Psalm 89:46 kjv
How long, LORD? wilt thou hide thyself for ever? shall thy wrath burn like fire?
Psalm 89:46 nkjv
How long, LORD? Will You hide Yourself forever? Will Your wrath burn like fire?
Psalm 89:46 niv
How long, LORD? Will you hide yourself forever? How long will your wrath burn like fire?
Psalm 89:46 esv
How long, O LORD? Will you hide yourself forever? How long will your wrath burn like fire?
Psalm 89:46 nlt
O LORD, how long will this go on?
Will you hide yourself forever?
How long will your anger burn like fire?
Psalm 89 46 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ps 6:3 | My soul is greatly troubled; But You, O LORD, how long? | Plea for immediate divine intervention |
| Ps 13:1 | How long, O LORD? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your...? | Direct echo of "How long" and "forever" |
| Ps 74:10 | How long, O God, will the adversary revile? Will the enemy scoff forever? | Questioning the duration of enemy's triumph |
| Ps 79:5 | How long, O LORD? Will You be angry forever? | Direct echo on enduring wrath |
| Ps 80:4 | O LORD God of hosts, How long will You be angry with the prayer of Your...? | Impatience with prolonged divine anger |
| Ps 90:13 | Do return, O LORD; how long? Have compassion on Your servants. | Plea for God to return after a long delay |
| Ps 94:3 | How long, O LORD, will the wicked, how long will the wicked exult? | Questioning the triumph of the unrighteous |
| Hab 1:2 | How long, O LORD, will I call for help, And You will not hear? | Prophetic lament over lack of justice |
| Ps 10:1 | Why do You stand afar off, O LORD? Why do You hide Yourself in times...? | Questioning God's perceived hiding |
| Ps 27:9 | Do not hide Your face from me; Do not turn Your servant away in anger... | Plea against divine withdrawal |
| Ps 44:24 | Why do You hide Your face And forget our affliction and our oppression? | Lament over a hidden face in national suffering |
| Ps 88:14 | O LORD, why do You reject my soul? Why do You hide Your face from me? | Extreme lament of perceived divine rejection |
| Deut 31:17 | My anger will be kindled against them...and I will abandon them and hide...? | God's threatened act of hiding His face |
| Isa 8:17 | And I will wait for the LORD who is hiding His face from the house of Jacob | Waiting on a God who has hidden His face |
| Isa 59:2 | But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and...? | Sin causing God's face to be hidden |
| Deut 32:22 | For a fire is kindled in My anger, And burns to the lowest hell... | God's wrath described as a consuming fire |
| Ps 18:8 | Smoke went up from His nostrils; And devouring fire from His mouth... | Poetic description of God's fierce presence |
| Ps 97:3 | Fire goes before Him And burns up His adversaries all around. | Fire as an instrument of divine judgment |
| Lam 2:3 | He has burned in Judah like a flaming fire | God's judgment depicted as a consuming fire |
| Isa 30:27 | Behold, the name of the LORD comes from afar, With burning anger and... | God's anger personified with fiery intensity |
| Jer 4:4 | ...Lest My wrath go forth like fire And burn with no one to quench it... | Warning of unquenchable divine wrath |
| Nah 1:6 | Who can stand before His indignation? And who can endure the burning of His...? | Power of God's fiery wrath highlighted |
| Heb 12:29 | For our God is a consuming fire. | Nature of God revealed as consuming fire |
| Mal 3:6 | For I, the LORD, do not change; therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not...? | God's unchangeableness affirmed, implies covenant |
| Rom 3:3-4 | For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief nullify the faithfulness...? | God's faithfulness despite human failure |
| Ps 102:27 | But You are the same, And Your years will not come to an end. | Affirmation of God's unchanging nature |
Psalm 89 verses
Psalm 89 46 Meaning
Psalm 89:46 is a fervent cry of lament to the LORD, born from a place of deep distress and theological perplexity. The psalmist questions the prolonged duration of God's perceived withdrawal and the unceasing intensity of His wrath. It expresses the anguish of feeling abandoned by a covenant God who seems to have forsaken His promises, a common human experience when facing severe adversity that challenges one's understanding of divine faithfulness.
