ris3n's Apologetics Codex

Passage

Psalms 17

Book: Psalms · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

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ASV (ASV)

"1. A Prayer of David. Hear the right, O Jehovah, attend unto my cry; Give ear unto my prayer, that goeth not out of feigned lips. 2. Let my sentence come forth from thy presence; Let thine eyes look upon equity. 3. Thou hast proved my heart; Thou hast visited me in the night; Thou hast tried me, and findest nothing; I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress. 4. As for the works of men, by the word of thy lips I have kept me from the ways of the violent. 5. My steps have held fast to thy paths, My feet have not slipped. 6. I have called upon thee, for thou wilt answer me, O God: Incline thine ear unto me, and hear my speech. 7. Show thy marvellous lovingkindness, O thou that savest by thy right hand them that take refuge in thee From those that rise up against them. 8. Keep me as the apple of the eye; Hide me under the shadow of thy wings, 9. From the wicked that oppress me, My deadly enemies, that compass me about. 10. They are inclosed in their own fat: With their mouth they speak proudly. 11. They have now compassed us in our steps; They set their eyes to cast us down to the earth. 12. He is like a lion that is greedy of his prey, And as it were a young lion lurking in secret places. 13. Arise, O Jehovah, Confront him, cast him down: Deliver my soul from the wicked by thy sword; 14. From men by thy hand, O Jehovah, From men of the world, whose portion is in this life, And whose belly thou fillest with thy treasure: They are satisfied with children, And leave the rest of their substance to their babes. 15. As for me, I shall behold thy face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with beholding thy form." (Psalms 17:1-15, ASV)

WEB (WEB)

"1. A Prayer by David. Hear, Yahweh, my righteous plea; Give ear to my prayer, that doesn’t go out of deceitful lips. 2. Let my sentence come out of your presence. Let your eyes look on equity. 3. You have proved my heart. You have visited me in the night. You have tried me, and found nothing. I have resolved that my mouth shall not disobey. 4. As for the deeds of men, by the word of your lips, I have kept myself from the ways of the violent. 5. My steps have held fast to your paths. My feet have not slipped. 6. I have called on you, for you will answer me, God. Turn your ear to me. Hear my speech. 7. Show your marvelous loving kindness, you who save those who take refuge by your right hand from their enemies. 8. Keep me as the apple of your eye. Hide me under the shadow of your wings, 9. from the wicked who oppress me, my deadly enemies, who surround me. 10. They close up their callous hearts. With their mouth they speak proudly. 11. They have now surrounded us in our steps. They set their eyes to cast us down to the earth. 12. He is like a lion that is greedy of his prey, as it were a young lion lurking in secret places. 13. Arise, Yahweh, confront him. Cast him down. Deliver my soul from the wicked by your sword; 14. from men by your hand, Yahweh, from men of the world, whose portion is in this life. You fill the belly of your cherished ones. Your sons have plenty, and they store up wealth for their children. 15. As for me, I shall see your face in righteousness. I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with seeing your form." (Psalms 17:1-15, WEB)

KJV (KJV)

"1. A Prayer of David. Hear the right, O LORD, attend unto my cry, give ear unto my prayer, that goeth not out of feigned lips. the right: Heb. justice not: Heb. without lips of deceit 2. Let my sentence come forth from thy presence; let thine eyes behold the things that are equal. 3. Thou hast proved mine heart; thou hast visited me in the night; thou hast tried me, and shalt find nothing; I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress. 4. Concerning the works of men, by the word of thy lips I have kept me from the paths of the destroyer. 5. Hold up my goings in thy paths, that my footsteps slip not. slip: Heb. be not moved 6. I have called upon thee, for thou wilt hear me, O God: incline thine ear unto me, and hear my speech. 7. Shew thy marvellous lovingkindness, O thou that savest by thy right hand them which put their trust in thee from those that rise up against them. by thy: or, them which trust in thee from those that rise up against thy right hand 8. Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings, 9. From the wicked that oppress me, from my deadly enemies, who compass me about. oppress: Heb. waste my: Heb. my enemies against the soul 10. They are inclosed in their own fat: with their mouth they speak proudly. 11. They have now compassed us in our steps: they have set their eyes bowing down to the earth; 12. Like as a lion that is greedy of his prey, and as it were a young lion lurking in secret places. Like: Heb. The likeness of him (that is, of every one of them) is as a lion that desireth to ravin lurking: Heb. sitting 13. Arise, O LORD, disappoint him, cast him down: deliver my soul from the wicked, which is thy sword: disappoint: Heb. prevent his face which is: or, by 14. From men which are thy hand, O LORD, from men of the world, which have their portion in this life, and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure: they are full of children, and leave the rest of their substance to their babes. which are: or, by they: or, their children are full 15. As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness." (Psalms 17:1-15, KJV)

YLT (YLT)

"1. A Prayer of David. Hear, O Jehovah, righteousness, attend my cry, Give ear [to] my prayer, without lips of deceit. 2. From before thee my judgment doth go out; Thine eyes do see uprightly. 3. Thou hast proved my heart, Thou hast inspected by night, Thou hast tried me, Thou findest nothing; My thoughts pass not over my mouth. 4. As to doings of man, Through a word of Thy lips I have observed The paths of a destroyer; 5. To uphold my goings in Thy paths, My steps have not slidden. 6. I, I called Thee, for Thou dost answer me, O God, incline Thine ear to me, hear my speech. 7. Separate wonderfully Thy kindness, O Saviour of the confiding, By Thy right hand, from withstanders. 8. Keep me as the apple, the daughter of the eye; In shadow of Thy wings thou dost hide me. 9. From the face of the wicked who spoiled me. Mine enemies in soul go round against me. 10. Their fat they have closed up, Their mouths have spoken with pride: 11. 'Our steps now have compassed [him];' Their eyes they set to turn aside in the land. 12. His likeness as a lion desirous to tear, As a young lion dwelling in secret places. 13. Arise, O Jehovah, go before his face, Cause him to bend. Deliver my soul from the wicked, Thy sword, 14. From men, Thy hand, O Jehovah, From men of the world, their portion [is] in life, And [with] Thy hidden things Thou fillest their belly, They are satisfied [with] sons; And have left their abundance to their sucklings. 15. I, in righteousness, I see Thy face; I am satisfied, in awaking, [with] Thy form!" (Psalms 17:1-15, 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

Quoted in

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 (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
  • WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
  • KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
  • 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 for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.