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Psalms 35:10

in Psalms 35

All my bones will exclaim, “Who is like You, O LORD, who delivers the afflicted from the aggressor, the poor and needy from the robber?”

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

All my bones shall say, Jehovah, who is like unto thee, Who deliverest the poor from him that is too strong for him, Yea, the poor and the needy from him that robbeth him?

KJV

All my bones shall say, Lord, who is like unto thee, which deliverest the poor from him that is too strong for him, yea, the poor and the needy from him that spoileth him?

This verse in Psalms 35

Commentary

15 notes on this verse

A commentator

Theodore of Mopsuestia

COMMENTARY ON PSALMS 35:10B, c · Written before 428.

I shall say no one is like you, he means, and shall confess you to be more powerful than everyone, even those considered strong and powerful; you are capable of rescuing the poor and insignificant and delivering them from their scheming against the odds.… You …

This site's exposition

will rejoice in the LORD

on Psalms 35:9-10

The joy of verse 9 is claimed before rescue comes. Who is like You, O LORD is the wonder Israel sang at the Red Sea in Exodus 15:11. Verse 10 names the afflicted, the poor and needy, so the rescue asked is the kind God gives them all.

This site's exposition

All my bones will exclaim

The bones stand for the whole frame, and Albert Barnes set the verse beside Psalm 51:8 and its rejoicing bones. Charles Spurgeon noted that the very bones his enemies meant to break would now give the praise. Matthew Henry heard in it praise from the whole man.

The record, by era

The Church Fathers2 voices

A commentator

Augustine of Hippo

Exposition on Psalm 35 · Written before 430.

proposed

"All my bones shall say, Lord, who is like You" [Psalm 35:10]. Who can speak anything worthily of these words? I think them only to be pronounced, not to be expounded. Why do you seek this or that? What is like your Lord? Him have you before you. "The unrighteous have declared unto me delights, but not after Your law, O Lord!" Persecutors have been who have said, Worship Saturn, worship Mercury. I worship not idols (says he): "Lord, who is like You? They have eyes, and see not; ears have they, but they hear not." "Lord, who is like You," who hast made the eye to see, the ear to hear? But I (says he) worship not idols, for them a workman made. Worship a tree or mountain; did a workman make them also? Here too, Lord, who is like You? Earthly things are shown unto me; You are Creator of the earth. And from these haply they turn to the higher creation, and say to me, Worship the Moon, worship this Sun, who with his light, as a great lamp in the Heavens, makes the day. Here also I plainly say, "Lord, who is like You?" The Moon and the Stars You have made, the Sun to rule the day have You kindled, the Heavens have You framed together. There are many invisible things better. But haply here also it is said to me, Worship Angels, adore Angels. And here also will I say, "Lord, who is like You?" Even the Angels You have created. The Angels are nothing, but by seeing You. It is better with them to possess You, than by worshipping them to fall from You.

A commentator

Cassiodorus

EXPLANATION OF THE PSALMS 35:10 · Written before 585.

proposed

Bones must be understood as strength of spirit and steadfastness of mind. Such things are rightly compared with bones, for just as the body contains bones, so also these qualities strengthen holy desires. So only the bones, which mean firmness, could communicate this mystery, not …

The Medieval Church1 voice

A commentator

Thomas Aquinas

Exposition on the Psalms of David · Written before 1274.

proposed

Consequently, when he says, "all my bones," the second fruit is set forth, which is divine reverence; and regarding this he does two things. First, he sets forth reverence toward God. Second, he assigns the reason, at "rescuing." He says therefore, "all my bones." All …

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

Note, It is no new thing for the most righteous men, and the most righteous cause, to meet with many mighty and malicious enemies: Christ himself is striven with and fought against, and war is made upon the holy seed; and we are not to marvel at the matter: it is a fruit of the old enmity in the seed of the serpent against the seed of the woman.

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

): All my bones shall say, Lord, who is like unto thee? (1.) He will praise God with the whole man, with all that is within him, and with all the strength and vigour of his soul, intimated by his bones, which are within the body and are the strength of it.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens

7 more voices on this verse

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

All my bones shall say,.... So, in a figurative sense, vexation and disquietude are ascribed to the bones, Psa 6:2; and sometimes joy and gladness, Psa 51:

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

He hoped that he should have the comfort of it: " My soul shall be joyful, not in my own ease and safety, but in the Lord and in his favour, in his promise and in his salvation according to the promise." Joy in God and in his salvation is the only true, solid, satisfying joy.

The Nineteenth Century5 voices

A commentator

Charles Spurgeon

1834–1892

The Treasury of David, Vol. 2 (1870)

As if the tongue were not enough to bless God with, David makes every limb vocal —"All my bones shall say, Lord, who is like unto thee?" His whole anatomy he would make resonant with gratitude. Those bones which were to have been broken by my enemies shall now praise God; every one of them shall bring its tribute, ascribing unrivalled excellence to Jehovah the Saviour of his people.

A commentator

Charles Spurgeon

1834–1892

The Treasury of David, Vol. 2 (1870)

proposed

As if the tongue were not enough to bless God with, David makes every limb vocal —"All my bones shall say, Lord, who is like unto thee?" His whole anatomy he would make resonant with gratitude. Those bones which were to have been broken by my enemies shall now praise God; every one of them shall bring its tribute, ascribing unrivalled excellence to Jehovah the Saviour of his people. Even if worn to skin and bone, yet my very skeleton shall magnify the Lord, "which deliverest the poor from him that is too strong for him, yea, the poor and the needy from him that spoileth him." God is the champion, the true knight-errant of all oppressed ones. Where there is so much condescension, justice, kindness, power, and compassion, the loftiest songs should be rendered. Come, dear reader, have you not been delivered from sin, Satan, and death, and will not you bless the Redeemer? You were poor and weak, but in due time Christ sought you, and set you free. O magnify the Lord today, and speak well of his name.

