Psalm 90:13 kjv
Return, O LORD, how long? and let it repent thee concerning thy servants.
Psalm 90:13 nkjv
Return, O LORD! How long? And have compassion on Your servants.
Psalm 90:13 niv
Relent, LORD! How long will it be? Have compassion on your servants.
Psalm 90:13 esv
Return, O LORD! How long? Have pity on your servants!
Psalm 90:13 nlt
O LORD, come back to us!
How long will you delay?
Take pity on your servants!
Psalm 90 13 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ps 13:1-2 | How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? | Expresses prolonged suffering and God's perceived absence. |
| Ps 74:10 | How long, O God, is the foe to scoff? Is the enemy to revile your name forever? | Lament asking "How long" in the face of enemy oppression. |
| Ps 80:3 | Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved! | Similar prayer for restoration and divine favor. |
| Ps 89:46 | How long, O Lord? Will you hide yourself forever? How long will your wrath burn like fire? | Echoes "How long" regarding God's enduring wrath. |
| Ps 103:8 | The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. | God's compassionate nature as grounds for the plea. |
| Ps 145:8-9 | The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love... over all he has made. | Confirms God's universal compassion and grace. |
| Deut 4:30-31 | When you are in tribulation... if you turn to the Lord your God and obey his voice... he will not forsake you or destroy you... | God's promise of mercy upon repentance. |
| Joel 2:13 | Rend your hearts and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful... | Call for genuine repentance, citing God's mercy. |
| Lam 3:22-23 | The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end... they are new every morning. | Grounds for hope in God's unfailing compassion. |
| Jer 29:10 | When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill my good word to you... to bring you back. | God's predetermined time for restoration after discipline. |
| Ezek 36:24-28 | I will take you from the nations and gather you... I will sprinkle clean water on you... | Promise of future cleansing and restoration after discipline. |
| Hos 6:1 | Come, let us return to the Lord; for he has torn us, that he may heal us... | Human response of returning to God in hope of healing. |
| Zech 1:3 | Therefore say to them, Thus declares the Lord of hosts: Return to me, says the Lord of hosts, and I will return to you... | Divine call for repentance and promise of reciprocation. |
| Matt 9:36 | When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless... | Jesus embodying God's compassion for His people. |
| Heb 4:15-16 | For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses... let us with confidence draw near... to receive mercy... | Jesus as the compassionate intercessor, gateway to mercy. |
| Jas 5:16 | The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. | Reinforces the power of prayer in seeking God's intervention. |
| Ps 6:3 | My soul also is greatly troubled. But you, O Lord—how long? | Another Psalm using the urgent "how long?" question. |
| 1 Chr 21:15 | When God sent the angel to destroy Jerusalem, he changed his mind and said to the angel... “Enough; now withdraw your hand.” | Illustrates God relenting from intended judgment. |
| Ps 86:15 | But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. | Directly states the character of God invoked in the plea. |
| Phil 4:6 | Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication... present your requests to God. | Encouragement to present all petitions, including pleas for mercy. |
Psalm 90 verses
Psalm 90 13 Meaning
Psalm 90:13 is a fervent plea addressed to God, reflecting a deeply felt experience of divine judgment and withdrawal. It articulates an urgent longing for the Lord to turn from His posture of discipline, to cease His perceived distance, and to manifest His inherent compassion and mercy towards His suffering people, acknowledging their status as His devoted servants. It is a prayer for the cessation of suffering and the restoration of God's favor.
Psalm 90 13 Context
Psalm 90 is unique as the only Psalm attributed to Moses. Its historical setting likely points to the forty-year wilderness wanderings, a period marked by God's severe discipline of Israel due to their persistent unbelief and rebellion (e.g., Kadesh Barnea). The preceding verses (vv. 7-12) reflect on the brevity of human life, God's terrifying wrath against sin, and the consequences of the wilderness generation's disobedience, culminating in death before reaching the promised land. Moses, witnessing generations perish, pours out a prayer that transitions from theological reflection on God's eternality and man's transience under judgment, to an urgent, communal lament and petition for relief. Verse 13 marks a pivot point from understanding divine judgment to an active appeal for God's redemptive mercy and favor. It reflects the people's desire for God to change His immediate course of action concerning their suffering, not His ultimate character or plan.
