Bible Strands
Psalms 26:9
Do not take my soul away with sinners, or my life with men of bloodshed,
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The psalmist addresses the Lord directly, making a plea for deliverance at a moment of moral crisis. The request follows a declaration of love for God's dwelling and immediately precedes a description of the corrupt schemes practiced by the sinners he wishes to avoid.
The words — The Hebrew תֶּאֱסֹף (te'eesof) literally means "you gather" or "you remove," depicting divine action as a gathering that separates the condemned from the protected. This verb grounds the psalmist's fear of being counted among the wicked.
The thread — The motif of God separating the righteous from the bloodthirsty appears in Psalms 139:19 and Matthew 25:32, where gathering becomes the mechanism for final judgment. Revelation 22:14 extends this boundary to those who wash their robes and gain entry to the city.
Why it lands — The text establishes a strict boundary between the worshiper and those who practice violence and corruption. It requires the reader to reject association with wicked schemes and actively seek alignment with divine justice.
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
Gather not my soul with sinners, nor my life with bloody men:
Cross-references
- Psalms 139:19 O God, that You would slay the wicked—away from me, you bloodthirsty men—
- Matthew 25:32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate the people one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
- Revelation 22:14 Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and may enter the city by its gates.
- 1 Samuel 22:18 So the king ordered Doeg, “You turn and strike down the priests!” And Doeg the Edomite turned and struck down the priests himself. On that day he killed eighty-five men who wore the linen ephod.
- 1 Samuel 25:29 And should someone pursue you and seek your life, then the life of my lord will be bound securely by the LORD your God in the bundle of the living. But He shall fling away the lives of your enemies like stones from a sling.
- 2 Samuel 16:7 And as he yelled curses, Shimei said, “Get out, get out, you worthless man of bloodshed!
- 2 Samuel 21:1 During the reign of David there was a famine for three successive years, and David sought the face of the LORD. And the LORD said, “It is because of the blood shed by Saul and his family, because he killed the Gibeonites.”
- Psalms 28:1 Of David. To You, O LORD, I call; be not deaf to me, O my Rock. For if You remain silent, I will be like those descending to the Pit.
- Psalms 51:14 Deliver me from bloodguilt, O God, the God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing of Your righteousness.
- Psalms 55:23 But You, O God, will bring them down to the Pit of destruction; men of bloodshed and deceit will not live out half their days. But I will trust in You.