Bible Strands
Psalms 14:1
For the choirmaster. Of David. The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt; their acts are vile. There is no one who does good.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — David composes for the choirmaster; the speaker is the psalmist addressing the "fool" (נָבָל) in the third person, diagnosing a condition rather than issuing a direct command.
The words — נָבָל (nāḇāl, H5036) means not merely "stupid" but "worthless, empty," a person defined by the absence of moral substance; the verse's force depends on this, not on the denial itself.
The thread — Psalms 53:1 is a near-identical twin; Psalms 10:4 echoes the "no God" clause in the wicked man's schemes; Romans 3:10 quotes the "no one does good" half as a summary of all humanity.
Why it lands — The verse locates rebellion not in a public act but in a private, unspoken declaration ("in his heart"), which means the reader is asked to examine whether they have already made that quiet declaration without ever voicing it.
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
To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.
Cross-references
- Psalms 10:4 In his pride the wicked man does not seek Him; in all his schemes there is no God.
- Psalms 53:1 For the choirmaster. According to Mahalath. A Maskil of David. The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt; their ways are vile. There is no one who does good.
- Romans 3:10 As it is written: “There is no one righteous, not even one.
- Romans 1:21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and darkened in their foolish hearts.
- Psalms 92:6 A senseless man does not know, and a fool does not understand,
- Ephesians 2:1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins,
- Genesis 6:5 Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great upon the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was altogether evil all the time.
- Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.
- Matthew 12:34 You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.
- Luke 12:20 But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be required of you. Then who will own what you have accumulated?’