Psalms 38:13

American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

But I, as a deaf man, hear not; And I am as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth.

Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

וַיְנַקְשׁ֤וּ ׀ מְבַקְשֵׁ֬י נַפְשִׁ֗י וְדֹרְשֵׁ֣י רָ֭עָתִי דִּבְּר֣וּ הַוּ֑וֹת וּ֝מִרְמ֗וֹת כָּל־הַיּ֥וֹם יֶהְגּֽוּ׃

Transliteration

And yənaqšû məḇaqšê nap̄šî and dōršê rā'ātî dibbərû hawwôt and mirmôt all the yôm yehgû

Grammar Details

*yənaqšû*: piel imperfect 3rd person plural with waw consecutive - and they lay snares
*məḇaqšê*: piel participle plural construct - seekers of
*nap̄šî*: noun with 1st person singular suffix - my soul/life
*dōršê*: qal participle plural construct - those seeking
*rā'ātî*: noun with 1st person singular suffix - my harm/evil
*dibbərû*: piel perfect 3rd person plural - they have spoken
*hawwôt*: plural noun - destructions/calamities
*mirmôt*: plural noun - deceits/treacheries
*yôm*: noun with definite article - the day
*yehgû*: qal imperfect 3rd person plural - they meditate/mutter

Word Meanings

*nāqaš*: lay snares/set traps
*bāqaš*: seek/search for/require
*nep̄eš*: soul/life/person
*dāraš*: seek/inquire/require
*rā'āh*: evil/harm/misery
*dibbēr*: speak/talk/declare
*hawwāh*: destruction/calamity/mischief
*mirmāh*: deceit/treachery/fraud
*hāḡāh*: meditate/mutter/plot

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

🔄 Compare with

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Additional Resources

Referenced Verses

Ps 39:2 : 2 I was dumb with silence, I held my peace, even from good; And my sorrow was stirred.
Ps 39:9 : 9 I was dumb, I opened not my mouth; Because thou didst it.
Isa 53:7 : 7 He was oppressed, yet when he was afflicted he opened not his mouth; as a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and as a sheep that before its shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth.
1 Pet 2:23 : 23 who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered threatened not; but committed [himself] to him that judgeth righteously:
2 Sam 16:10-12 : 10 And the king said, What have I to do with you, ye sons of Zeruiah? Because he curseth, and because Jehovah hath said unto him, Curse David; who then shall say, Wherefore hast thou done so? 11 And David said to Abishai, and to all his servants, Behold, my son, who came forth from my bowels, seeketh my life: how much more [may] this Benjamite now [do it]? let him alone, and let him curse; for Jehovah hath bidden him. 12 It may be that Jehovah will look on the wrong done unto me, and that Jehovah will requite me good for [his] cursing of me this day.

Similar Verses (AI)

