Bible Strands
Psalms 119:147
I rise before dawn and cry for help; in Your word I have put my hope.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The psalmist addresses God in the pre-dawn hours, positioned between a request for deliverance to keep divine testimonies (Psalms 119:146) and a vow to watch through the night for meditation on divine instruction (Psalms 119:148).
The words — The Hebrew קִדַּמְתִּי (ki.dam.ti) means to act early or take precedence, while יִחַלְתִּי (yi.chal.ti) denotes patient, expectant waiting. The text literally records rising at twilight to cry out and placing that expectation specifically in God's spoken word.
The thread — The practice of pre-dawn supplication appears in Mark 1:35 and Psalms 5:3, while the explicit pairing of waiting and placing hope in God's word is recorded in Psalms 130:5.
Why it lands — The text requires a reader to establish disciplined morning prayer and to ground expectations in divine instruction rather than immediate outcomes. It frames spiritual vigilance as a concrete routine that shapes daily focus.
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
I prevented the dawning of the morning, and cried: I hoped in thy word.
Cross-references
- Mark 1:35 Early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up and went out to a solitary place to pray.
- Psalms 5:3 In the morning, O LORD, You hear my voice; at daybreak I lay my plea before You and wait in expectation.
- Psalms 130:5 I wait for the LORD; my soul does wait, and in His word I put my hope.
- Psalms 88:13 But to You, O LORD, I cry for help; in the morning my prayer comes before You.
- Psalms 42:8 The LORD decrees His loving devotion by day, and at night His song is with me as a prayer to the God of my life.
- Psalms 56:4 In God, whose word I praise—in God I trust. I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?
- Psalms 119:74 May those who fear You see me and rejoice, for I have hoped in Your word.
- Psalms 119:81 My soul faints for Your salvation; I wait for Your word.
- Psalms 57:8 Awake, my glory! Awake, O harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn.
- Psalms 108:2 Awake, O harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn.