Psalms 104:9

American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

Thou hast set a bound that they may not pass over; That they turn not again to cover the earth.

Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

גְּֽבוּל־שַׂ֭מְתָּ בַּל־יֽ͏ַעֲבֹר֑וּן בַּל־יְ֝שׁוּב֗וּן לְכַסּ֥וֹת הָאָֽרֶץ׃

Transliteration

gĕbûl-śamtā bal-yaʿabōrûn bal-yĕshûbûn lĕkassôt hāʾāreṣ

Grammar Details

*gĕbûl*: noun, masculine singular - boundary, border
*śamtā*: verb, qal perfect, 2nd person masculine singular - you set
*bal*: negative particle - not
*yaʿabōrûn*: verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person plural with paragogic nun - they pass over
*yĕshûbûn*: verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person plural with paragogic nun - they return
*lĕkassôt*: preposition *lě* + verb, piel infinitive construct - to cover
*hāʾāreṣ*: definite article + noun, feminine singular - the earth

Word Meanings

*gĕbûl*: boundary, border, limit, territory
*śamtā*: set, placed, established, appointed
*yaʿabōrûn*: pass over, cross, transgress
*yĕshûbûn*: return, turn back, come back
*lĕkassôt*: to cover, to hide, to conceal
*hāʾāreṣ*: the earth, the land, the ground

ℹ️

About this Translation

American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

Formal EquivalenceSource: American Standard VersionBest for: Word studies and original-language research

🎯 Translation Approach

A highly literal, word-for-word translation (ASV, 1901) augmented with Strong's numbering to connect English words to underlying Hebrew and Greek terms for study.

Word-for-word

5/5

Readability

2/5

💎 Distinctive Features

Integrated Strong's numbering: Links English terms to underlying Hebrew and Greek words for deeper lexical study.
Formal equivalence: Prioritizes close alignment with source-language forms and structures.
Divine name rendering: Frequently renders the Tetragrammaton as Jehovah in the Old Testament, following ASV tradition.
Study-focused formatting: Optimized for reference and research rather than casual reading.

✅ Strengths

High fidelity to original languages
Includes Strong's numbers for precise word study
Consistent lexical choices aid exegesis
Stable, longstanding scholarly text

⚠️ Considerations

Archaic language reduces readability
Older textual basis compared to some modern translations
Strong's numbers are a concordance index, not full lexical definitions

👥 Who is this for?

Ideal for

Pastors and teachers
Seminary students
Serious Bible students
Readers conducting word studies
Those referencing Hebrew/Greek tools

Consider alternatives for

Casual readers
Children and early teens
ESL learners seeking simple English
Readers preferring contemporary language

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Additional Resources

Referenced Verses

Gen 9:11-15 : 11 And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of the flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. 12 And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: 13 I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. 14 And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud, 15 and I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh.
Job 26:10 : 10 He hath described a boundary upon the face of the waters, Unto the confines of light and darkness.
Job 38:10-11 : 10 And marked out for it my bound, And set bars and doors, 11 And said, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further; And here shall thy proud waves be stayed?
Jer 5:22 : 22 Fear ye not me? saith Jehovah: will ye not tremble at my presence, who have placed the sand for the bound of the sea, by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it? and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it.
Ps 33:7 : 7 He gathereth the waters of the sea together as a heap: He layeth up the deeps in store-houses.
Isa 54:9 : 9 For this is [as] the waters of Noah unto me; for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah shall no more go over the earth, so have I sworn that I will not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee.

Similar Verses (AI)

These verses are found using AI-powered semantic similarity based on meaning and context. Results may occasionally include unexpected connections.