Psalm 89 46 Context
Psalm 89 is a Royal Psalm that grapples with the tension between God's eternal covenant promises to David and the seemingly catastrophic reality faced by Israel. The psalm opens with a lengthy declaration of God's unwavering faithfulness and omnipotence (vv. 1-18) and a detailed recitation of the Davidic covenant established through Nathan the prophet (vv. 19-37; see 2 Sam 7). God promised David an eternal dynasty and throne, stating His loyalty even if David's descendants sinned. However, beginning in verse 38, the psalmist abruptly pivots to a passionate lament, detailing how God appears to have repudiated His covenant, casting down the king, humiliating his throne, and breaking down the nation's defenses (vv. 38-45). In this crushing context of national defeat and disgrace, verse 46 is a desperate cry asking for relief and understanding, directly following the stark depiction of overwhelming divine wrath. The psalmist cannot reconcile God's stated covenant faithfulness with the intense, consuming suffering His people are experiencing, prompting a profound existential and theological crisis.
Psalm 89 46 Word analysis
How long (עַד־מָה, ʾad-mah): This common interrogative in biblical laments expresses deep anguish and impatience over the protracted duration of suffering or perceived divine inaction. It implies that the affliction has reached an unbearable point, testing the psalmist's endurance and hope.
O LORD (יְהוָה, YHWH): The use of God's covenant name emphasizes the personal and relational aspect of the plea. It's an appeal to the God who is faithful to His covenant promises, highlighting the paradox of His current perceived behavior.
Will you hide yourself (תִּסָּתֵר, tissatēr from sātar): Denotes God's active concealment or withdrawal of His presence. For a people whose identity relied on God's manifest presence, a hidden face signifies divine displeasure, abandonment, or unresponsiveness, leading to profound spiritual distress.
forever (לָנֶצַח, lānetzaḥ): An emphatic term signifying eternity or perpetuity. Its inclusion here intensifies the desperate rhetorical question, conveying a fear that the current state of distress is not merely temporary but an enduring, possibly unending, condemnation.
Will your wrath (עֶבְרָתְךָ, ʿevrātekā from ʿevrāh): Refers to an outburst of intense anger or fury, typically God's righteous indignation. The psalmist questions the persistence and duration of this consuming divine displeasure, experiencing its devastating effects personally or corporately.
burn (תִבְעַר, tivʿar from bāʿar): Signifies to ignite, to be kindled, or to blaze intensely. This verb vividly portrays the destructive power and heat of God's wrath.
like fire (כְּמוֹ־אֵשׁ, kəmō-ʾēsh): A powerful simile that characterizes the intense, all-consuming, and potentially destructive nature of God's wrath. Fire, in Scripture, can symbolize purifying holiness, the manifestation of God's presence, or overwhelming judgment. Here, it emphasizes the devastating impact of divine anger upon the psalmist.
"How long, O LORD?": This opening phrase captures the essence of lament, articulating an unbearable extension of time in which suffering persists and divine intervention is desperately sought. It challenges God to end His perceived silence.
"Will you hide yourself forever?": This paired rhetorical question amplifies the plea, depicting God as having actively chosen to withdraw His protective presence for an intolerably long period. The notion of God's hiddenness creates a profound theological crisis for the psalmist.
"Will your wrath burn like fire?": The third rhetorical question completes the agonizing picture, indicating that the source of the suffering is perceived as God's own burning wrath, intensely felt and seemingly unending, like a devastating, consuming fire. This expresses both the psalmist's feeling of deserving judgment and a desperate longing for immediate relief.
Psalm 89 46 Bonus section
This verse stands as a powerful example of honest prayer found in the biblical laments. It validates the experience of feeling profoundly abandoned or judged by God during periods of intense suffering, allowing believers to bring their confusion, pain, and frustration directly before the Almighty. The "hiding" of God's face is a direct opposite of His "shining" face (e.g., Ps 4:6; Num 6:25), which signifies His favor and blessing, thereby intensifying the distress implied by its absence. The language echoes similar laments experienced by Christ Himself on the cross ("My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?", Matt 27:46), connecting human suffering with divine experience.
Psalm 89 46 Commentary
Psalm 89:46 profoundly articulates the anguish of a soul struggling to reconcile God's majestic, eternal covenant promises with the crushing reality of present suffering and apparent divine abandonment. This verse is not a theological statement on the nature of God's wrath but rather a deeply felt human cry under its weight. The psalmist's desperate "How long?" and the questions concerning God's "hidden" face and "burning wrath" are rhetorical expressions of torment, impatience, and an urgent appeal for divine intervention. This act of bold lamenting, while seemingly questioning God's faithfulness, paradoxically demonstrates profound faith: the psalmist brings his deepest pain directly to the covenant LORD, believing He is sovereign, hears, and ultimately capable of remembering His promises and restoring His people. It reveals that authentic faith can engage honestly with perplexing suffering without denying God's existence or power.