Psalm 112:10 kjv
The wicked shall see it, and be grieved; he shall gnash with his teeth, and melt away: the desire of the wicked shall perish.
Psalm 112:10 nkjv
The wicked will see it and be grieved; He will gnash his teeth and melt away; The desire of the wicked shall perish.
Psalm 112:10 niv
The wicked will see and be vexed, they will gnash their teeth and waste away; the longings of the wicked will come to nothing.
Psalm 112:10 esv
The wicked man sees it and is angry; he gnashes his teeth and melts away; the desire of the wicked will perish!
Psalm 112:10 nlt
The wicked will see this and be infuriated.
They will grind their teeth in anger;
they will slink away, their hopes thwarted.
Psalm 112 10 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ps 1:6 | For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish. | Way of wicked perishes. |
| Ps 37:2 | For they soon wither like the grass and fade away like the green herb. | Wicked are fleeting. |
| Ps 37:10 | In a little while the wicked will be no more; though you look for them, they will not be found. | Wicked disappear. |
| Ps 37:12 | The wicked plot against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them. | Wicked's hostility to righteous. |
| Ps 37:20 | But the wicked will perish; the Lord’s enemies will vanish like smoke— | Wicked perish like smoke. |
| Ps 37:28 | For the Lord loves justice; he will not forsake his faithful ones. | God upholds the just, wicked fail. |
| Prov 10:24 | What the wicked dreads will come upon him, but the desire of the righteous will be granted. | Wicked's fears realized, desires unfulfilled. |
| Prov 10:28 | The hope of the righteous will be gladness, but the expectation of the wicked will perish. | Wicked's hope fails. |
| Prov 11:23 | The desire of the righteous ends only in good, but the expectation of the wicked in wrath. | Wicked's end is wrath. |
| Prov 24:20 | For there will be no future for the evil man; the lamp of the wicked will be put out. | No future for wicked. |
| Isa 51:6 | ...but my salvation will be forever, and my righteousness will never be dismayed. | God's justice endures, wicked fade. |
| Mt 8:12 | But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. | Gnashing of teeth in judgment. |
| Mt 13:42 | And throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. | Punishment and gnashing. |
| Mt 13:50 | And throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. | Further mention of judgment. |
| Mt 22:13 | Then the king said to the attendants, 'Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' | Outer darkness, weeping. |
| Mt 24:51 | And will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. | Hypocrites and gnashing. |
| Mt 25:30 | And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. | Worthless servant, outer darkness. |
| Lk 13:28 | In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but yourselves cast out. | Exclusion and despair. |
| Acts 7:54 | When they heard these things they were enraged, and they ground their teeth at him. | Enraged, grind teeth (context of Stephen). |
| Gal 6:7 | Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. | Reaping for wicked. |
| Phil 3:19 | Their end is destruction, their god is their stomach, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. | Wicked's end is destruction. |
| Jas 4:3 | You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. | Ungodly desires unfulfilled. |
| Rev 11:18 | The nations raged, but your wrath came, and the time for the dead to be judged... and to destroy those who destroy the earth. | Nations' rage, divine judgment. |
Psalm 112 verses
Psalm 112 10 Meaning
Psalm 112:10 powerfully concludes the depiction of the righteous, revealing the stark contrast of the wicked's ultimate end. It states that when the wicked witness the blessedness and enduring prosperity of the righteous, they will be filled with vexation, anger, and envious grief. This intense negative emotion will manifest in bitter frustration, as their own hopes and desires, built upon ungodliness, will utterly fail and come to nothing. Their power, influence, and ambitions will vanish, leading to their internal decay and ultimate demise, a clear testament to divine justice.
Psalm 112 10 Context
Psalm 112 is a wisdom psalm, part of the Hallelujah Psalms (111-118). It is an acrostic psalm, similar to Psalm 111, which precedes it and focuses on God's great works. Psalm 112, by contrast, shifts to the blessed character and consequences of fearing the Lord, paralleling God's actions with the righteous man's conduct. Verses 1-9 meticulously describe the blessings upon the righteous who delights in the Lord's commandments, highlighting their spiritual stability, financial uprightness, lasting remembrance, and ultimate steadfastness even in adversity. Verse 10 provides a sharp, climactic contrast to these blessings, serving as a powerful demonstration of divine justice. Historically and culturally, the belief in retribution, where actions lead to consequences (blessing for righteousness, curse for wickedness), was fundamental. This verse directly refutes any contemporary belief that the wicked might indefinitely escape justice or mock God with impunity, firmly asserting that their opposition to divine order culminates in despair and failure.
