Psalms 139:11

American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

If I say, Surely the darkness shall overwhelm me, And the light about me shall be night;

Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

וָ֭אֹמַר אַךְ־חֹ֣שֶׁךְ יְשׁוּפֵ֑נִי וְ֝לַ֗יְלָה א֣וֹר בַּעֲדֵֽנִי׃

Transliteration

And-ʾōmar surely-ḥōšek yəšûpēnî; and-laylâ ʾôr baʿădēnî

Grammar Details

*ʾōmar*: verb, Qal imperfect 1st person singular + waw consecutive - and I say
*ḥōšek*: noun, masculine singular - darkness
*yəšûpēnî*: verb, Qal imperfect 3rd person masculine singular + 1st person singular suffix - it overwhelms me
*laylâ*: noun, masculine singular - night
*ʾôr*: noun, masculine singular - light
*baʿădēnî*: preposition + 1st person singular suffix - around me/about me

Word Meanings

*ʾōmar*: say/speak/think
*ḥōšek*: darkness/obscurity
*yəšûpēnî*: overwhelm me/cover me/crush me/bruise me
*laylâ*: night/nighttime
*ʾôr*: light/daylight
*baʿădēnî*: around me/about me/surrounding me

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

Job 12:22 : 22 He uncovereth deep things out of darkness, And bringeth out to light the shadow of death.
Ps 94:7 : 7 And they say, Jehovah will not see, Neither will the God of Jacob consider.
Jer 23:24 : 24 Can any hide himself in secret places so that I shall not see him? saith Jehovah. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith Jehovah.
Isa 29:15 : 15 Woe unto them that hide deep their counsel from Jehovah, and whose works are in the dark, and that say, Who seeth us? and who knoweth us?
Job 22:12-14 : 12 Is not God in the height of heaven? And behold the height of the stars, how high they are! 13 And thou sayest, What doth God know? Can he judge through the thick darkness? 14 Thick clouds are a covering to him, so that he seeth not; And he walketh on the vault of heaven.
Ps 10:11-13 : 11 He saith in his heart, God hath forgotten; He hideth his face; he will never see it. 12 Arise, O Jehovah; O God, lift up thy hand: Forget not the poor. 13 Wherefore doth the wicked contemn God, And say in his heart, Thou wilt not require [it]?

Similar Verses (AI)

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

Ps 139:12
89%
12Even the darkness hideth not from thee, But the night shineth as the day: The darkness and the light are both alike [to thee].
Ps 139:7-10
4 verses
81%
7Whither shall I go from thy Spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
8If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, thou art there.
9If I take the wings of the morning, And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;
10Even there shall thy hand lead me, And thy right hand shall hold me.
Job 29:3
79%
3When his lamp shined upon my head, And by his light I walked through darkness;
Ps 18:28
78%
28For thou wilt light my lamp: Jehovah my God will lighten my darkness.
Job 17:12-13
2 verses
78%
12They change the night into day: The light, [say they], is near unto the darkness.
13If I look for Sheol as my house; If I have spread my couch in the darkness;
2 Sam 22:29
77%
29For thou art my lamp, O Jehovah; And Jehovah will lighten my darkness.
Job 22:11
77%
11Or darkness, so that thou canst not see, And abundance of waters cover thee.
Lam 3:2
77%
2He hath led me and caused me to walk in darkness, and not in light.
Job 10:21-22
2 verses
77%
21Before I go whence I shall not return, [Even] to the land of darkness and of the shadow of death;
22The land dark as midnight, [The land] of the shadow of death, without any order, And where the light is as midnight.
Job 23:17
76%
17Because I was not cut off before the darkness, Neither did he cover the thick darkness from my face.
Job 38:19
76%
19Where is the way to the dwelling of light? And as for darkness, where is the place thereof,
Job 19:8
75%
8He hath walled up my way that I cannot pass, And hath set darkness in my paths.
Job 3:4-6
3 verses
74%
4Let that day be darkness; Let not God from above seek for it, Neither let the light shine upon it.
5Let darkness and the shadow of death claim it for their own; Let a cloud dwell upon it; Let all that maketh black the day terrify it.
6As for that night, let thick darkness seize upon it: Let it not rejoice among the days of the year; Let it not come into the number of the months.
Ps 104:20
74%
20Thou makest darkness, and it is night, Wherein all the beasts of the forest creep forth.
Amos 5:20
73%
20Shall not the day of Jehovah be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?
Ps 143:3
73%
3For the enemy hath persecuted my soul; He hath smitten my life down to the ground: He hath made me to dwell in dark places, as those that have been long dead.
Ps 42:8
73%
8[ Yet] Jehovah will command his lovingkindness in the day-time; And in the night his song shall be with me, [Even] a prayer unto the God of my life.
Job 5:14
73%
14They meet with darkness in the day-time, And grope at noonday as in the night.
Mic 7:8
73%
8Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, Jehovah will be a light unto me.
Lam 3:6
73%
6He hath made me to dwell in dark places, as those that have been long dead.
Job 18:6
73%
6The light shall be dark in his tent, And his lamp above him shall be put out.
Jer 13:16
73%
16Give glory to Jehovah your God, before he cause darkness, and before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains, and, while ye look for light, he turn it into the shadow of death, and make it gross darkness.
Ps 18:11
73%
11He made darkness his hiding-place, his pavilion round about him, Darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies.
Job 31:26
73%
26If I have beheld the sun when it shined, Or the moon walking in brightness,
Ps 139:18
72%
18If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: When I awake, I am still with thee.
Ps 88:12
72%
12Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? And thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
Ps 27:1
72%
1[ A Psalm of David.] Jehovah is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? Jehovah is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?
Luke 11:35-36
2 verses
72%
35Look therefore whether the light that is in thee be not darkness.
36If therefore thy whole body be full of light, having no {G5100} part dark, it shall be wholly full of light, as when the lamp with its bright shining doth give thee light.
Isa 50:10
72%
10Who is among you that feareth Jehovah, that obeyeth the voice of his servant? he that walketh in darkness, and hath no light, let him trust in the name of Jehovah, and rely upon his God.
Prov 7:9
72%
9In the twilight, in the evening of the day, In the middle of the night and in the darkness.
Job 30:26
72%
26When I looked for good, then evil came; And when I waited for light, there came darkness.
Job 37:19
72%
19Teach us what we shall say unto him; [For] we cannot set [our speech] in order by reason of darkness.
Job 7:4
72%
4When I lie down, I say, When shall I arise, and the night be gone? And I am full of tossings to and fro unto the dawning of the day.
John 11:10
72%
10But if a man walk in the night, he stumbleth, because the light is not in him.
Job 12:22
72%
22He uncovereth deep things out of darkness, And bringeth out to light the shadow of death.
Dan 2:22
72%
22he revealeth the deep and secret things; he knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him.
Ezek 32:8
72%
8All the bright lights of heaven will I make dark over thee, and set darkness upon thy land, saith the Lord Jehovah.
Job 4:13
71%
13In thoughts from the visions of the night, When deep sleep falleth on men,
Ps 56:3
71%
3What time I am afraid, I will put my trust in thee.
Job 34:22
71%
22There is no darkness, nor thick gloom, Where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves.
Job 3:9
71%
9Let the stars of the twilight thereof be dark: Let it look for light, but have none; Neither let it behold the eyelids of the morning:
Job 28:3
71%
3[ Man] setteth an end to darkness, And searcheth out, to the furthest bound, The stones of obscurity and of thick darkness.