Passage

Psalms 5.4-6

Book: Psalms · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV (ASV)

"2. Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God; For unto thee do I pray. 3. O Jehovah, in the morning shalt thou hear my voice; In the morning will I order my prayer unto thee, and will keep watch."

"4. For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: Evil shall not sojourn with thee. 5. The arrogant shall not stand in thy sight: Thou hatest all workers of iniquity. 6. Thou wilt destroy them that speak lies: Jehovah abhorreth the blood-thirsty and deceitful man."

"7. But as for me, in the abundance of thy lovingkindness will I come into thy house: In thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple. 8. Lead me, O Jehovah, in thy righteousness because of mine enemies; Make thy way straight before my face." (Psalms 5:2-8, ASV)

WEB (WEB)

"2. Listen to the voice of my cry, my King and my God; for to you do I pray. 3. Yahweh, in the morning you shall hear my voice. In the morning I will lay my requests before you, and will watch expectantly."

"4. For you are not a God who has pleasure in wickedness. Evil can’t live with you. 5. The arrogant shall not stand in your sight. You hate all workers of iniquity. 6. You will destroy those who speak lies. Yahweh abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man."

"7. But as for me, in the abundance of your loving kindness I will come into your house. I will bow toward your holy temple in reverence of you. 8. Lead me, Yahweh, in your righteousness because of my enemies. Make your way straight before my face." (Psalms 5:2-8, WEB)

KJV (KJV)

"2. Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray. 3. My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up."

"4. For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee. 5. The foolish shall not stand in thy sight: thou hatest all workers of iniquity. ^{in: Heb. before thine eyes} 6. Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: the LORD will abhor the bloody and deceitful man. ^{bloody: Heb. man of bloods and deceit}"

"7. But as for me, I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy: and in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple. ^{thy holy: Heb. the temple of thy holiness} 8. Lead me, O LORD, in thy righteousness because of mine enemies; make thy way straight before my face. ^{mine: Heb. those which observe me}" (Psalms 5:2-8, KJV)

YLT (YLT)

"2. Be attentive to the voice of my cry, My king and my God, For unto Thee I pray habitually. 3. Jehovah, [at] morning Thou hearest my voice, [At] morning I set in array for Thee, And I look out."

"4. For not a God desiring wickedness [art] Thou, Evil inhabiteth Thee not. 5. The boastful station not themselves before Thine eyes: Thou hast hated all working iniquity. 6. Thou destroyest those speaking lies, A man of blood and deceit Jehovah doth abominate."

"7. And I, in the abundance of Thy kindness, I enter Thy house, I bow myself toward Thy holy temple in Thy fear. 8. O Jehovah, lead me in Thy righteousness, Because of those observing me, Make straight before me Thy way," (Psalms 5:2-8, 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

H0410 - el, el (Strong's H410). Also appears in: Genesis 14.18-20, Genesis 16.7-13, Genesis 28.
H1818 - dam, dam (Strong's H1818). Also appears in: Genesis 9.6, Exodus 7, Exodus 12.23.
H3068 - YHWH, YHWH (Strong's H3068). Also appears in: Genesis 2.4, Genesis 2.7, Genesis 2.16-17.

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 (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.