Psalms 10:15
in Psalms 10Break the arm of the wicked and evildoer; call him to account for his wickedness until none is left to be found.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Break thou the arm of the wicked; And as for the evil man, seek out his wickedness till thou find none.
KJV
Break thou the arm of the wicked and the evil man: seek out his wickedness till thou find none.
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This verse in Psalms 10
Commentary
13 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Break thou the arm of the wicked - The arm is the instrument by which we effect a purpose, and especially in wielding a sword or a spear, as in battle; and if the arm is broken, we are powerless. The psalmist, therefore, prays that God would render the wicked, in this respect, powerless. And the evil man - Of all the evil, or the wicked. In regard to the prayer here, see the note at Psa 5:10. Seek out his wickedness until thou find none - Until it is all punished; until there has been a full recompense.
This site's exposition
Arise, O LORD
on Psalms 10:12-15
The prayer breaks in, Arise, O LORD. The wicked man told himself God would never call him to account, and verse 14 answers that God has regarded trouble and grief. He will repay it by His hand, and the one praying asks God to break the arm of the wicked.
This site's exposition
Break the arm of the wicked
Verse 15 opens with shin, the next letter of the acrostic. The arm stands for power, and a broken arm is power ended, as at Job 38:15 and Ezekiel 30:21. Call him to account is darash again, the demand the wicked man said in verse 13 would never come.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers3 voices
"Break the arm of the sinner and of the malicious"; of him, namely, of whom it was said above, "He shall have dominion over all his enemies." He called his power then, his arm; to which Christ's power is opposed, of which it is said, "Arise, O Lord God, let Your hand be exalted. His fault shall be required, and he shall not be found because of it;" that is he shall be judged for his sins, and himself shall perish because of his sin.
The sinner is the one who sins out of lust and weakness; the wicked one is he who follows after evil with a deliberated plan.
Let no one be arrogant about the pinnacle of power or be puffed up; it is a precarious and risky position and topples the careless with great ease.
The Medieval Church1 voice
"Break." Here he announces his being heard. And first, as to sinners. Second, as to the poor, at "the desire of the poor," etc. Regarding the first, he does two things. First, he announces the cessation of the power of the wicked by which they …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
3 For the wicked boasteth of his heart's desire, and blesseth the covetous, whom the L ORD abhorreth. 4 The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts. 5 His ways are always grievous; thy judgments are far above out of his sight: as for all his enemies, he puffeth at them.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — scripture-overlap:97%@v3-5
5 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
What he pleads for the encouraging of his own faith in these petitions. He pleads the great affronts which these proud oppressors put upon God himself: "Lord, it is thy own cause that we beg thou wouldst appear in; the enemies have made it so, and therefore it is not for thy glory to let them go unpunished" (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
Break thou the arm of the wicked and the evil man,.... His power and strength, so that he shall not be able to hold the sword, to strike a blow, or do any hurt to the people of God; see Eze 30:
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
In this verse we hear again the burden of the psalmist's prayer: "Break thou the arm of the wicked and the evil man." Let the sinner lose his power to sin; stop the tyrant, arrest the oppressor, weaken the loins of the mighty, and dash in pieces the terrible. They deny thy justice: let them feel it to the full. Indeed, they shall feel it; for God shall hunt the sinner for ever: so long as there is a grain of sin in him it shall be sought out and punished.
