from the pestilence; that they may declare all their abominations among the heathen whither they come; and they shall know that I am the Lord.

  • Genesis 4:12-15

    When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth. And Cain said unto the Lord, My punishment is greater than I can bear. Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me. And the Lord said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.

  • Job 40:12

    Look on every one that is proud, and bring him low; and tread down the wicked in their place.

  • Luke 21:21

    Then let them which are in Judea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto.

  • Psalms 52:5

    God shall likewise destroy thee for ever, he shall take thee away, and pluck thee out of thy dwelling place, and root thee out of the land of the living. Selah.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Slay.
Ge 4:12-15; Jud 1:6,7; Ec 9:5; Eze 12:15,16; 14:22,23; Re 9:6
scatter.
44:11; 52:5; Le 26:33; De 4:27; 28:64; 30:3,4; Eze 12:15; Lu 1:51,52
Lu 21:21
bring.
Job 40:12
our shield.
3:3; 84:11

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Psalms 59:10

    The God of my mercy shall prevent me: God shall let me see my desire upon mine enemies.

  • Psalms 59:11

    Slay them not, lest my people forget: scatter them by thy power; and bring them down, O Lord our shield.

  • Psalms 59:12

    For the sin of their mouth and the words of their lips let them even be taken in their pride: and for cursing and lying which they speak.

Read all of Psalms 59

Psalms 59:11 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
No los matarás, porque mi pueblo no se olvide: hazlos vagar con tu fortaleza; y abátelos, oh Jehová, escudo nuestro,
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Le Dieu qui use de bonté envers moi me préviendra; Dieu me fera voir mon plaisir en mes ennemis.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Töte sie nicht, damit mein Volk es nicht vergesse; laß sie umherirren durch deine Macht, und stürze sie nieder, Herr, unser Schild!
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Quis deducet me in civitatem munitam? quis deducet me usque in Idumæam?