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

Ps 38:14-16
3 verses
90%
14Yea, I am as a man that heareth not, And in whose mouth are no reproofs.
15For in thee, O Jehovah, do I hope: Thou wilt answer, O Lord my God.
16For I said, Lest they rejoice over me: When my foot slippeth, they magnify themselves against me.
Ps 39:9-10
2 verses
79%
9I was dumb, I opened not my mouth; Because thou didst it.
10Remove thy stroke away from me: I am consumed by the blow of thy hand.
Ps 39:1-2
2 verses
78%
1For the Chief Musician, for Jeduthun. A Psalm of David. I said, I will take heed to my ways, That I sin not with my tongue: I will keep my mouth with a bridle, While the wicked is before me.
2I was dumb with silence, I held my peace, even from good; And my sorrow was stirred.
Isa 42:18-20
3 verses
74%
18Hear, ye deaf; and look, ye blind, that ye may see.
19Who is blind, but my servant? or deaf, as my messenger that I send? who is blind as he that is at peace [with me], and blind as Jehovah's servant?
20Thou seest many things, but thou observest not; his ears are open, but he heareth not.
Ps 135:16-17
2 verses
73%
16They have mouths, but they speak not; Eyes have they, but they see not;
17They have ears, but they hear not; Neither is there any breath in their mouths.
Ps 38:12
73%
12They also that seek after my life lay snares [for me]; And they that seek my hurt speak mischievous things, And meditate deceits all the day long.
Isa 50:5
73%
5The Lord Jehovah hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away backward.
Ezek 33:22
72%
22Now the hand of Jehovah had been upon me in the evening, before he that was escaped came; and he had opened my mouth, until he came to me in the morning; and my mouth was opened, and I was no more dumb.
Dan 10:15
72%
15and when he had spoken unto me according to these words, I set my face toward the ground, and was dumb.
Prov 31:8
72%
8Open thy mouth for the dumb, In the cause of all such as are left desolate.
Ps 31:12-13
2 verses
72%
12I am forgotten as a dead man out of mind: I am like a broken vessel.
13For I have heard the defaming of many, Terror on every side: While they took counsel together against me, they devised to take away my life.
Isa 53:7
71%
7He was oppressed, yet when he was afflicted he opened not his mouth; as a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and as a sheep that before its shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth.
Ps 22:13
71%
13They gape upon me with their mouth, [As] a ravening and a roaring lion.
Ps 32:3
71%
3When I kept silence, my bones wasted away Through my groaning all the day long.
Ps 38:8
71%
8I am faint and sore bruised: I have groaned by reason of the disquietness of my heart.
Matt 13:13
70%
13Therefore speak I to them in parables; because seeing they see not, and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.
Jer 11:19
70%
19But I was like a gentle lamb that is led to the slaughter; and I knew not that they had devised devices against me, [saying], Let us destroy the tree with the fruit thereof, and let us cut him off from the land of the living, that his name may be no more remembered.
Job 29:10-11
2 verses
70%
10The voice of the nobles was hushed, And their tongue cleaved to the roof of their mouth.
11For when the ear heard [me], then it blessed me; And when the eye saw [me], it gave witness unto me:
Job 13:19
70%
19Who is he that will contend with me? For then would I hold my peace and give up the ghost.
Job 31:34
70%
34Because I feared the great multitude, And the contempt of families terrified me, So that I kept silence, and went not out of the door—
Isa 38:13-15
3 verses
70%
13I quieted [myself] until morning; as a lion, so he breaketh all my bones: From day even to night wilt thou make an end of me.
14Like a swallow [or] a crane, so did I chatter; I did moan as a dove; mine eyes fail [with looking] upward: O Lord, I am oppressed, be thou my surety.
15What shall I say? he hath both spoken unto me, and himself hath done it: I shall go softly all my years because of the bitterness of my soul.
Isa 32:3
70%
3And the eyes of them that see shall not be dim, and the ears of them that hear shall hearken.
Ezek 3:26
69%
26and I will make thy tongue cleave to the roof of thy mouth, that thou shalt be dumb, and shalt not be to them a reprover; for they are a rebellious house.
Job 32:14-16
3 verses
69%
14For he hath not directed his words against me; Neither will I answer him with your speeches.
15They are amazed, they answer no more: They have not a word to say.
16And shall I wait, because they speak not, Because they stand still, and answer no more?
Isa 29:18
69%
18And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness.
Job 33:8
69%
8Surely thou hast spoken in my hearing, And I have heard the voice of [thy] words, [saying],
Prov 5:13
69%
13Neither have I obeyed the voice of my teachers, Nor inclined mine ear to them that instructed me!
Ps 115:6
69%
6They have ears, but they hear not; Noses have they, but they smell not;
Job 13:17
69%
17Hear diligently my speech, And let my declaration be in your ears.
Ps 88:4
69%
4I am reckoned with them that go down into the pit; I am as a man that hath no help,
Job 29:21
69%
21Unto me men gave ear, and waited, And kept silence for my counsel.
Ezek 24:27
69%
27In that day shall thy mouth be opened to him that is escaped, and thou shalt speak, and be no more dumb: so shalt thou be a sign unto them; and they shall know that I am Jehovah.
Ps 73:22
69%
22So brutish was I, and ignorant; I was [as] a beast before thee.
Ps 55:12
69%
12For it was not an enemy that reproached me; Then I could have borne it: Neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me; Then I would have hid myself from him:
Job 30:20
69%
20I cry unto thee, and thou dost not answer me: I stand up, and thou gazest at me.
Acts 8:32
69%
32Now the passage of the Scripture which he was reading was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; And as a lamb before his shearer is dumb, So he openeth not his mouth:
Job 3:16
68%
16Or as a hidden untimely birth I had not been, As infants that never saw light.