Psalms 118:9

NET Bible® (New English Translation)

It is better to take shelter in the LORD than to trust in princes.

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

ט֗וֹב לַחֲס֥וֹת בַּיהוָ֑ה מִ֝בְּטֹ֗חַ בִּנְדִיבִֽים

Transliteration

Ṭôb to-ḥăsôt in-YHWH from-bəṭōaḥ in-nədîbîm

Grammar Details

• *Ṭôb*: adjective, masculine singular - good
• *ḥăsôt*: infinitive construct with prefix lamed - to take refuge
• *YHWH*: divine name with prefix bet - in Yahweh
• *bəṭōaḥ*: infinitive construct with prefix min - from trusting
• *nədîbîm*: noun, masculine plural with prefix bet - in nobles/princes

Word Meanings

• *Ṭôb*: good/better/preferable
• *ḥăsôt*: to take refuge/to seek shelter
• *bəṭōaḥ*: trusting/putting trust in/having confidence in
• *nədîbîm*: nobles/princes/generous ones/influential people

Referenced Verses

• Isa 31:1 : 1 Egypt Will Disappoint Those who go down to Egypt for help are as good as dead, those who rely on war horses, and trust in Egypt’s many chariots and in their many, many horsemen. But they do not rely on the Holy One of Israel and do not seek help from the LORD.
• Ps 146:3-5 : 3 Do not trust in princes, or in human beings, who cannot deliver! 4 Their life’s breath departs, they return to the ground; on that day their plans die. 5 How blessed is the one whose helper is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God,
• Isa 30:2-3 : 2 They travel down to Egypt without seeking my will, seeking Pharaoh’s protection, and looking for safety in Egypt’s protective shade. 3 But Pharaoh’s protection will bring you nothing but shame, and the safety of Egypt’s protective shade nothing but humiliation.
• Isa 30:15-17 : 15 For this is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel says:“If you repented and patiently waited for me, you would be delivered; if you calmly trusted in me you would find strength, but you are unwilling. 16 You say,‘No, we will flee on horses,’ so you will indeed flee. You say,‘We will ride on fast horses,’ so your pursuers will be fast. 17 One thousand will scurry at the battle cry of one enemy soldier; at the battle cry of five enemy soldiers you will all run away, until the remaining few are as isolated as a flagpole on a mountaintop or a signal flag on a hill.”
• Isa 31:8 : 8 Assyria will fall by a sword, but not one human-made; a sword not made by humankind will destroy them. They will run away from this sword and their young men will be forced to do hard labor.
• Isa 36:6-7 : 6 Look, you must be trusting in Egypt, that splintered reed staff. If someone leans on it for support, it punctures his hand and wounds him. That is what Pharaoh king of Egypt does to all who trust in him! 7 Perhaps you will tell me,‘We are trusting in the LORD our God.’ But Hezekiah is the one who eliminated his high places and altars and then told the people of Judah and Jerusalem,‘You must worship at this altar.’
• Ezek 29:7 : 7 when they grasped you with their hand, you broke and tore their shoulders, and when they leaned on you, you splintered and caused their legs to be unsteady.