Psalm 69:4 kjv
They that hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of mine head: they that would destroy me, being mine enemies wrongfully, are mighty: then I restored that which I took not away.
Psalm 69:4 nkjv
Those who hate me without a cause Are more than the hairs of my head; They are mighty who would destroy me, Being my enemies wrongfully; Though I have stolen nothing, I still must restore it.
Psalm 69:4 niv
Those who hate me without reason outnumber the hairs of my head; many are my enemies without cause, those who seek to destroy me. I am forced to restore what I did not steal.
Psalm 69:4 esv
More in number than the hairs of my head are those who hate me without cause; mighty are those who would destroy me, those who attack me with lies. What I did not steal must I now restore?
Psalm 69:4 nlt
Those who hate me without cause
outnumber the hairs on my head.
Many enemies try to destroy me with lies,
demanding that I give back what I didn't steal.
Psalm 69 4 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Jn 15:25 | "But now they have seen and hated both me and my Father.’ This fulfills the word that is written in their Law, ‘They hated me without a cause.’" | Jesus quotes Psa 69:4 directly for Himself. |
| Ps 35:19 | "Let not those rejoice over me who are wrongfully my foes, and let not those wink the eye who hate me without cause." | Similar theme of unjust, causeless hatred. |
| Ps 109:3 | "They encircle me with words of hate, and attack me without cause." | Echoes "without cause" (חִנָּם - chinnam). |
| Isa 53:3 | "He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not." | Points to Christ's rejection and unmerited suffering. |
| Isa 53:4 | "Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted." | The suffering servant bearing what isn't his own. |
| Isa 53:5 | "But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed." | Direct fulfillment of "restore what I did not steal." |
| 2 Cor 5:21 | "For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." | Christ taking on a debt (sin) that wasn't His. |
| 1 Pet 2:24 | "He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed." | Christ bore what He didn't steal. |
| Rom 5:8 | "but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." | Died for the ungodly, bearing the undeserved. |
| Ps 22:6 | "But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by the people." | Messianic psalm of intense suffering. |
| Ps 31:13 | "For I hear the whispering of many—terror on every side!—as they scheme together against me, as they plot to take my life." | Reflects the overwhelming nature of enemies. |
| Lam 3:52 | "I am hunted like a bird by those who were my enemies without cause." | Unjust persecution (chinnam). |
| Matt 27:38 | "Then two robbers were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left." | The Innocent one counted among transgressors. |
| Mk 15:27-28 | "And with him they crucified two robbers... And the Scripture was fulfilled that says, 'He was numbered with the transgressors.'" | Christ, though innocent, was "numbered with" criminals. |
| Heb 9:28 | "so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him." | Christ bearing the burden of others' sins. |
| Lk 23:34 | "And Jesus said, 'Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.'" | Forgiveness for those who hated without cause. |
| Gal 3:13 | "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree'" | Christ became a curse he did not deserve. |
| Jn 1:11 | "He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him." | Reflects the rejection and hatred from his own. |
| Ps 55:3 | "because of the voice of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked. For they drop trouble upon me, and in anger they bear a grudge against me." | Enmity and oppression from adversaries. |
| Psa 118:10-12 | "All nations surrounded me... They surrounded me like bees..." | Describes being surrounded by numerous enemies. |
| 1 Pet 3:18 | "For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit." | The innocent suffering for the guilty. |
Psalm 69 verses
Psalm 69 4 Meaning
Psalm 69:4 is a profound lament expressing the intense suffering of a righteous individual facing overwhelming, unjust opposition. It conveys the sheer number and strength of adversaries who hate and seek to destroy without any legitimate reason. The final phrase highlights a grave injustice: the psalmist is forced to "restore" or pay for something he never took, bearing a cost for an offense he did not commit. This verse articulates a sense of profound victimhood, alienation, and unmerited suffering.
Psalm 69 4 Context
Psalm 69 is a Psalm of Lament by David, expressing deep distress, sorrow, and prayer for deliverance from powerful enemies. The psalmist describes being overwhelmed by "deep waters" of trouble, suffering scorn and rejection, and feeling abandoned even by God for a time (though this is a rhetorical cry, not theological truth of abandonment). The Psalm is intensely personal yet profoundly prophetic, particularly regarding the suffering of the Messiah. This verse fits within a larger narrative of unmerited suffering and relentless persecution. Historically and culturally, such laments arose from experiences of unjust accusation, social ostracization, and hostility from those who oppose righteousness. For the original audience, it resonated with the struggles of the faithful within Israel who faced opposition for their devotion to God.
Psalm 69 4 Word analysis
"More than the hairs of my head" (רַבּוּ מִשַּׂעֲרוֹת רֹאשִׁי -
rabbu missa'arot roshi):- Word:
rabbu(רַבּוּ) - fromrabah(רָבָה), meaning 'to be much, to increase, multiply, be great'. Here, it signifies 'numerous' or 'many'. - Phrase: A hyperbole indicating an overwhelming and innumerable quantity. It emphasizes the sheer vastness and multitude of the enemies, making the situation seem insurmountable for the psalmist. This rhetorical device amplifies the feeling of being completely outnumbered.
