Bible Strands
Psalms 34:21
Evil will slay the wicked, and the haters of the righteous will be condemned.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — David pronounces God’s judgment immediately after describing His protection of the righteous. The declaration addresses the community by contrasting the fate of the protected with that of their opponents.
The words — רָשָׁ֣ע (ra.Sha') means [the] wicked, and יֶאְשָֽמוּ (ye'.Sha.mu) means they will be held guilty. These terms frame the verse as a legal verdict rather than a mere prediction.
The thread — The motif of divine retribution against the wicked runs through Psalms 94:23 and Isaiah 3:11. Proverbs 24:16 provides the parallel contrast between the righteous who recover and the wicked who fall.
Why it lands — The text states that opposition to the righteous results in divine condemnation. It requires the reader to abandon hostility toward the faithful and trust in God’s judicial action.
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
Evil shall slay the wicked: and they that hate the righteous shall be desolate.
Cross-references
- Psalms 94:23 He will bring upon them their own iniquity and destroy them for their wickedness. The LORD our God will destroy them.
- Isaiah 3:11 Woe to the wicked; disaster is upon them! For they will be repaid with what their hands have done.
- Proverbs 24:16 For though a righteous man may fall seven times, he still gets up; but the wicked stumble in bad times.
- Psalms 37:12 The wicked scheme against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them,
- Psalms 89:23 I will crush his foes before him and strike down those who hate him.
- 2 Thessalonians 1:9 They will suffer the penalty of eternal destruction, separated from the presence of the Lord and the glory of His might,
- Luke 19:14 But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We do not want this man to rule over us.’
- 1 Samuel 19:4 Then Jonathan spoke well of David to his father Saul and said to him, “The king should not sin against his servant David; he has not sinned against you. In fact, his actions have been highly beneficial to you.
- Psalms 37:30 The mouth of the righteous man utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks justice.
- Psalms 40:15 May those who say to me, “Aha, aha!” be appalled at their own shame.