Psalms 142:4

142:3 When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then thou knewest my path. In the way wherein I walked have they privily laid a snare for me.

I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man that would know me: refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul. I looked: or, Look on the right hand, and see failed: Heb. perished from me cared: Heb. sought after

KJV

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Look on my right, and see; for there is no one who is concerned for me. Refuge has fled from me. No one cares for my soul.

I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man that would know me: refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul.

142:5 I cried unto thee, O LORD: I said, Thou art my refuge and my portion in the land of the living.

What does Psalms 142:4 mean?

Psalms 142:4 is a verse in the book of Psalms, in the Old Testament. In the original Hebrew, key words include נָבַט (nâbaṭ), יָמִין (yâmîyn), רָאָה (râʼâh).

Hebrew interlinear

lookedנָבַטnâbaṭ/naw-bat'/H5027to scan, i.e. look intently at; by implication, to regard with pleasure, favor or care

right

hand,יָמִיןyâmîyn/yaw-meen'/H3225the right hand or side (leg, eye) of a person or other object (as the stronger and more dexterous); locally, the south

and

beheld,רָאָהrâʼâh/raw-aw'/H7200to see, literally or figuratively (in numerous applications, direct and implied, transitive, intransitive and causative)

but

there

was

man

that

would

knowנָכַרnâkar/naw-kar'/H5234properly, to scrutinize, i.e. look intently at; hence (with recognition implied), to acknowledge, be acquainted with, care for, respect, revere, or (with suspicion implied), to disregard, ignore, be strange toward, reject, resign, dissimulate (as if ignorant or disowning)

me:

refugeמָנוֹסmânôwç/maw-noce'/H4498a retreat (literally or figuratively); abstractly, a fleeing

failedאָבַדʼâbad/aw-bad'/H6properly, to wander away, i.e. lose oneself; by implication to perish (causative, destroy)

me;

man

caredדָּרַשׁdârash/daw-rash'/H1875properly, to tread or frequent; usually to follow (for pursuit or search); by implication, to seek or ask; specifically to worship

for

soul.נֶפֶשׁnephesh/neh'-fesh/H5315properly, a breathing creature, i.e. animal of (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or mental)

looked:

or,

Look

the

right

hand,

and

see

failed:

Heb.

perished

from

cared:

Heb.

sought

after

Verses like this

Other verses that share key original-language words with Psalms 142:4.

1 Kings 14:5

And the LORD said unto Ahijah, Behold, the wife of Jeroboam cometh to ask a thing of thee for her son; for he is sick: thus and thus shalt thou say unto her: for it shall be, when she cometh in, that she shall feign herself to be another woman.

Genesis 1:21

And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

Genesis 19:17

And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.

Genesis 2:19

And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. Adam: or, the man

Genesis 9:16

And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth.

Genesis 9:5

And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man.

Frequently asked questions

What does Psalms 142:4 say?

Psalms 142:4 (King James Version) reads: "I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man that would know me: refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul. I looked: or, Look on the right hand, and see failed: Heb. perished from me cared: Heb. sought after"

Is Psalms 142:4 in the Old or New Testament?

Psalms 142:4 is in the Old Testament of the Bible, in the book of Psalms.

Reflect

As you read Psalms 142:4, what is one truth here you can carry into today?

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