Ps 104:5-8
4 verses
83%
5Who laid the foundations of the earth, That it should not be moved for ever.
6Thou coveredst it with the deep as with a vesture; The waters stood above the mountains.
7At thy rebuke they fled; At the voice of thy thunder they hasted away
8(The mountains rose, the valleys sank down) Unto the place which thou hadst founded for them.
Prov 8:28-29
2 verses
78%
28When he made firm the skies above, When the fountains of the deep became strong,
29When he gave to the sea its bound, That the waters should not transgress his commandment, When he marked out the foundations of the earth;
Job 26:8-10
3 verses
77%
8He bindeth up the waters in his thick clouds; And the cloud is not rent under them.
9He incloseth the face of his throne, And spreadeth his cloud upon it.
10He hath described a boundary upon the face of the waters, Unto the confines of light and darkness.
Ps 104:10
76%
10He sendeth forth springs into the valleys; They run among the mountains;
Job 38:10-13
4 verses
76%
10And marked out for it my bound, And set bars and doors,
11And said, Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further; And here shall thy proud waves be stayed?
12Hast thou commanded the morning since thy days [began], [And] caused the dayspring to know its place;
13That it might take hold of the ends of the earth, And the wicked be shaken out of it?
Job 12:15
74%
15Behold, he withholdeth the waters, and they dry up; Again, he sendeth them out, and they overturn the earth.
Ps 104:13
73%
13He watereth the mountains from his chambers: The earth is filled with the fruit of thy works.
Ps 74:17
73%
17Thou hast set all the borders of the earth: Thou hast made summer and winter.
Ps 74:15
72%
15Thou didst cleave fountain and flood: Thou driedst up mighty rivers.
Ps 104:29-30
2 verses
72%
29Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled; Thou takest away their breath, they die, And return to their dust.
30Thou sendest forth thy Spirit, they are created; And thou renewest the face of the ground.
Ps 89:11
72%
11The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine: The world and the fulness thereof, thou hast founded them.
Ps 148:6
72%
6He hath also established them for ever and ever: He hath made a decree which shall not pass away.
Job 37:12
71%
12And it is turned round about by his guidance, That they may do whatsoever he commandeth them Upon the face of the habitable world,
Job 14:5
71%
5Seeing his days are determined, The number of his months is with thee, And thou hast appointed his bounds that he cannot pass;
Hab 3:10
71%
10The mountains saw thee, and were afraid; The tempest of waters passed by; The deep uttered its voice, And lifted up its hands on high.
Job 22:11
71%
11Or darkness, so that thou canst not see, And abundance of waters cover thee.
Ps 73:9
71%
9They have set their mouth in the heavens, And their tongue walketh through the earth.
Job 28:11
71%
11He bindeth the streams that they trickle not; And the thing that is hid bringeth he forth to light.
Job 11:9
71%
9The measure thereof is longer than the earth, And broader than the sea.
Job 38:34
71%
34Canst thou lift up thy voice to the clouds, That abundance of waters may cover thee?
Ps 65:8-9
2 verses
71%
8They also that dwell in the uttermost parts are afraid at thy tokens: Thou makest the outgoings of the morning and evening to rejoice.
9Thou visitest the earth, and waterest it, Thou greatly enrichest it; The river of God is full of water: Thou providest them grain, when thou hast so prepared the earth.
Ps 19:4
71%
4Their line is gone out through all the earth, And their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun,
Ps 89:9
71%
9Thou rulest the pride of the sea: When the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them.
Hab 1:14
70%
14and makest men as the fishes of the sea, as the creeping things, that have no ruler over them?
Job 9:7-8
2 verses
70%
7That commandeth the sun, and it riseth not, And sealeth up the stars;
8That alone stretcheth out the heavens, And treadeth upon the waves of the sea;
Job 38:16
70%
16Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea? Or hast thou walked in the recesses of the deep?
Ps 8:8
70%
8The birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea, Whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.
Neh 9:11
70%
11And thou didst divide the sea before them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land; and their pursuers thou didst cast into the depths, as a stone into the mighty waters.
Job 28:4
70%
4He breaketh open a shaft away from where men sojourn; They are forgotten of the foot; They hang afar from men, they swing to and fro.
Exod 15:10
70%
10Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them: They sank as lead in the mighty waters.
Gen 8:2
70%
2the fountains also of the deep and the windows of heaven were stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained;
Job 28:9
70%
9He putteth forth his hand upon the flinty rock; He overturneth the mountains by the roots.
Jer 5:22
70%
22Fear ye not me? saith Jehovah: will ye not tremble at my presence, who have placed the sand for the bound of the sea, by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it? and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it.
Ps 73:18
69%
18Surely thou settest them in slippery places: Thou castest them down to destruction.
Ps 114:8
69%
8Who turned the rock into a pool of water, The flint into a fountain of waters.
Job 14:19
69%
19The waters wear the stones; The overflowings thereof wash away the dust of the earth: So thou destroyest the hope of man.
Gen 7:19
69%
19And the waters prevailed exceedingly upon the earth; and all the high mountains that were under the whole heaven were covered.
Ps 107:33
69%
33He turneth rivers into a wilderness, And watersprings into a thirsty ground;