# Psalms 119.18

<!-- type: passage | created: 2026-05-06 | updated: 2026-05-06 -->

**Book:** [Psalms](/codex/psalms/) · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

## Immediate context (±2 verses)

**ASV** ([ASV](/codex/asv/))
> 16. I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word. 17. GIMEL. Deal bountifully with thy servant, that I may live; So will I observe thy word.
>
> **18. Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold Wondrous things out of thy law.**
>
> 19. I am a sojourner in the earth: Hide not thy commandments from me. 20. My soul breaketh for the longing That it hath unto thine ordinances at all times. (Psalms 119:16-20, ASV)

**WEB** ([WEB](/codex/web/))
> 16. I will delight myself in your statutes. I will not forget your word. <b>GIMEL </b> 17. Do good to your servant. I will live and I will obey your word.
>
> **18. Open my eyes, that I may see wondrous things out of your law.**
>
> 19. I am a stranger on the earth. Don’t hide your commandments from me. 20. My soul is consumed with longing for your ordinances at all times. (Psalms 119:16-20, WEB)

**KJV** ([KJV](/codex/kjv/))
> 16. I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word. 17. GIMEL. Deal bountifully with thy servant, that I may live, and keep thy word.
>
> **18. Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law. <sup>Open: Heb. Reveal</sup>**
>
> 19. I am a stranger in the earth: hide not thy commandments from me. 20. My soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto thy judgments at all times. (Psalms 119:16-20, KJV)

**YLT** ([YLT](/codex/ylt/))
> 16. In Thy statutes I delight myself, I do not forget Thy word. 17. [Gimel.] Confer benefits on Thy servant, I live, and I keep Thy word.
>
> **18. Uncover mine eyes, and I behold wonders out of Thy law.**
>
> 19. A sojourner I [am] on earth, Hide not from me Thy commands. 20. Broken hath my soul for desire Unto Thy judgments at all times. (Psalms 119:16-20, YLT)

## Setting

- **Speaker:** various (David majority; Asaph, Korah, Moses, Solomon, anonymous)
- **Audience:** worshipping Israel (corporate + individual devotion)
- **Location:** Israel, various periods
- **Time period:** composition spans c. 1400 BC (Moses, Ps 90), c. 400 BC; principal Davidic composition c. 1000 BC

## Theological reading

## Key words

- [H8451 - torah](/codex/h8451-torah/), *torah* (Strong's H8451). Also appears in: [Numbers 5.11-31](/codex/numbers-5-11-31/), [Numbers 5.30](/codex/numbers-5-30/), [Numbers 15.15-17](/codex/numbers-15-15-17/).

## Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the **most literal English translations available** (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the **public domain in the United States**, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

- **[ASV](/codex/asv/)** (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
- **[WEB](/codex/web/)** (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
- **[KJV](/codex/kjv/)** (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
- **[YLT](/codex/ylt/)** (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See [Bibles](/codex/bibles/) for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.