Psalms 119:76
in Psalms 119May Your loving devotion comfort me, I pray, according to Your promise to Your servant.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Let, I pray thee, thy lovingkindness be for my comfort, According to thy word unto thy servant.
KJV
Let, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for my comfort, according to thy word unto thy servant.
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This verse in Psalms 119
Commentary
8 notes on this verseLet, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for my comfort,.... Shown in the provision and promise of a Saviour; in the forgiveness of sins through him; a discovery and application of which yields comfort under afflictions; according to thy word unto servant; a word of promise, in which he had assured him of his love, grace, mercy, and kindness; and that he would continue it to him, and comfort him with it: to make such a promise, and show such favour, was an instance of condescending grace to him, who was but his servant, and unworthy of his regard.
This site's exposition
Your hands have made me and fashioned me
on Psalms 119:73-80
He starts from creation: the hands that made him are asked for the understanding he cannot supply himself. Verse 74 asks that those who fear God see him and rejoice at his hope in God's word. Verse 75 reads the affliction as faithfulness on God's part.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
"O let Your merciful kindness be my comfort, according to Your word unto Your servant" [Psalm 119:76]. Next mercy, whereby we are renewed unto life, by the promise of Him whose blessing is His grace. For this reason he says, "according to Your Word unto Your servant:" that is, according to that which You have promised unto Your servant. Whether therefore it be regeneration whereby we are here adopted among the sons of God, or faith and hope and charity, which three are built up in us, although they come from the mercy of God; nevertheless, in this stormy and troublesome life they are the consolations of the miserable, not the joys of the blessed.
The Nineteenth Century4 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
in faithfulness--that is, without in the least violating Thy faithfulness; because my sins deserved and needed fatherly chastisement. Enduring chastisement with a filial temper (Heb 12:6-11), God's promises of mercy (Ro 8:28) will be fulfilled, and He will give comfort in sorrow (La 3:22;
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase+unbalanced-parens
"Let, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for my comfort, according to thy word unto thy servant." Having confessed the righteousness of the Lord, he now appeals to his mercy, and while he does not ask that the rod may be removed, he earnestly begs for comfort under it. Righteousness and faithfulness afford us no consolation if we cannot also taste of mercy, and, blessed be God, this is promised us in the word, and therefore we may expect it. The words "merciful kindness," are a happy combination, and express exactly what we need in affliction: mercy to forgive the sin, and kindness to sustain under the sorrow. With these we can be comfortable in the cloudy and dark day, and without them we are wretched indeed; for these, therefore, let us pray unto the Lord, whom we have grieved by our sin, and let us plead the word of his grace as our sole reason for expecting his favour. Blessed be his name, notwithstanding our faults we are still his servants, and we serve a compassionate Master. Some read the last clause, "according to thy saying unto thy servant;" some special saying of the Lord was remembered and pleaded: can we not remember some such "faithful saying," and make it the groundwork of our petitioning? That phrase, "according to thy word," is a very favourite one; it shows the motive for mercy and the manner of mercy. Our prayers are according to the mind of God when they are according to the word of God.
"Let, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for my comfort, according to thy word unto thy servant." Having confessed the righteousness of the Lord, he now appeals to his mercy, and while he does not ask that the rod may be removed, he earnestly begs for comfort under it. Righteousness and faithfulness afford us no consolation if we cannot also taste of mercy, and, blessed be God, this is promised us in the word, and therefore we may expect it.
Thy merciful kindness - Let me derive my comfort and happiness from a diffusion of thy love and mercy, חסדך chasdecha, thy exuberant goodness, through my soul.
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Let, I pray thee, thy merciful kindness be for my comfort - Margin, as in Hebrew, “to comfort me.” The word rendered merciful-kindness means mercy, favor, grace, kindness; and the idea is, that all his consolation - all that he expected or desired - must be derived from mere favor; from the goodness of God. He had no source of comfort in himself, and he had no claim on God for comfort. It was through mercy alone that he could have happiness of any kind. According to thy word ... - See the notes at Psa 119:25.
The words behind it
6 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| יְהִי־ | yehi- | let it be | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| נָ֣א | na' | please | H4994 → | 404 times |
| חַסְדְּךָ֣ | chasdekha | covenant loyalty your | H2617 → | 247 times |
| לְנַחֲמֵ֑נִי | lenachameni | to comfort me | H5162 → | 108 times |
| כְּאִמְרָתְךָ֥ | keimratekha | according to word your | H565 → | 37 times |
| לְעַבְדֶּֽךָ׃ | leavdekha | to servant your | H5650 → | 799 times |
יְהִי־let it be
yehi-H1961 →3559 times
נָ֣אplease
na'H4994 →404 times
חַסְדְּךָ֣covenant loyalty your
chasdekhaH2617 →247 times
לְנַחֲמֵ֑נִיto comfort me
lenachameniH5162 →108 times
כְּאִמְרָתְךָ֥according to word your
keimratekhaH565 →37 times
לְעַבְדֶּֽךָ׃to servant your
leavdekhaH5650 →799 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
5 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Psalms 86:5For You, O Lord, are kind and forgiving, rich in loving devotion to all who call on You.
it leads to
- Psalms 145:8–9
The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in loving devotion.
- Joel 2:13
So rend your hearts and not your garments, and return to the LORD your God. For He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion. And He relents from sending disaster.
- Exodus 34:6
Then the LORD passed in front of Moses and called out: “The LORD, the LORD God, is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion and faithfulness,
- Psalms 103:8
The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion.
- Nehemiah 9:17
They refused to listen and failed to remember the wonders You performed among them. They stiffened their necks and appointed a leader to return them to their bondage in Egypt. But You are a…
- Psalms 145:8–9
Where this verse is studied
About Psalms
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Augustine of Hippo, Exposition on Psalm 119; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 6; Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Psalms; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763).