Psalm 56:5
New International Version
All day long they twist my words; all their schemes are for my ruin.

New Living Translation
They are always twisting what I say; they spend their days plotting to harm me.

English Standard Version
All day long they injure my cause; all their thoughts are against me for evil.

Berean Standard Bible
All day long they twist my words; all their thoughts are on my demise.

King James Bible
Every day they wrest my words: all their thoughts are against me for evil.

New King James Version
All day they twist my words; All their thoughts are against me for evil.

New American Standard Bible
All day long they distort my words; All their thoughts are against me for evil.

NASB 1995
All day long they distort my words; All their thoughts are against me for evil.

NASB 1977
All day long they distort my words; All their thoughts are against me for evil.

Legacy Standard Bible
All day long they distort my words; All their thoughts are against me for evil.

Amplified Bible
All day long they twist my words and say hurtful things; All their thoughts are against me for evil.

Christian Standard Bible
They twist my words all day long; all their thoughts against me are evil.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
They twist my words all day long; all their thoughts against me are evil.

American Standard Version
All the day long they wrest my words: All their thoughts are against me for evil.

Contemporary English Version
Enemies spend the whole day finding fault with me; all they think about is how to do me harm.

English Revised Version
All the day long they wrest my words: all their thoughts are against me for evil.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
All day long my enemies twist my words. Their every thought is an evil plan against me.

Good News Translation
My enemies make trouble for me all day long; they are always thinking up some way to hurt me!

International Standard Version
All day long people distort what I say; all their schemes against me are for evil purposes.

Majority Standard Bible
All day long they twist my words; all their thoughts are on my demise.

NET Bible
All day long they cause me trouble; they make a habit of plotting my demise.

New Heart English Bible
All day long they twist my words. All their thoughts are against me for evil.

Webster's Bible Translation
Every day they wrest my words: all their thoughts are against me for evil.

World English Bible
All day long they twist my words. All their thoughts are against me for evil.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
All the day they wrest my words, "" All their thoughts [are] for evil concerning me,

Young's Literal Translation
All the day they wrest my words, Concerning me all their thoughts are for evil,

Smith's Literal Translation
All the day they will grieve my words: against me all their purposes for evil.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
All the day long they detested my words: all their thoughts were against me unto evil.

Catholic Public Domain Version
In God, I will praise my words. In God, I have put my trust. I will not fear what flesh can do to me.

New American Bible
All the day they foil my plans; their every thought is of evil against me.

New Revised Standard Version
All day long they seek to injure my cause; all their thoughts are against me for evil.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
All the day long they conspired against me and they devised evil against me.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
All day they have been conspiring against me and they have been plotting evil against me.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
All the day they trouble mine affairs; All their thoughts are against me for evil.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
All the day long they have abominated my words; all their devices are against me for evil.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Be Merciful to Me, O God
4In God, whose word I praise—in God I trust. I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? 5All day long they twist my words; all their thoughts are on my demise. 6They conspire, they lurk, they watch my steps while they wait to take my life.…

Cross References
Matthew 5:11
Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.

1 Peter 3:16
keeping a clear conscience, so that those who slander you may be put to shame by your good behavior in Christ.

Jeremiah 18:18
Then some said, “Come, let us make plans against Jeremiah, for the law will never be lost to the priest, nor counsel to the wise, nor an oracle to the prophet. Come, let us denounce him and pay no heed to any of his words.”

Luke 6:22
Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil because of the Son of Man.

2 Timothy 3:12
Indeed, all who desire to live godly lives in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,

Psalm 31:13
For I hear the slander of many; there is terror on every side. They conspire against me and plot to take my life.

John 15:18-20
If the world hates you, understand that it hated Me first. / If you were of the world, it would love you as its own. Instead, the world hates you, because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. / Remember the word that I spoke to you: ‘No servant is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you as well; if they kept My word, they will keep yours as well.

Psalm 41:5-6
My enemies say with malice: “When will he die and be forgotten?” / My visitor speaks falsehood; he gathers slander in his heart; he goes out and spreads it abroad.

Acts 6:11-13
Then they prompted some men to say, “We heard Stephen speak words of blasphemy against Moses and against God.” / So they stirred up the people, elders, and scribes and confronted Stephen. They seized him and brought him before the Sanhedrin, / where they presented false witnesses who said, “This man never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law.

Psalm 109:2-3
For wicked and deceitful mouths open against me; they speak against me with lying tongues. / They surround me with hateful words and attack me without cause.

2 Corinthians 6:8
through glory and dishonor, slander and praise; viewed as imposters, yet genuine;

Psalm 140:3
They sharpen their tongues like snakes; the venom of vipers is on their lips. Selah

Romans 3:13
“Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.” “The venom of vipers is on their lips.”

Psalm 64:3-4
who sharpen their tongues like swords and aim their bitter words like arrows, / ambushing the innocent in seclusion, shooting suddenly, without fear.

