Psalms 18:39

Hebrew (Westminster Leningrad Codex)

English Translation

For you have girded me with strength to the battle. You have subdued under me those who rose up against me.

World English Bible · Public Domain

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וַתְּאַזְּרֵ֣נִי

ʼâzar

H247

“and · to gird · me”

Conjunction + Verb, Piel, Sequential Imperfect, 2nd Person, Masculine, Singular + Suffix, Personal, 1st Person, Common, Singular

Appears 16× in the Hebrew Bible
First appears at 1 Samuel 2:4

Full BDB Definition

Origin: a primitive root

TWOT: 59

gird, encompass, equip, clothe - (Qal) to gird, gird on (metaphorical of strength) - (Niphal) be girded - (Piel) hold close, clasp - (Hithpael) gird oneself (for war)

About this verse

These counts appear in no published source. They are computed here, from the morphology-tagged text and Lemma’s own curated glosses. What Lemma adds →

6: words
6: distinct lemmas
Wisdom: section

Notable vocabulary

The rarest word here is וַתְּאַזְּרֵ֣נִי to gird H247 — appearing just 16 times in the whole Hebrew Bible.

Shared distinctive vocabulary

וַתְּאַזְּרֵ֣נִי to gird H247 occurs in 15 verses of the Hebrew Bible. Also found in:

Grammatical profile

3 verbs
2 nouns
1 preposition

Verb forms

וַתְּאַזְּרֵ֣נִי Piel · Sequential Imperfect
תַּכְרִ֖יעַ Hiphil · Imperfect
קָמַ֣י Qal · Participle Active

Hebrew & Septuagint length

In English translation the verse runs 21 words from the Hebrew and 21 from the Septuagint (LXX English) — the same length.

A rough comparison of the two English renderings, which tokenize alike — not a word-level alignment.

Word counts can differ between the Hebrew and the Greek without any difference in meaning — e.g. the Hebrew direct-object marker אֵת has no separate Greek word, and Greek often adds the article ὁ.

Cross-references

Topical passages linked to Psalms 18:39 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — connected by theme and wording, ordered by reader-vote popularity; previews shown in the World English Bible.

2 Samuel 22:40–41 For you have girded me with strength to the battle; You have subdued under me those who rose up against me.
Psalms 18:32 The God who arms me with strength, and makes my way perfect?
Isaiah 45:14 Thus says Yahweh: "The labor of Egypt, and the merchandise of Ethiopia, and the Sabeans, men of stature, shall come over to you, and they shall be yours. They shall go after you. In chains they shall come over; and they shall fall down to you. They shall make supplication to you: 'Surely God is in you; and there is none else, there is no other god.
1 Corinthians 15:25–28 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.
Ephesians 1:22 He put all things in subjection under his feet, and gave him to be head over all things for the assembly,
1 Chronicles 22:18 Isn't Yahweh your God with you? Hasn't he given you rest on every side? for he has delivered the inhabitants of the land into my hand; and the land is subdued before Yahweh, and before his people.
Psalms 34:21 Evil shall kill the wicked. Those who hate the righteous shall be condemned.
Proverbs 8:36 But he who sins against me wrongs his own soul. All those who hate me love death."

Lamentations 5:5 Our pursuers are on our necks: We are weary, and have no rest.
Ezekiel 30:24–25 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, and put my sword in his hand: but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, and he shall groan before him with the groanings of a deadly wounded man.
John 15:23 He who hates me, hates my Father also.
Psalms 66:3 Tell God, "How awesome are your deeds! Through the greatness of your power, your enemies submit themselves to you.
Philippians 3:21 who will change the body of our humiliation to be conformed to the body of his glory, according to the working by which he is able even to subject all things to himself.

Cross-references courtesy of OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0).

Hebrew and Greek witnesses Masoretic Hebrew ↔ Greek Septuagint

The same verse in the two great witnesses to the Old Testament, shown verse-for-verse.

You’re reading Greek Psalm 17 (Hebrew Psalm 18). The Septuagint counts the superscription, so verse numbers can differ from the Hebrew — chapter-level alignment, not verse-by-verse. Numbering follows Rahlfs.

These are two independent witnesses, not word-aligned to each other, and the Septuagint is shown in lemma (dictionary) form.

Hebrew Psalms 18:39 Masoretic · Westminster Leningrad Codex

וַתְּאַזְּרֵ֣נִי חַ֭יִל לַמִּלְחָמָ֑ה תַּכְרִ֖יעַ קָמַ֣י תַּחְתָּֽי

For you have girded me with strength to the battle. You have subdued under me those who rose up against me.

World English Bible · Public Domain

Greek LXX Greek Psalm 17:39 Septuagint · lemma form

ἐκθλίβω αὐτός καί οὐ μή δύναμαι ἵστημι πίπτω ὑπό ὁ πούς ἐγώ

For you have girded me with strength for war: you have beaten down under me all that rose up against me.