Psalm 112 10 Word analysis
- The wicked (rasha` - רָשָׁע): This term refers to those who are morally evil, unjust, guilty, and ungodly. They are defined by their active rebellion against God's law and righteousness, in direct contrast to the righteous one described throughout the psalm. Their character is antagonistic to divine order.
- shall see it (ra'ah - רָאָה): This implies more than just casual observation. It signifies witnessing with full awareness, perceiving with bitterness the success, stability, and enduring blessedness of the righteous that they cannot achieve or disturb. The "it" refers collectively to all the virtues and blessings outlined in verses 1-9.
- and be grieved (ka'as - כָּאַס): This Hebrew word denotes a strong internal turmoil, implying deep vexation, anguish, anger, indignation, and resentment. It’s a response of profound displeasure and frustration, stemming from their envy and their inability to derail or attain the peace enjoyed by the righteous.
- he shall gnash with his teeth (ḥāraq shin·na·yim - חָרַק שִׁנַּיִם): This is a vivid expression of intense rage, utter frustration, pain, and helpless despair. It signifies a profound, often powerless, indignation and resentment. In the New Testament, this imagery is frequently linked with the anguish of eternal judgment and separation from God, suggesting profound remorse coupled with impotent fury.
- and melt away (māṣaṣ - מָסַס): This suggests a wasting or pining away, dissolving into nothingness, losing substance and strength. It depicts the complete erosion of their vitality, power, and influence. Figuratively, it speaks to their despair causing their very being to wither, highlighting the internal collapse and loss of purpose. Their plans and substance dissipate like wax before fire.
- the desire of the wicked (ta'avah - תַּאֲוָה / rasha` - רָשָׁע): The term ta'avah refers to longing, craving, or ambition. The desires of the wicked are inherently self-serving, destructive, and often aimed at opposing God and His people. This highlights their corrupted aspirations.
- shall perish ('abad - אָבַד): This signifies complete destruction, vanishing, coming to nothing, being lost, or utterly failing. It implies not just the failure of their specific wicked schemes, but the ultimate nullification of all their ungodly longings and life's ambitions. All their hopes rooted in wickedness are completely annihilated.
Psalm 112 10 Bonus section
The contrast presented in Psalm 112:10 amplifies the goodness described in the preceding verses. The prosperity of the righteous (v. 3, "wealth and riches are in his house") is explicitly spiritual and moral, leading to generosity and enduring righteousness (v. 4, 9), whereas the desires of the wicked are inherently selfish and temporal, hence destined to perish. This verse subtly functions as a prophetic warning: those who reject God's ways and pursue unrighteous paths will find their very essence consumed by their own envy and frustration at the thriving of the faithful. Their internal decay mirrors the external dissolution of their power and purpose.
Psalm 112 10 Commentary
Psalm 112:10 delivers a concluding pronouncement on the wicked, serving as a divine reassurance for the righteous. It illustrates that God’s justice is not passive but demonstrative. The sight of the righteous' enduring prosperity evokes in the wicked not admiration, but bitter resentment and impotent rage, revealing their fundamental opposition to God's order. Their "gnashing of teeth" powerfully symbolizes this helpless fury and the self-inflicted torment of unfulfilled malevolence. The imagery of "melting away" indicates an internal spiritual decay, a dissolution of their very being and power, brought about by their own corrupt desires and frustrated malice. Ultimately, every evil ambition, every self-serving scheme, and all the wicked’s deep-seated longings will be entirely frustrated and come to naught. This verse firmly underscores that the paths of the righteous and the wicked lead to diametrically opposite ends, affirming God's unfailing commitment to uphold the one and bring the other to its inevitable destruction. It teaches that the blessings of God on the faithful serve not only to prosper them but also to judge the ungodly, who can only witness and rage at what they can neither prevent nor partake in.