Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil, when the iniquity of my heels shall compass me about?
Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil, When iniquity at my heels compasseth me about?
Why do I fear in days of evil? The iniquity of my supplanters doth compass me.
Wherefore should I fear in the days of adversity, [when] the iniquity of my supplanters encompasseth me? —
Psalms — The canon's longest book — 150 Psalms edited into five doxology-bookended books, composed across a millennium, attributed to David, Asaph, Korah's sons, Moses, Solomon, Heman, Ethan, and anonymous voices. A ''Torah of David''; the Bible's longest continuous liturgical-devotional corpus.
Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread — the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.
The walk8
Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first — the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.
Through
Proverbs 24:10If you faint in the day of distress, how small is your strength!
leads to
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary; His understanding is beyond searching…
So I ask you not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you, which are your glory.
Do not let your heart grow faint, and do not be afraid when the rumor is heard in the land; for a rumor will come one year— and then another the next year— of…
Consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
David, however, said to himself, “One of these days now I will be swept away by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than to escape to the land of the…
Through
Philippians 1:28without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a clear sign of their destruction but of your salvation, and it is from God.
leads to
Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self-control.
All this is clear evidence of God’s righteous judgment. And so you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering.
The whole web at once: see the Arc.
Voices4
I fear and dread the day of retribution, on which the righteous Judge will repay everyone according to their works. Now, aware of this, keep such fear before your eyes in your own case.… But if you were to inquire why I am afraid, listen …
Theodoret of Cyrus· COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS 49:5, 458patristic
Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil,.... This is the principal thing that all are before called to hearken to. This is the wisdom and understanding the psalmist had been meditating upon, and was about to utter; this is the parable he inclined his ear to, and the dark saying he would open; namely, that a saint has nothing to fear in the worst of times; which is a riddle to a natural man.
John Gill· Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)reformed
Ver. 5. Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil, when the iniquity of my heels shall compass me about? The man of God looks calmly forward to dark times when those evils which have dogged his heels shall gain a temporary advantage over him. Iniquitous men, here called in the abstract iniquity, lie in wait for the righteous, as serpents that aim at the heels of travellers: the iniquity of our heels is that evil which aims to trip us up or impede us.
In the rest of the psalm, 1. He endeavours to convince sinners of their folly in doting upon the wealth of this world, by showing them (1.) That they cannot, with all their wealth, save their friends from death,
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible, 1710puritan
The verses this one reaches12
The LORD knows the days of the blameless, and their inheritance will last forever.
to grant him relief from days of trouble, until a pit is dug for the wicked.
without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a clear sign of their destruction but of your salvation, and it is from God.
Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.
If you faint in the day of distress, how small is your strength!
and said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar. And look, God has granted you the lives of all who sail with you.’
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in times of trouble.
For my iniquities have overwhelmed me; they are a burden too heavy to bear.
redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
He will be a snake by the road, a viper in the path that bites the horse’s heels so that its rider tumbles backward.
But they fail to consider in their hearts that I remember all their evil. Now their deeds are all around them; they are before My face.
Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My right hand of righteousness.
10 more linked verses are grouped by book below ↓
Every other verse the study tradition links to this one, in the Bible’s own order. The first links in each book carry a line of their text; every reference opens its full verse page.
Cross-references are drawn from classic Bible study tools and open, shareable Bible data.