LXX2012 (modern English Septuagint) · Public Domain

Hebrew: Westminster Leningrad Codex (CC BY 4.0). Greek: Septuagint (public domain); English from LXX2012 (modern English Septuagint) (Public Domain). How the Septuagint differs from the Hebrew →

Commentary

Notes on Psalms 18:39 from classic Christian and Jewish commentators (each source and its license shown beneath its notes). The classic Christian expositions comment on the surrounding passage and are grouped to its opening verse, so a note may address several verses; the Jewish commentaries on the Tanakh (Rashi and others) are per-verse, so they appear only where the commentator wrote on this verse.

Lemma curates 59 commentaries, every one of them public domain or Creative Commons licensed, each selected and text-cleaned for this edition rather than reprinted as found. About our sources →

Trapp's Complete Commentary

John Trapp

Psa 18:39 For thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle: thou hast subdued under me those that rose up against me.

Ver. 39. Thou hast girded me with strength, &c.] See Psa 18:32. It is God that weakeneth or strengtheneth either part, Eze 30:24, and rendereth their weapons vain or prosperous, Isa 54:17 Jer 50:9.

Thou hast subdued under me, &c.] David ascribeth all to God, and useth wonderful variety of expressions in setting forth his benefts.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

J. A. Alexander on Psalms

Joseph Addison Alexander

40. (Psa 18:39). And thou hast girded me with strength for the war (or battle), thou wilt bow down my assailants under me. He returns to God as the author of his triumphs and successes. The first clause blends the ideas expressed in the corresponding clauses of Psa 18:33; Psa 18:36 (32, 35).—My assailants, literally, my insurgents, those rising up against me. See Psa 18:49 below, and compare Psa 44:6 (5), Psa 59:2 (1), Job 27:7. Here again the spirit of the Psalmist is not that of an ambitious conqueror, but of a willing instrument in God's hand, to be used for the promotion of his sovereign purpose.

Joseph Addison Alexander, The Psalms Translated and Explained (1850) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown

that rose up against me--literally, "insurgents" (Psa 3:1; Psa 44:5).

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne

39. Cp. Psa_18:32 a.

those that rose up against me] Enemies in general (Exo_15:7; Deu_33:11), not necessarily rebellious subjects, though the word is specially applicable to them (Psa_3:1).

39–42. Thus God gave him victory over all his enemies.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

John Gill's Exposition

Thou hast also given me the necks of mine enemies,.... Either to slay them, or to trample or put a yoke upon them; or rather the sense is, thou hast made them to fly before me, to turn their necks or backs unto me, as the word is used in Jos 7:8; and it is expressive of an utter rout and vanquishing of them;

that I might destroy them that hate me; they not being able to face him and stand against him.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible

For thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle - See the note at Psa 18:32. Compare Job 12:18; Pro 31:17.

Thou hast subdued under me - Margin, as in Hebrew, caused to bow. That is, God had caused them to submit to him; he had enabled him to overcome them; still acknowledging that all this was from God, and that the praise was due to Him, and not to the power of his own arm.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations

He repeats what he had said Psa 18:32, lest he should seem to arrogate to himself his great achievements and victories mentioned Psa 18:37,38, and that he might give God the whole praise and glory of them.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Whedon's Commentary on the Bible

Daniel D. Whedon

39. Girded me with strength—Putting on the military girdle completed the military dress.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The Pulpit Commentary

For thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle. Having boasted of his own actions during the space of two verses (vers. 37, 38), David falls back upon his habitual acknowledgments, that all which he has done has been done wholly through the strength of the Divine arm, which has upheld him, sustained him, and given him the victory. Thou hast subdued under me those that rose up against me; rather, thou hast bowed down mine adversaries under me (Hengstenberg, Kay, Cheyne).

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Lesson kit

Teaching starters — assembled from the data on this page, not authored interpretation. Every prompt links to the verse data it draws on. Edit before teaching.

Psalms, in the Wisdom, opens this verse with 6 words (6 distinct Hebrew lemmas). Its most distinctive word is ʼâzar (“to gird”). A historical commentator’s framing appears above. Read the whole chapter for the surrounding context.

Discussion questions

The word ʼâzar carries the sense “to gird.” How does it shape the verse?
How does 1 Samuel 2:4, which shares the word «to gird», read alongside this verse?
These translations render this verse differently. What is at stake in choosing one wording over another?
«וַתְּאַזְּרֵ֣נִי» is a Piel Sequential Imperfect verb. How does that grammatical form shape the action described?
Compare how Trapp's Complete Commentary and J. A. Alexander on Psalms read this verse. Where do they agree or differ?

Things to notice

These translations choose different wording for 17 words in this verse.
6 distinct Hebrew lemmas span 6 words in this verse.