Psalms 81:8

American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

Hear, O my people, and I will testify unto thee: O Israel, if thou wouldest hearken unto me!

Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

בַּצָּרָ֥ה קָרָ֗אתָ וָאֲחַ֫לְּצֶ֥ךָּ אֶ֭עֶנְךָ בְּסֵ֣תֶר רַ֑עַם אֶבְחָֽנְךָ֨ עַל־מֵ֖י מְרִיבָ֣ה סֶֽלָה׃

Transliteration

In the ṣārâ qārāʾtā and wāʾăḥalleṣeḵā; ʾeʿenḵā in sēter raʿam; ʾebḥānḵā upon mê mərîbâ selâ

Grammar Details

*ṣārâ*: feminine singular noun with prefixed preposition bet - 'in trouble/distress'
*qārāʾtā*: qal perfect 2nd masculine singular - 'you called'
*wāʾăḥalleṣeḵā*: piel imperfect 1st singular with 2nd masculine singular suffix and prefixed conjunction waw - 'and I delivered you'
*ʾeʿenḵā*: qal imperfect 1st singular with 2nd masculine singular suffix - 'I will answer you'
*sēter*: masculine singular construct with prefixed preposition bet - 'in the hiding place of'
*raʿam*: masculine singular noun - 'thunder'
*ʾebḥānḵā*: qal imperfect 1st singular with 2nd masculine singular suffix - 'I tested you'
*mê*: masculine plural construct - 'waters of'
*mərîbâ*: proper name/feminine singular noun - 'Meribah/strife'
*selâ*: musical notation/pause - 'selah'

Word Meanings

*ṣārâ*: trouble/distress/adversity/affliction
*qārāʾtā*: you called/you cried out
*wāʾăḥalleṣeḵā*: and I delivered you/I rescued you/I freed you
*ʾeʿenḵā*: I answered you/I responded to you
*sēter*: hiding place/secret place/covering
*raʿam*: thunder/thundering sound
*ʾebḥānḵā*: I tested you/I proved you/I examined you
*mərîbâ*: Meribah/strife/contention/dispute
*selâ*: musical pause/interlude/lift up (meaning uncertain)

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 50:7 : 7 Hear, O my people, and I will speak; O Israel, and I will testify unto thee: I am God, [even] thy God.
Ps 81:13 : 13 Oh that my people would hearken unto me, That Israel would walk in my ways!
Isa 1:19 : 19 If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:
Isa 55:3-4 : 3 Incline your ear, and come unto me; hear, and your soul shall live: and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David. 4 Behold, I have given him for a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander to the peoples.
John 3:11 : 11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that which we know, and bear witness of that which we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.
John 3:32-33 : 32 {G2532} What he hath seen and heard, of that he beareth witness; and no man receiveth his witness. 33 He that hath received his witness hath set his seal to [this], that God is true.
Acts 20:21 : 21 testifying both to Jews and to Greeks repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.
1 John 5:9 : 9 If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for the witness of God is this, that he hath borne witness concerning his Son.
Exod 15:26 : 26 and he said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of Jehovah thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his eyes, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases upon thee, which I have put upon the Egyptians: for I am Jehovah that healeth thee.
Deut 5:27 : 27 Go thou near, and hear all that Jehovah our God shall say: and speak thou unto us all that Jehovah our God shall speak unto thee; and we will hear it, and do it.
Deut 32:46 : 46 And he said unto them, Set your heart unto all the words which I testify unto you this day, which ye shall command your children to observe to do, [even] all the words of this law.

Similar Verses (AI)

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

Ps 50:7
85%
7Hear, O my people, and I will speak; O Israel, and I will testify unto thee: I am God, [even] thy God.
Ps 78:1
79%
1Maschil of Asaph. Give ear, O my people, to my law: Incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
Ps 81:7
79%
7Thou calledst in trouble, and I delivered thee; I answered thee in the secret place of thunder; I proved thee at the waters of Meribah. {H5542}
Ps 81:13
78%
13Oh that my people would hearken unto me, That Israel would walk in my ways!
Ps 81:11
78%
11But my people hearkened not to my voice; And Israel would none of me.
Mic 6:1-3
3 verses
77%
1Hear ye now what Jehovah saith: Arise, contend thou before the mountains, and let the hills hear thy voice.
2Hear, O ye mountains, Jehovah's controversy, and ye enduring foundations of the earth; for Jehovah hath a controversy with his people, and he will contend with Israel.
3O my people, what have I done unto thee? and wherein have I wearied thee? testify against me.
Hos 8:2
76%
2They shall cry unto me, My God, we Israel know thee.
Isa 51:4
73%
4Attend unto me, O my people; and give ear unto me, O my nation: for a law shall go forth from me, and I will establish my justice for a light of the peoples.
Isa 28:23
73%
23Give ye ear, and hear my voice; hearken, and hear my speech.
Jer 10:1
72%
1Hear ye the word which Jehovah speaketh unto you, O house of Israel:
Ps 17:6
72%
6I have called upon thee, for thou wilt answer me, O God: Incline thine ear unto me, [and] hear my speech.
Judg 5:3
72%
3Hear, O ye kings; give ear, O ye princes; I, [even] I, will sing unto Jehovah; I will sing praise to Jehovah, the God of Israel.
1 Kgs 8:51-52
2 verses
71%
51(for they are thy people, and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron);
52that thine eyes may be open unto the supplication of thy servant, and unto the supplication of thy people Israel, to hearken unto them whensoever they cry unto thee.
Job 33:8
71%
8Surely thou hast spoken in my hearing, And I have heard the voice of [thy] words, [saying],
Exod 18:19
71%
19Hearken now unto my voice, I will give thee counsel, and God be with thee: be thou for the people to Godward, and bring thou the causes unto God:
Amos 3:1
71%
1Hear this word that Jehovah hath spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up out of the land of Egypt, saying,
Deut 32:1
71%
1Give ear, ye heavens, and I will speak; And let the earth hear the words of my mouth.
Job 13:17
71%
17Hear diligently my speech, And let my declaration be in your ears.
Amos 3:13
70%
13Hear ye, and testify against the house of Jacob, saith the Lord Jehovah, the God of hosts.
Ps 66:8
70%
8Oh bless our God, ye peoples, And make the voice of his praise to be heard;
Jer 6:18
70%
18Therefore hear, ye nations, and know, O congregation, what is among them.
Prov 8:32
70%
32Now therefore, [my] sons, hearken unto me; For blessed are they that keep my ways.
Exod 19:5
70%
5Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be mine own possession from among all peoples: for all the earth is mine:
Ps 81:9
70%
9There shall no strange god be in thee; Neither shalt thou worship any foreign god.
Jer 7:23
70%
23but this thing I commanded them, saying, Hearken unto my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people; and walk ye in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you.
Ps 86:6
70%
6Give ear, O Jehovah, unto my prayer; And hearken unto the voice of my supplications.
Jer 11:7
70%
7For I earnestly protested unto your fathers in the day that I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, even unto this day, rising early and protesting, saying, Obey my voice.
Jer 22:21
70%
21I spake unto thee in thy prosperity; but thou saidst, I will not hear. This hath been thy manner from thy youth, that thou obeyedst not my voice.
Ps 61:1
69%
1For the Chief Musician; on a stringed instrument. [A Psalm] of David. Hear my cry, O God; Attend unto my prayer.
Ps 54:2
69%
2Hear my prayer, O God; Give ear to the words of my mouth.
Jer 11:4
69%
4which I commanded your fathers in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the iron furnace, saying, Obey my voice, and do them, according to all which I command you: so shall ye be my people, and I will be your God;
Ps 84:8
69%
8O Jehovah God of hosts, hear my prayer; Give ear, O God of Jacob. {H5542}
Deut 27:9
69%
9And Moses and the priests the Levites spake unto all Israel, saying, Keep silence, and hearken, O Israel: this day thou art become the people of Jehovah thy God.
Ps 140:6
69%
6I said unto Jehovah, Thou art my God: Give ear unto the voice of my supplications, O Jehovah.
Mic 1:2
69%
2Hear, ye peoples, all of you: hearken, O earth, and all that therein is: and let the Lord Jehovah be witness against you, the Lord from his holy temple.
Isa 44:1
69%
1Yet now hear, O Jacob my servant, and Israel, who I have chosen:
Isa 51:7
69%
7Hearken unto me, ye that know righteousness, the people in whose heart is my law; fear ye not the reproach of men, neither be ye dismayed at their revilings.
Jer 2:4
69%
4Hear ye the word of Jehovah, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel:
Deut 5:28
69%
28And Jehovah heard the voice of your words, when ye spake unto me; and Jehovah said unto me, I have heard the voice of the words of this people, which they have spoken unto thee: they have well said all that they have spoken.
Prov 7:24
69%
24Now therefore, [my] sons, hearken unto me, And attend to the words of my mouth.
Ps 66:16
69%
16Come, and hear, all ye that fear God, And I will declare what he hath done for my soul.
1 Kgs 8:34
69%
34then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy people Israel, and bring them again unto the land which thou gavest unto their fathers.
Isa 55:4
69%
4Behold, I have given him for a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander to the peoples.
Ps 95:7
69%
7For he is our God, And we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To-day, oh that ye would hear his voice!
Mic 7:15
69%
15As in the days of thy coming forth out of the land of Egypt will I show unto them marvellous things.
Ps 80:1
69%
1For the Chief Musician; set to Shoshannim Eduth. A Psalm of Asaph. Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, Thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; Thou that sittest [above] the cherubim, shine forth.
Ps 85:8
69%
8I will hear what God Jehovah will speak; For he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: But let them not turn again to folly.