Bible Strands
Psalms 33:20
Our soul waits for the LORD; He is our help and our shield.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The psalmist addresses the community of Israel, speaking on behalf of the worshiping congregation. The declaration occurs in the immediate aftermath of recounting God’s deliverance from death and famine, and just before the community’s rejoicing in His holy name.
The words — נַ֭פְשֵׁנוּ (Nafsheinu) translates to “our soul,” and חִכְּתָ֣ה (chiktah) means “it waits.” The syntax places the soul in a posture of waiting directed toward Yahweh.
The thread — The motif of waiting on the LORD appears in Isaiah 40:31, where it yields renewed strength, and in Psalms 27:14 and 130:5, which pair patient waiting with courage and hope in His word.
Why it lands — The text states that the soul’s posture is waiting, and identifies Yahweh as the resulting help and shield. It requires the reader to adopt patient dependence on God’s protection rather than self-reliance.
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
Our soul waiteth for the Lord: he is our help and our shield.
Cross-references
- Isaiah 40:31 But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.
- Psalms 27:14 Wait patiently for the LORD; be strong and courageous. Wait patiently for the LORD!
- Psalms 130:5 I wait for the LORD; my soul does wait, and in His word I put my hope.
- Psalms 115:9 O Israel, trust in the LORD! He is their help and shield.
- 1 Chronicles 5:20 And because they cried out to God in battle, they were helped against their enemies, and the Hagrites and all their allies were delivered into their hands. Because they put their trust in God, He answered their prayers.
- Psalms 62:5 Rest in God alone, O my soul, for my hope comes from Him.
- Psalms 144:1 Of David. Blessed be the LORD, my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle.
- Isaiah 8:17 I will wait for the LORD, who is hiding His face from the house of Jacob. I will put my trust in Him.
- Psalms 62:1 For the choirmaster. According to Jeduthun. A Psalm of David. In God alone my soul finds rest; my salvation comes from Him.