A commentator

Charles Spurgeon

1834–1892

The Treasury of David, Vol. 2 (1870)

proposed

As if the tongue were not enough to bless God with, David makes every limb vocal —"All my bones shall say, Lord, who is like unto thee?" His whole anatomy he would make resonant with gratitude. Those bones which were to have been broken by my enemies shall now praise God; every one of them shall bring its tribute, ascribing unrivalled excellence to Jehovah the Saviour of his people.

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

proposed

All my bones shall say - My life being preserved, all the members of my body shall magnify thy saving mercy. Deliverest the poor - This is a general maxim: God is peculiarly mindful of the poor. Where secular advantages are withheld, there is the more need for spiritual help. God considers this, and his kind providence works accordingly.
All my bones shall say - A similar expression occurs in Psa 51:8: “That the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice.” The “bones” are here put for the frame; the whole man. See the notes at Psa 32:3. The idea is, that he had been crushed and overborne with trouble and danger, so that his very frame - that which sustained him - had given way. He says now that if God would interpose in the manner which he prays for, he would be relieved of the insupportable burden, and his whole nature would rejoice. Who is like unto thee - Who can bring deliverance like God. Compare the notes at Isa 40:18. “Which deliverest the poor,” etc. Who rescues the poor from the hand of the mighty. That is, (a) Who is there that would interpose as God does in behalf of the poor and the downtrodden? (b) Who is there that could save them as He does? In His power, and in His willingness to aid, there is no one like God. The word rendered poor here rather means one who is afflicted, or crushed by trial. Yea, the poor and the needy - The word here rendered poor is the same as that which occurs in the former member of the sentence. The word rendered “needy” is that which is commonly used to denote the poor in the usual sense of the term - one who is in need. The reference is to David, who was afflicted by persecution, and at the same thee was in want of the comforts of life. From him that spoileth him - From him that would plunder and rob him.

The words behind it

13 Hebrew words

Every 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.

  • כָּ֥לall

    kalH3605 →5413 times

  • עַצְמוֹתַ֨י׀bones my

    atzmotaiH6106 →126 times

  • תֹּאמַרְנָה֮they will say

    tomarnahH559 →5305 times

  • יְהוָ֗הO Yahweh

    yahwehH3068 →6520 times

  • מִ֥יwho?

    miH4310 →423 times

  • כָ֫מ֥וֹךָ[is] like you

    khamokhaH3644 →143 times

  • מַצִּ֣יל[one who] delivers

    matzilH5337 →212 times

  • עָ֭נִיa poor [person]

    ʾaniH6041 →73 times

  • מֵחָזָ֣קfrom a person [too] strong

    mechazakH2389 →

  • מִמֶּ֑נּוּfor him

    mimenuH4480 →1188 times

  • וְעָנִ֥יand [the] poor

    veaniH6041 →73 times

  • וְ֝אֶבְי֗וֹןand [the] needy

    veevyonH34 →61 times

  • מִגֹּזְלֽוֹ׃from [one who] robs him

    migozeloH1497 →

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

The walk

8 stops

Each 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

    Exodus 15:11

    Who among the gods is like You, O LORD? Who is like You—majestic in holiness, revered with praises, performing wonders?

    it leads to

    • 1 Kings 8:23

      and said: “O LORD, God of Israel, there is no God like You in heaven above or on earth below, keeping Your covenant of loving devotion with Your servants who walk before You with…

    • Psalms 89:5–8

      The heavens praise Your wonders, O LORD— Your faithfulness as well— in the assembly of the holy ones.

    • 1 Samuel 2:2

      There is no one holy like the LORD. Indeed, there is no one besides You! And there is no Rock like our God.

    • 2 Samuel 7:22

      How great You are, O Lord GOD! For there is none like You, and there is no God but You, according to everything we have heard with our own ears.

    • Revelation 4:8

      And each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around and within. Day and night they never stop saying: “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God Almighty,…

  • Through

    Psalms 86:8

    O Lord, there is none like You among the gods, nor any works like Yours.

    it leads to

    • Exodus 15:11

      Who among the gods is like You, O LORD? Who is like You—majestic in holiness, revered with praises, performing wonders?

    • Deuteronomy 3:24

      “O Lord GOD, You have begun to show Your greatness and power to Your servant. For what god in heaven or on earth can perform such works and mighty acts as Yours?

  • Through

    Psalms 51:8

    Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones You have crushed rejoice.

    it leads to

    • Job 5:17–18

      Blessed indeed is the man whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty.

Where this verse is studied

On this page

About Psalms

The Siege and Destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans Under the Command of Titus, A.D. 70. David Roberts, 1850. Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.
The Siege and Destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans Under the Command of Titus, A.D. 70. David Roberts, 1850. Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.
This page draws on 13 works. Open the list of works

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Psalms; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Augustine of Hippo, Exposition on Psalm 35; Cassiodorus, EXPLANATION OF THE PSALMS 35:10; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 2; Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Psalms; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Theodore of Mopsuestia, COMMENTARY ON PSALMS 35:10B, c and Thomas Aquinas, Exposition on the Psalms of David.