Psalm 5:4
New International Version
For you are not a God who is pleased with wickedness; with you, evil people are not welcome.

New Living Translation
O God, you take no pleasure in wickedness; you cannot tolerate the sins of the wicked.

English Standard Version
For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you.

Berean Standard Bible
For You are not a God who delights in wickedness; no evil can dwell with You.

King James Bible
For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee.

New King James Version
For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness, Nor shall evil dwell with You.

New American Standard Bible
For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; No evil can dwell with You.

NASB 1995
For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; No evil dwells with You.

NASB 1977
For Thou art not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; No evil dwells with Thee.

Legacy Standard Bible
For You are not a God who delights in wickedness; Evil does not sojourn with You.

Amplified Bible
For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; No evil [person] dwells with You.

Christian Standard Bible
For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil cannot dwell with you.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
For You are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil cannot dwell with You.

American Standard Version
For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: Evil shall not sojourn with thee.

Contemporary English Version
You are not the kind of God who is pleased with evil. Sinners can't stay with you.

English Revised Version
For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: evil shall not sojourn with thee.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness. Evil will never be your guest.

Good News Translation
You are not a God who is pleased with wrongdoing; you allow no evil in your presence.

International Standard Version
Indeed, you aren't a God who delights in wickedness; evil will never dwell with you.

Majority Standard Bible
For You are not a God who delights in wickedness; no evil can dwell with You.

NET Bible
Certainly you are not a God who approves of evil; evil people cannot dwell with you.

New Heart English Bible
For you are not a God who desires wickedness. Evil can't live with you.

Webster's Bible Translation
For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee.

World English Bible
For you are not a God who has pleasure in wickedness. Evil can’t live with you.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
For You [are] not a God desiring wickedness, "" Evil does not inhabit You.

Young's Literal Translation
For not a God desiring wickedness art Thou, Evil inhabiteth Thee not.

Smith's Literal Translation
For thou not a God delighting in injustice: and evil shall not dwell with thee.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
In the morning I will stand before thee, and will see: because thou art not a God that willest iniquity.

Catholic Public Domain Version
In the morning, I will stand before you, and I will see. For you are not a God who wills iniquity.

New American Bible
You are not a god who delights in evil; no wicked person finds refuge with you;

New Revised Standard Version
For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil will not sojourn with you.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness; neither shall evil dwell with thee.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Because you are God, and desire no evil, and no evil one will dwell with you.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
For Thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness; Evil shall not sojourn with Thee.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
For thou art not a god that desires iniquity; neither shall the worker of wickedness dwell with thee.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Give Ear to My Words
3In the morning, O LORD, You hear my voice; at daybreak I lay my plea before You and wait in expectation. 4For You are not a God who delights in wickedness; no evil can dwell with You. 5The boastful cannot stand in Your presence; You hate all workers of iniquity.…

Cross References
Habakkuk 1:13
Your eyes are too pure to look upon evil, and You cannot tolerate wrongdoing. So why do You tolerate the faithless? Why are You silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves?

James 1:13
When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone.

Isaiah 59:2
But your iniquities have built barriers between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He does not hear.

1 John 1:5
And this is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you: God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.

Proverbs 15:29
The LORD is far from the wicked, but He hears the prayer of the righteous.

1 Peter 3:12
For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are inclined to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

Isaiah 1:15
When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide My eyes from you; even though you multiply your prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are covered with blood.

1 Corinthians 6:9-10
Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who submit to or perform homosexual acts, / nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.

Proverbs 6:16-19
There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to Him: / haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, / a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that run swiftly to evil, ...

Romans 1:18
The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness.

Isaiah 59:1-2
Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor His ear too dull to hear. / But your iniquities have built barriers between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He does not hear.

2 Corinthians 6:14
Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership can righteousness have with wickedness? Or what fellowship does light have with darkness?

Ephesians 5:5
For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure, or greedy person (that is, an idolater) has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

Psalm 11:5
The LORD tests the righteous and the wicked; His soul hates the lover of violence.

Revelation 21:27
But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who practices an abomination or a lie, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.


Treasury of Scripture

For you are not a God that has pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with you.

God

Psalm 50:21
These things hast thou done, and I kept silence; thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thyself: but I will reprove thee, and set them in order before thine eyes.

1 Chronicles 29:17
I know also, my God, that thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of mine heart I have willingly offered all these things: and now have I seen with joy thy people, which are present here, to offer willingly unto thee.

Habakkuk 1:13
Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he?

evil

Psalm 94:20
Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?

Psalm 101:7
He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight.

Psalm 140:13
Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto thy name: the upright shall dwell in thy presence.

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Delights Desiring Dwell Dwells Evil Inhabiteth Live Pleasure Sojourn Wicked Wickedness Wrongdoing
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Delights Desiring Dwell Dwells Evil Inhabiteth Live Pleasure Sojourn Wicked Wickedness Wrongdoing
Psalm 5
1. David prays, and professes his study in prayer
4. God favors not the wicked
7. David, professing his faith, prays to God to guide him
10. to destroy his enemies
11. and to preserve the godly














For You are not a God who delights in wickedness
This phrase establishes a foundational understanding of God's character. The Hebrew word for "delights" is "ḥāp̄ēṣ," which conveys a sense of pleasure or desire. God does not find pleasure in wickedness, which is "rā‘," meaning evil or morally wrong actions. This highlights God's holiness and righteousness, setting Him apart from human sinfulness. Historically, this understanding of God as holy and separate from evil was crucial for the Israelites, who were surrounded by pagan cultures with deities that often embodied both good and evil traits. This distinction underscores the purity and moral perfection of the God of Israel.

no evil can dwell with You
The word "dwell" is translated from the Hebrew "gûr," which means to sojourn or temporarily reside. This implies that evil cannot even temporarily exist in God's presence. The phrase emphasizes the incompatibility of sin with God's nature. In the broader scriptural context, this is a reminder of the separation between God and sin, which is a recurring theme throughout the Bible. It points to the necessity of holiness and purity for those who wish to approach God, a concept that is further developed in the New Testament through the atoning work of Christ, who bridges the gap between sinful humanity and a holy God.

(4) Neither shall evil.--Better, the wicked man is not thy guest. For the same thought, see Psalms 15; and for the opposite, of God coming to dwell with the godly, Isaiah 57:15.

Verse 4. - For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness. Thou wilt listen to the prayer of a righteous man (Psalm 4:1), since thou dost not delight in wickedness, but in goodness. Neither shall evil dwell with thee. Light has no fellowship with darkness. Evil men can obtain no support from thee, who art All-holy. They will scarcely venture to ask thy aid.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
For
כִּ֤י ׀ (kî)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

You
אָ֑תָּה (’āt·tāh)
Pronoun - second person masculine singular
Strong's 859: Thou and thee, ye and you

are not
לֹ֤א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

a God
אֵֽל־ (’êl-)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 410: Strength -- as adjective, mighty, the Almighty

who delights
חָפֵ֘ץ (ḥā·p̄êṣ)
Adjective - masculine singular construct
Strong's 2655: Delighting in, having pleasure in

in wickedness;
רֶ֥שַׁע ׀ (re·ša‘)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 7562: Wickedness

no
לֹ֖א (lō)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808: Not, no

evil
רָֽע׃ (rā‘)
Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 7451: Bad, evil

can dwell with You.
יְגֻרְךָ֣ (yə·ḡur·ḵā)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular | second person masculine singular
Strong's 1481: To turn aside from the road, sojourn, to shrink, fear, to gather for, hostility


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OT Poetry: Psalm 5:4 For you are not a God who (Psalm Ps Psa.)
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