Bible Strands
Psalms 31:20
You hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the schemes of men. You conceal them in Your shelter from accusing tongues.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The psalmist addresses YHWH directly, declaring what God does for those who take refuge in Him, situated between a statement of God's stored-up goodness (v.19) and a blessing pronounced in a besieged city (v.21).
The words — סֵתֶר (se·ter) is a hidden, secret place; סֻכָּה (su·kah) is a shelter or booth, a screen of branches. The verse pairs them deliberately: first a concealed spot, then a more exposed but still protective covering.
The thread — The same images recur in Psalms 27:5 (shelter/booth), 32:7 (hiding place), and 91:1 (shelter of the Most High), all deploying סֵתֶר or סֻכָּה for God's protective concealment.
Why it lands — The verse names the threats concretely — conspiracies and accusing tongues — rather than speaking of "trouble" in general. It asks the reader to identify their own specific schemes and accusers, and to trust that God's hiding is as particular as the threat.
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
Thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy presence from the pride of man: thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues.
Cross-references
- Psalms 27:5 For in the day of trouble He will hide me in His shelter; He will conceal me under the cover of His tent; He will set me high upon a rock.
- Psalms 32:7 You are my hiding place. You protect me from trouble; You surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah
- Psalms 91:1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
- Job 5:21 You will be hidden from the scourge of the tongue, and will not fear havoc when it comes.
- Psalms 64:2 Hide me from the scheming of the wicked, from the mob of workers of iniquity,
- Psalms 140:3 They sharpen their tongues like snakes; the venom of vipers is on their lips. Selah
- Psalms 140:5 The proud hide a snare for me; the cords of their net are spread along the path, and lures are set out for me. Selah
- Exodus 18:11 Now I know that the LORD is greater than all other gods, for He did this when they treated Israel with arrogance.”
- Psalms 10:2 In pride the wicked pursue the needy; let them be caught in the schemes they devise.
- Psalms 40:4 Blessed is the man who has made the LORD his trust, who has not turned to the proud, nor to those who lapse into falsehood.