Bible Strands
Psalms 144:7
Reach down from on high; set me free and rescue me from the deep waters, from the grasp of foreigners,
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — David addresses God in a psalm of petition, shifting from a prayer for national military victory to a direct request for personal rescue. The speaker moves from describing divine judgment over enemies to pleading for immediate intervention against imminent threat.
The words — The imperative שְׁלַח (she.Lach) commands God to "stretch out" His יָד (yad, hand), while פְּצֵנִי (pe.Tze.ni) and הַצִּילֵנִי (ha.Tzi.le.ni) literally mean "set me free" and "deliver me." These verbs describe an active, forceful extraction rather than a gradual rescue.
The thread — The plea to be drawn from "deep waters" directly parallels the rescue imagery in Psalms 18:16 and Psalms 69:1. The specific danger from "foreigners" aligns with the hostile, God-rejecting forces detailed in Psalms 54:3.
Why it lands — The verse requires the reader to acknowledge that survival against overwhelming opposition depends entirely on divine intervention. It frames deliverance as a demand for God to act from His authority rather than a suggestion for human strategy.
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
Send thine hand from above; rid me, and deliver me out of great waters, from the hand of strange children;
Cross-references
- Psalms 18:16 He reached down from on high and took hold of me; He drew me out of deep waters.
- Psalms 69:1 For the choirmaster. To the tune of “Lilies.” Of David. Save me, O God, for the waters are up to my neck.
- Psalms 54:3 For strangers rise up against me, and ruthless men seek my life—men with no regard for God. Selah
- Revelation 17:15 Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw, where the prostitute was seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues.
- 2 Samuel 22:17 He reached down from on high and took hold of me; He drew me out of deep waters.
- Psalms 18:44 When they hear me, they obey me; foreigners cower before me.
- Psalms 93:3 The floodwaters have risen, O LORD; the rivers have raised their voice; the seas lift up their pounding waves.
- Matthew 27:43 He trusts in God. Let God deliver Him now if He wants Him. For He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’”
- Revelation 12:15 Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river to overtake the woman and sweep her away in the torrent.
- Nehemiah 9:2 Those of Israelite descent separated themselves from all the foreigners, and they stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers.