Bible Strands
Psalms 31:4
You free me from the net laid out for me, for You are my refuge.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The psalmist addresses God directly, moving from a request for guidance in the preceding verse to a declaration of deliverance. The moment occurs during a prayer for protection, positioning God as the source of safety before the psalmist commits his spirit in the following verse.
The words — The Hebrew verb תּוֹצִיאֵ֗נִי (to.tzi.'E./ni) literally means "you will bring out," paired with מֵרֶ֣שֶת (me./Re.shet), "from the net." These terms anchor the metaphor of entrapment in a concrete, physical scenario rather than an abstract threat.
The thread — The motif of escape from hidden snares appears in Psalms 25:15, where God frees feet from the mesh, and Psalms 140:5, which describes adversaries spreading nets along the path. The designation of God as a place of refuge or fortress recurs in Psalms 31:3 and Psalms 19:14.
Why it lands — The verse requires the reader to recognize deliverance as an act of divine intervention rather than human effort. It frames trust as a response to documented protection, demanding reliance on God's established role as refuge.
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
Pull me out of the net that they have laid privily for me: for thou art my strength.
Cross-references
- Psalms 25:15 My eyes are always on the LORD, for He will free my feet from the mesh.
- 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
- Psalms 19:14 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.
- Psalms 57:6 They spread a net for my feet; my soul was despondent. They dug a pit before me, but they themselves have fallen into it! Selah
- 2 Timothy 2:26 Then they will come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, who has taken them captive to his will.
- Psalms 35:7 For without cause they laid their net for me; without reason they dug a pit for my soul.
- Psalms 124:7 We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowler; the net is torn, and we have slipped away.
- Proverbs 29:5 A man who flatters his neighbor spreads a net for his feet.
- 2 Corinthians 12:9 But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest on me.