1 Peter 2:12
Conduct yourselves with such honor among the Gentiles that, though they slander you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day He visits us.


Treasury of Scripture

Every day they wrest my words: all their thoughts are against me for evil.

they

Isaiah 29:20,21
For the terrible one is brought to nought, and the scorner is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off: …

Matthew 22:15
Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle him in his talk.

Matthew 26:61
And said, This fellow said, I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to build it in three days.

all

1 Samuel 18:17,21,29
And Saul said to David, Behold my elder daughter Merab, her will I give thee to wife: only be thou valiant for me, and fight the LORD'S battles. For Saul said, Let not mine hand be upon him, but let the hand of the Philistines be upon him…

1 Samuel 20:7,33
If he say thus, It is well; thy servant shall have peace: but if he be very wroth, then be sure that evil is determined by him…

Jeremiah 18:18
Then said they, Come, and let us devise devices against Jeremiah; for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, and let us smite him with the tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his words.

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Affairs Always Cause Distort Evil Harm Injure Plotting Seek Thoughts Trouble Twist Use Words Wrest Wrong
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Affairs Always Cause Distort Evil Harm Injure Plotting Seek Thoughts Trouble Twist Use Words Wrest Wrong
Psalm 56
1. David, praying to God in confidence of his word, complains of his enemies,
9. He professes his confidence in God's word, and promises to praise him














All day long
This phrase emphasizes the relentless nature of the psalmist's adversaries. In the Hebrew text, the word used here is "kol," meaning "all" or "every," combined with "yom," meaning "day." This suggests a continuous, unceasing attack, reflecting the psalmist's feeling of being under constant pressure and surveillance. Historically, this can be seen as David's experience when he was pursued by King Saul, highlighting the intensity and persistence of his trials.

they twist my words
The Hebrew root for "twist" is "עָצַב" (atsab), which can mean to distort or to cause pain. This indicates a deliberate manipulation of the psalmist's words, turning them against him. In a broader scriptural context, this reflects the common experience of God's people being misunderstood or misrepresented, a theme that resonates throughout the Bible, including the New Testament, where Jesus Himself faced similar distortions of His teachings.

all their thoughts
The word "thoughts" comes from the Hebrew "מַחֲשָׁבוֹת" (machashavot), which can also mean plans or schemes. This suggests that the adversaries are not only distorting words but are also actively plotting against the psalmist. The use of "all" again underscores the totality and intensity of their scheming, leaving no room for peace or respite.

are against me
This phrase highlights the personal nature of the attacks. The Hebrew preposition "עַל" (al) can mean "against" or "upon," indicating a direct opposition. This personal opposition is a common experience for those who stand for righteousness, as seen throughout biblical history, where God's servants often faced hostility from those who opposed God's ways.

for evil
The Hebrew word "רָע" (ra) is used here, which means evil, wickedness, or harm. This underscores the malicious intent behind the adversaries' actions. In the biblical narrative, evil is often portrayed as being in direct opposition to God's goodness and righteousness. The psalmist's cry here is a recognition of the spiritual battle between good and evil, a theme that is prevalent throughout Scripture and is a reminder of the believer's call to stand firm in faith amidst adversity.

(5) Wrest.--Properly, afflict; and so some, "injure my cause." But "torture my words" is intelligible.

Verse 5. - Every day they wrest my words; rather, all the day long. they wrest (or, torture) my words. They seek to give my words an evil meaning, and so to misrepresent me to Achish, their king. As Canon Cook says, "This description is singularly applicable to David's position among the envious nobles at the court of Achish Still, it does not speak of his having been actually arrested, and does not, therefore, seem to have suggested the inscription." All their thoughts are against his for evil. They are entirely bent on doing the psalmist some hurt. What they really seek is his life (ver. 6); but, short of that, they would gladly do him some mischief.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
All day long
כָּל־ (kāl-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

they twist
יְעַצֵּ֑בוּ (yə·‘aṣ·ṣê·ḇū)
Verb - Piel - Imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 6087: To carve, fabricate, fashion, to worry, pain, anger

my words;
דְּבָרַ֣י (də·ḇā·ray)
Noun - masculine plural construct | first person common singular
Strong's 1697: A word, a matter, thing, a cause

all
כָּל־ (kāl-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

their thoughts
מַחְשְׁבֹתָ֣ם (maḥ·šə·ḇō·ṯām)
Noun - feminine plural construct | third person masculine plural
Strong's 4284: A contrivance, a texture, machine, intention, plan

[are] of
עָלַ֖י (‘ā·lay)
Preposition | first person common singular
Strong's 5921: Above, over, upon, against

my demise.
לָרָֽע׃ (lā·rā‘)
Preposition-l, Article | Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 7451: Bad, evil


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OT Poetry: Psalm 56:5 All day long they twist my words (Psalm Ps Psa.)
Psalm 56:4
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