Bible Strands
Psalms 31:17
O LORD, let me not be ashamed, for I have called on You. Let the wicked be put to shame; let them lie silent in Sheol.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The psalmist addresses Yahweh directly, making a plea for deliverance at a moment when wicked opponents speak arrogantly against the righteous (Psalms 31:16-18). The request marks a shift from personal distress to a demand for divine intervention and public vindication.
The words — The Hebrew verb אֵ֭בוֹשָׁה ('E.vo.shah) means "I be ashamed," standing in parallel with יֵֽבֹ֥שׁוּ (ye.Vo.shu), "may they be put to shame," both derived from the same root. These terms establish a direct contrast between the speaker’s requested honor and the wicked’s anticipated disgrace.
The thread — The pattern of trusting God to prevent shame and reverse enemy confidence appears in Psalms 25:2, where the psalmist asks that enemies not exult over him. Jeremiah 20:11 mirrors this by stating that Yahweh’s presence as a warrior causes persecutors to stumble and fail.
Why it lands — The text requires a reader to accept that calling on God is the stated ground for expecting shame to be removed and the wicked to be silenced. It demands a posture of reliance on divine justice to override human arrogance rather than on self-defense or merit.
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
Let me not be ashamed, O Lord; for I have called upon thee: let the wicked be ashamed, and let them be silent in the grave.
Cross-references
- Psalms 25:2 in You, my God, I trust. Do not let me be put to shame; do not let my enemies exult over me.
- Jeremiah 20:11 But the LORD is with me like a fearsome warrior. Therefore, my persecutors will stumble and will not prevail. Since they have not succeeded, they will be utterly put to shame, with an everlasting disgrace that will never be forgotten.
- Psalms 34:5 Those who look to Him are radiant with joy; their faces shall never be ashamed.
- Psalms 35:26 May those who gloat in my distress be ashamed and confounded; may those who exalt themselves over me be clothed in shame and reproach.
- Psalms 115:17 It is not the dead who praise the LORD, nor any who descend into silence.
- Isaiah 41:11 Behold, all who rage against you will be ashamed and disgraced; those who contend with you will be reduced to nothing and will perish.
- 1 Samuel 2:9 He guards the steps of His faithful ones, but the wicked perish in darkness; for by his own strength shall no man prevail.
- Psalms 35:4 May those who seek my life be disgraced and put to shame; may those who plan to harm me be driven back and confounded.
- Psalms 40:14 May those who seek my life be ashamed and confounded; may those who wish me harm be repelled and humiliated.
- Psalms 69:6 May those who hope in You not be ashamed through me, O Lord GOD of Hosts; may those who seek You not be dishonored through me, O God of Israel.