- Word:
"are those who hate me without cause" (שֹׂנְאֵי חִנָּם -
sone'ay chinnam):- Word:
sone'ay(שֹׂנְאֵי) - fromsane'(שָׂנֵא), 'to hate'. Here, it means 'my haters' or 'those who hate me'. - Word:
chinnam(חִנָּם) - an adverb meaning 'for nothing, without cause, in vain, undeservedly, gratuitously'. - Phrase: This is a crucial phrase.
chinnamstrongly denotes an absolute lack of justification or provocation from the psalmist's side. It underscores the profound injustice and malicious nature of the hatred. This exact phrase is quoted by Jesus in John 15:25, explicitly linking His unprovoked suffering and hatred to this Messianic prophecy.
- Word:
"mighty are those who would destroy me" (עָצְמוּ מַצְמִיתַי -
atzmu matzmitay):- Word:
atzmu(עָצְמוּ) - fromatzam(עָצַם), 'to be mighty, numerous, strong'. Here, it means 'they are strong, they are powerful'. It can also connote their numerical strength or intense influence. - Word:
matzmitay(מַצְמִיתַי) - fromtzamat(צָמַת), 'to put an end to, cut off, destroy, extirpate'. Here, it refers to 'those who would destroy me' or 'my destroyers'. - Phrase: Highlights not just the number of enemies, but their immense power and their destructive intent. They are not merely bothersome; they actively seek to annihilate the psalmist, posing a grave and potent threat.
- Word:
"being my enemies wrongfully" (אֹיְבַי שֶׁקֶר -
oy'vay sheqer):- Word:
oy'vay(אֹיְבַי) - fromoyeb(אוֹיֵב), 'enemy'. - Word:
sheqer(שֶׁקֶר) - a noun meaning 'falsehood, lie, deception, deceit, fraud'. When used adverbially or in this construct, it implies 'falsely, deceitfully, without basis in truth'. - Phrase: Reinforces the idea of unjust enmity. These are enemies who operate on the basis of lies, false accusations, or groundless pretexts. It mirrors "without cause" (
chinnam) and deepens the sense of the psalmist's blamelessness in the face of fabricated opposition.
- Word:
"What I did not steal must I now restore?" (אֲשֶׁר לֹא גָזַלְתִּי אָז אָשִׁיב -
asher lo gazalti az ashib):- Word:
gazalti(גָזַלְתִּי) - fromgazal(גָזַל), 'to rob, to take by force, to pluck, tear away'. This means 'what I did not rob/steal'. - Word:
ashib(אָשִׁיב) - fromshuv(שׁוּב), 'to turn, return, restore, bring back'. In the Hiphil stem, it means 'I will return, I will restore, I will give back'. - Phrase: This is the climactic cry of the verse, expressing the ultimate absurdity and injustice of the psalmist's situation. He is being coerced into making restitution or paying a penalty for something he did not take or wrong. This phrase carries immense prophetic weight, foreshadowing Jesus Christ, who, being perfectly innocent and having committed no sin (never "stealing" from God's righteousness or commandments), bore the full penalty of humanity's sin, making "restoration" (atonement) for what He Himself never owed. He restored humanity's relationship with God, paying a debt that was not His own.
- Word:
Psalm 69 4 Bonus section
The phrase "without cause" (chinnam) in the Old Testament often carries the connotation of a lack of material gain, suggesting the enemies' malice is purely spiteful, born out of irrational hatred rather than any specific injury or personal benefit. This emphasizes the spiritual dimension of their opposition, setting them against the very nature of righteousness. In the Messianic context, this amplifies Christ's perfect innocence, contrasting it sharply with the world's inexplicable and vehement rejection. The very irrationality of the hatred highlights its satanic origin, opposing God's perfect plan. The injustice expressed in being made to restore what was not stolen is not just a human tragedy but a divine mystery: God in Christ voluntarily takes upon Himself the penalty due to others, a principle foundational to the doctrine of atonement.
Psalm 69 4 Commentary
Psalm 69:4 stands as a profound cry of innocent suffering and a stark portrayal of the nature of unprovoked hatred. The numerical intensity ("more than the hairs of my head") combined with the raw malice ("hate me without cause") highlights the psalmist's overwhelming isolation and vulnerability. The powerful adversaries, driven by falsehood ("enemies wrongfully"), aim for complete destruction. However, the true climax lies in the rhetorical question: "What I did not steal must I now restore?" This isn't merely a lament about forced restitution; it articulates the deepest form of vicarious suffering. The innocent party is being compelled to bear the consequences or pay the price for a transgression they did not commit.
The New Testament directly identifies the Messiah, Jesus Christ, with this verse, particularly John 15:25, "They hated me without cause." Christ's life perfectly exemplifies this: though perfectly righteous, He faced intense, baseless hatred from the religious and political powers of His time. He committed no sin, "did not steal" from God or man, yet He "restored" or paid the infinite debt for the sins of the world on the cross. His crucifixion, a punishment for what He did not commit, serves as the ultimate fulfillment of being forced to restore what one did not take. He was the innocent Lamb, unjustly led to slaughter, bearing the sins of many. This verse thus prefigures the atoning work of Christ, who, without blemish, absorbed the righteous wrath for humanity's transgression, offering the greatest restitution for what He himself never robbed from God.