Bible Strands
Psalms 60:9
Who will bring me to the fortified city? Who will lead me to Edom?
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The psalmist addresses God directly, shifting from the divine declarations of conquest in the preceding verse to a desperate plea for military guidance. The moment occurs during a national crisis, asking who will now lead Israel's armies to reclaim hostile territory.
The words — The Hebrew מָצוֹר (ma.tzor) translates literally to "fortified city" or "siege stronghold," while אֱדוֹם ('e.dom) names the specific mountainous region south of Judah. These terms ground the question in the immediate reality of capturing fortified positions in a hostile land.
The thread — The demand for divine leadership against Edom parallels the conquest framework in Judges 1:12, where capturing a fortified city triggers a covenant reward. It also aligns with the royal military campaigns documented in 2 Samuel 11:1 and 12:26, where kings and commanders march to seize strategic strongholds.
Why it lands — The text forces a reader to confront the gap between human military limitation and the necessity of divine intervention for survival. It demands a clear-eyed assessment of whether victory depends on human strategy or on God's active march with the armies.
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
Who will bring me into the strong city? who will lead me into Edom?
Cross-references
- 2 Samuel 12:26 Meanwhile, Joab fought against Rabbah of the Ammonites and captured the royal fortress.
- 2 Samuel 11:1 In the spring, at the time when kings march out to war, David sent out Joab and his servants with the whole army of Israel. They destroyed the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah, but David remained in Jerusalem.
- Judges 1:12 And Caleb said, “To the man who strikes down Kiriath-sepher and captures it, I will give my daughter Acsah in marriage.”
- 1 Chronicles 11:6 Now David had said, “Whoever is the first to strike down a Jebusite will become chief commander.” And Joab son of Zeruiah went up first, and he became the chief.
- 1 Chronicles 11:17 David longed for water and said, “Oh, that someone would get me a drink of water from the well near the gate of Bethlehem!”
- Judges 1:24 and when the spies saw a man coming out of the city, they said to him, “Please show us how to get into the city, and we will treat you kindly.”