Psalm 90 13 Word analysis
- Return (שׁוּב - shuv): This verb literally means "to turn back," "to turn around." Here, it's an imperative plea for God to turn His attention or favor back to His people, implying He had, in their experience, turned away or manifested His wrath. It does not suggest God changes His essence but rather His disposition or action towards humanity, responding to human condition or repentance. It is used both for human repentance (turning to God) and God's "relenting" (turning from judgment) or returning with favor.
- O Lord (יְהוָה - YHWH): This is the Tetragrammaton, the personal covenant name of God, emphasizing His self-existence, eternality, and His unbreakable covenant faithfulness to Israel. Addressing Him by this name appeals to His special relationship with His people, reminding Him of His promises and His character as a faithful covenant God, even amidst their sin and His judgment.
- How long? (עַד-מָתַי - 'ad-matay): A common interjection in laments, reflecting profound distress, anguish, and a sense of protracted suffering. It conveys impatience and weariness under hardship. It is not a challenge to God's authority but an earnest cry from suffering, appealing for an end to their trial. It indicates that the period of God's wrath and their affliction feels prolonged and heavy.
- Have compassion (וְהִנָּחֵם - vehinnahem): Derived from the root נחם (nacham), meaning "to be sorry," "to regret," "to comfort oneself," or "to console." In a theological context, when applied to God, it means "to relent" or "to have pity" in response to an undesirable situation or prayer. It describes God showing mercy, turning from a previously declared or enacted course of action (judgment) out of pity, without implying a change in His immutable nature or ultimate decree. It reflects His responsive interaction within His covenant relationship.
- on Your servants (עַל-עֲבָדֶיךָ - 'al 'avaddeykhā): This phrase underscores the special, dependent relationship between God and His people. It emphasizes that those suffering are not just any people, but those in His service, those called by His name, strengthening the basis for the plea for mercy. It appeals to God's proprietorship and commitment to His chosen people, suggesting He would not completely abandon those who are His.
- "Return, O Lord! How long will it be?": This powerful pairing of an urgent command and a desperate question captures the raw anguish of the people. It signifies their yearning for God's active, merciful presence to return, after experiencing His disciplinary distance or wrath. The "how long" punctuates the pain, revealing a perceived delay in divine intervention.
- "Have compassion on Your servants!": This segment summarizes the essence of the prayer: a direct petition for God's divine pity. The appeal is grounded in the established, unbreakable, though currently strained, covenant relationship, pleading for a merciful change in God's manifested dealing with those who belong to Him.
Psalm 90 13 Bonus section
- The imperative plea for God to "return" and "have compassion" highlights that divine response is often interconnected with human petition. While God is sovereign, He has ordained prayer as a means through which His will, including the cessation of judgment and bestowal of mercy, is sometimes accomplished in history.
- The use of YHWH in conjunction with a plea for Him to "relent" underscores a foundational truth about God: His holiness demands a response to sin, but His covenant faithfulness and compassion allow for the modification of expressed wrath in response to a turning or humble plea from His people (e.g., God relenting over Nineveh, Jonah 3:10; or over David, 1 Chron 21:15).
- This verse acts as a bridge between the grim reality of divine judgment in the early part of the Psalm and the hopeful expectation of restored favor and joy in the verses that follow (vv. 14-17). It expresses the pivotal moment where profound lament leads to hopeful, faith-filled prayer.
Psalm 90 13 Commentary
Psalm 90:13 serves as the anguished turning point in Moses' prayer, transitioning from a sobering reflection on human mortality under divine judgment to an earnest cry for divine intervention and mercy. Experiencing the devastating consequences of God's wrath during the wilderness wanderings, the people appeal to God to "return"—not that God ever truly left, but that He might revert from His stance of active discipline and renew His gracious presence among them. The desperate "How long?" reflects the perceived duration and intensity of their suffering, acknowledging the righteousness of God's anger yet pleading for its cessation. The powerful call to "Have compassion" is rooted in the deep conviction that despite their failures, they are still "Your servants," belonging to Him through covenant. It is a bold petition for God to relent from His severe hand, not because they are worthy, but because His nature is inherently compassionate and faithful to His chosen ones. This verse encapsulates a model for all believers under divine chastening, teaching us to appeal to God's mercy and steadfast love even in times of profound hardship and spiritual dryness.