Bible Strands
Psalms 53:3
All have turned away, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The psalmist pronounces universal human corruption immediately after describing God’s descent from heaven to inspect humanity. This declaration follows God’s specific inquiry into whether any people understand or seek Him.
The words — The Hebrew סָג (sag) means "turns back," indicating a deliberate departure from the path, while נֶאֱלָחוּ (ne'elahchu) denotes a fixed state of moral corruption. These terms describe a collective turning away that results in a condition where no individual remains morally upright.
The thread — The identical declaration appears in Psalms 14:3 and is quoted verbatim in Romans 3:12 to establish the baseline of human inability. Isaiah 64:6 extends the imagery by comparing human righteous acts to unclean garments.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition of total moral inability before any appeal for divine intervention. It eliminates self-justification by stating plainly that no person possesses inherent goodness.
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
Every one of them is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
Cross-references
- Romans 3:12 All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”
- Isaiah 64:6 Each of us has become like something unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all wither like a leaf, and our iniquities carry us away like the wind.
- Psalms 14:3 All have turned away, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.
- Isaiah 53:6 We all like sheep have gone astray, each one has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid upon Him the iniquity of us all.
- Jeremiah 8:5 Why then have these people turned away? Why does Jerusalem always turn away? They cling to deceit; they refuse to return.
- 3 John 1:11 Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. The one who does good is of God; the one who does evil has not seen God.
- 2 Samuel 20:2 So all the men of Israel deserted David to follow Sheba son of Bichri. But the men of Judah stayed by their king all the way from the Jordan to Jerusalem.
- Job 15:16 how much less man, who is vile and corrupt, who drinks injustice like water?
- Ezekiel 36:25 I will also sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your impurities and all your idols.
- Zephaniah 1:6 and those who turn back from following the LORD, neither seeking the LORD nor inquiring of Him.”