Bible Strands
Psalms 116:6
The LORD preserves the simplehearted; I was helpless, and He saved me.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The psalmist speaks in the first person, addressing his own soul and the surrounding worship community at the moment of recounting deliverance. The declaration occurs immediately after affirming God's compassion and just before exhaling the soul to return to rest.
The words — The Hebrew שֹׁמֵ֣ר (sho.Mer) denotes active, ongoing protection, while פְּתָאיִ֣ם (pe.ta.Yim) refers to simple or unskilled people who lack self-reliance. The phrase דַּ֝לּוֹתִ֗י (da.lo.Ti) literally means "I had become low," establishing the psalmist's state of helplessness before God's saving action יְהוֹשִֽׁיעַ (ye.ho.Shi.a').
The thread — This pattern of God preserving the vulnerable runs through Psalms 19:7, where divine testimony makes wise the simple, and Psalms 142:6, which repeats the cry of one brought low. The same dynamic appears in Matthew 11:25, where Jesus observes God's deliberate choice to reveal truth to the simple rather than the self-sufficient.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to acknowledge personal insufficiency as the necessary condition for receiving divine preservation. It demands a shift from self-reliance to explicit dependence when facing helplessness.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
The Lord preserveth the simple: I was brought low, and he helped me.
Cross-references
- Psalms 19:7 The Law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is trustworthy, making wise the simple.
- Psalms 142:6 Listen to my cry, for I am brought quite low. Rescue me from my pursuers, for they are too strong for me.
- Matthew 11:25 At that time Jesus declared, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.
- Psalms 79:8 Do not hold past sins against us; let Your compassion come quickly, for we are brought low.
- Psalms 25:21 May integrity and uprightness preserve me, because I wait for You.
- Psalms 106:43 Many times He rescued them, but they were bent on rebellion and sank down in their iniquity.
- Isaiah 35:8 And there will be a highway called the Way of Holiness. The unclean will not travel it—only those who walk in the Way—and fools will not stray onto it.
- Romans 16:19 Everyone has heard about your obedience, so I rejoice over you. But I want you to be wise about what is good and innocent about what is evil.
- 2 Corinthians 1:12 For this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in relation to you, in the holiness and sincerity that are from God—not in worldly wisdom, but in the grace of God.
- 2 Corinthians 11:3 I am afraid, however, that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may be led astray from your simple and pure devotion to Christ.