In this verse we hear again the burden of the psalmist's prayer: "Break thou the arm of the wicked and the evil man." Let the sinner lose his power to sin; stop the tyrant, arrest the oppressor, weaken the loins of the mighty, and dash in pieces the terrible. They deny thy justice: let them feel it to the full. Indeed, they shall feel it; for God shall hunt the sinner for ever: so long as there is a grain of sin in him it shall be sought out and punished. It is not a little worthy of note, that very few great persecutors have ever died in their beds: the curse has manifestly pursued them, and their fearful sufferings have made them own that divine justice at which they could at one time launch defiance. God permits tyrants to arise as thorn-hedges to protect his church from the intrusion of hypocrites, and that he may teach his backsliding children by them, as Gideon did the men of Succoth with the briers of the wilderness; but he soon cuts up these Herods, like the thorns, and casts them into the fire. Thales, the Milesian, one of the wise men of Greece, being asked what he thought to be the greatest rarity in the world, replied, "To see a tyrant live to be an old man." See how the Lord breaks, not only the arm, but the neck of proud oppressors! To the men who had neither justice nor mercy for the saints, there shall be rendered justice to the full, but not a grain of mercy.
Break thou the arm - Destroy his power, deprive him of his influence, that he may be no longer able to oppress. Seek out his wickedness till thou find none - All his public haunts and private ways shall be investigated; thou wilt bring all his villanies to light, and continue to inflict punishment, while there is a crime to punish. Or, “Continue to judge and punish transgressors, till not one is to be found.” This agrees with the following verse.
The words behind it
8 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| שְׁ֭בֹר | shevor | break | H7665 → | 147 times |
| זְר֣וֹעַ | zeroa' | [the] arm of | H2220 → | 91 times |
| רָשָׁ֑ע | rasha' | [the] wicked | H7563 → | 263 times |
| וָ֝רָ֗ע | vara' | and [the] evil | H7451 → | 662 times |
| תִּֽדְרוֹשׁ־ | tidroosh- | you will seek | H1875 → | 164 times |
| רִשְׁע֥וֹ | risho | wickedness his | H7562 → | 30 times |
| בַל־ | val- | not | H1077 → | 73 times |
| תִּמְצָֽא׃ | timtza' | you will find | H4672 → | 455 times |
שְׁ֭בֹרbreak
shevorH7665 →147 times
זְר֣וֹעַ[the] arm of
zeroa'H2220 →91 times
רָשָׁ֑ע[the] wicked
rasha'H7563 →263 times
וָ֝רָ֗עand [the] evil
vara'H7451 →662 times
תִּֽדְרוֹשׁ־you will seek
tidroosh-H1875 →164 times
רִשְׁע֥וֹwickedness his
rishoH7562 →30 times
בַל־not
val-H1077 →73 times
תִּמְצָֽא׃you will find
timtza'H4672 →455 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 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 37:17For the arms of the wicked will be broken, but the LORD upholds the righteous.
it leads to
- Isaiah 41:10
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…
- Psalms 63:8
My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me.
- Psalms 145:14
The LORD upholds all who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down.
- Isaiah 42:1
“Here is My Servant, whom I uphold, My Chosen One, in whom My soul delights. I will put My Spirit on Him, and He will bring justice to the nations.
- Psalms 37:24
Though he falls, he will not be overwhelmed, for the LORD is holding his hand.
- Isaiah 41:10
Through
Psalms 7:9Put an end to the evil of the wicked, but establish the righteous, O righteous God who searches hearts and minds.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 17:10
I, the LORD, search the heart; I examine the mind to reward a man according to his way, by what his deeds deserve.
- Jeremiah 11:20
O LORD of Hosts, who judges righteously, who examines the heart and mind, let me see Your vengeance upon them, for to You I have committed my cause.
- Jeremiah 17:10
Through
Zephaniah 1:12And at that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps and punish the men settled in complacency, who say to themselves, ‘The LORD will do nothing, either good or bad.’
it leads to
- Amos 6:1
Woe to those at ease in Zion and those secure on Mount Samaria, the distinguished ones of the foremost nation, to whom the house of Israel comes.
- Amos 6:1
About Psalms
This page draws on 11 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Psalms; Augustine of Hippo, Exposition on Psalm 10; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 1; Evagrius Ponticus, NOTES ON THE PSALMS 9[10].36; John Chrysostom, COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS 10:11; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Exposition on the Psalms of David.