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Thursday, July 24th, 2025
the Week of Proper 11 / Ordinary 16
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Read the Bible

THE MESSAGE

Psalms 49:3

I set plainspoken wisdom before you, my heart-seasoned understandings of life. I fine-tuned my ear to the sayings of the wise, I solve life's riddle with the help of a harp.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Meditation;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Korah;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Understanding;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Ecclesiastes, the Book of;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Poetry;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - English Versions;   Eschatology;   Greek Versions of Ot;   Korah, Korahites;   Psalms;   Sin;   Wealth;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - God;   Korah;   Psalms the book of;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Hezekiah (2);   Meditation;   Proverbs, Book of;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Man, Son of;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
My mouth speaks wisdom;my heart’s meditation brings understanding.
Hebrew Names Version
My mouth will speak words of wisdom. My heart shall utter understanding.
King James Version
My mouth shall speak of wisdom; and the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding.
English Standard Version
My mouth shall speak wisdom; the meditation of my heart shall be understanding.
New Century Version
What I say is wise, and my heart speaks with understanding.
New English Translation
I will declare a wise saying; I will share my profound thoughts.
Amplified Bible
My mouth will speak wisdom, And the meditation of my heart will be understanding.
New American Standard Bible
My mouth will speak wisdom, And the meditation of my heart will be understanding.
World English Bible
My mouth will speak words of wisdom. My heart shall utter understanding.
Geneva Bible (1587)
My mouth shal speake of wisdome, and the meditation of mine heart is of knowledge.
Legacy Standard Bible
My mouth will speak wisdom,And the meditation of my heart will be discernment.
Berean Standard Bible
My mouth will impart wisdom, and the meditation of my heart will bring understanding.
Contemporary English Version
I speak words of wisdom, and my thoughts make sense.
Complete Jewish Bible
regardless of whether low or high, regardless of whether rich or poor!
Darby Translation
My mouth shall speak wisdom, and the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding:
Easy-to-Read Version
I have some very wise words for you. My thoughts will give you understanding.
George Lamsa Translation
My mouth shall speak of wisdom; and the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding.
Good News Translation
My thoughts will be clear; I will speak words of wisdom.
Lexham English Bible
My mouth will speak wisdom, and the meditation of my heart will be understanding.
Literal Translation
My mouth shall speak wisdom, and the thoughts of my heart shall be of understanding.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
My mouth shal speake of wy?dome, and my hert shal muse of vnderstondinge.
American Standard Version
My mouth shall speak wisdom; And the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding.
Bible in Basic English
From my mouth will come words of wisdom; and in the thoughts of my heart will be knowledge.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Both low and high, rich and poor together.
King James Version (1611)
My mouth shall speake of wisedome: and the meditation of my heart shalbe of vnderstanding.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
My mouth shall vtter wisdome: the cogitations of myne heart [wyll bryng foorth] knowledge.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
My mouth shall speak of wisdom; and the meditation of my heart shall bring forth understanding.
English Revised Version
My mouth shall speak wisdom; and the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Mi mouth schal speke wisdom; and the thenkyng of myn herte schal speke prudence.
Update Bible Version
My mouth shall speak wisdom; And the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding.
Webster's Bible Translation
My mouth shall speak of wisdom; and the meditation of my heart [shall be] of understanding.
New King James Version
My mouth shall speak wisdom, And the meditation of my heart shall give understanding.
New Living Translation
For my words are wise, and my thoughts are filled with insight.
New Life Bible
My mouth will speak wisdom. And the thoughts of my heart will be understanding.
New Revised Standard
My mouth shall speak wisdom; the meditation of my heart shall be understanding.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
My mouth, shall speak forth Wisdom, And the soft utterance of my heart be Understanding:
Douay-Rheims Bible
(48-4) My mouth shall speak wisdom: and the meditation of my heart understanding.
Revised Standard Version
My mouth shall speak wisdom; the meditation of my heart shall be understanding.
Young's Literal Translation
My mouth speaketh wise things, And the meditations of my heart [are] things of understanding.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
My mouth will speak wisdom, And the meditation of my heart will be understanding.

Contextual Overview

1A Psalm of the Sons of Korah Listen, everyone, listen— earth-dwellers, don't miss this. All you haves and have-nots, All together now: listen. 3I set plainspoken wisdom before you, my heart-seasoned understandings of life. I fine-tuned my ear to the sayings of the wise, I solve life's riddle with the help of a harp. 5So why should I fear in bad times, hemmed in by enemy malice, Shoved around by bullies, demeaned by the arrogant rich?

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

mouth: Deuteronomy 32:2, Job 33:3, Job 33:33, Proverbs 4:1, Proverbs 4:2, Proverbs 8:6-11, Proverbs 22:17, Proverbs 22:20, Proverbs 22:21, 2 Timothy 3:15-17

meditation: Psalms 19:14, Psalms 45:1, Psalms 104:34, Matthew 12:35

Reciprocal: Job 20:3 - the spirit Job 28:21 - hid Job 36:4 - in 1 Corinthians 14:2 - howbeit 1 Timothy 4:15 - Meditate

Cross-References

Genesis 46:8
These are the names of the Israelites, Jacob and his descendants, who went to Egypt: Reuben, Jacob's firstborn.
Numbers 1:20
The line of Reuben, Israel's firstborn: The men were counted off head by head, every male twenty years and older who was able to fight in the army, registered by tribes according to their ancestral families. The tribe of Reuben numbered 46,500.
Numbers 26:5
The total number of the People of Israel: 601,730. God spoke to Moses: "Divide up the inheritance of the land based on population. A larger group gets a larger inheritance; a smaller group gets a smaller inheritance—each gets its inheritance based on the population count. "Make sure that the land is assigned by lot. "Each group's inheritance is based on population, the number of names listed in its ancestral tribe, divided among the many and the few by lot." These are the numberings of the Levites by clan: Gershon and the Gershonite clan, Kohath and the Kohathite clan, Merari and the Merarite clan. The Levite clans also included: the Libnite clan, the Hebronite clan, the Mahlite clan, the Mushite clan, the Korahite clan. Kohath was the father of Amram. Amram's wife was Jochebed, a descendant of Levi, born into the Levite family during the Egyptian years. Jochebed bore Aaron, Moses, and their sister Miriam to Amram. Aaron was the father of Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar; however, Nadab and Abihu died when they offered unauthorized sacrifice in the presence of God .
1 Chronicles 2:1
Israel's (that is, Jacob's) sons: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.
1 Chronicles 5:1
The family of Reuben the firstborn of Israel: Though Reuben was Israel's firstborn, after he slept with his father's concubine, a defiling act, his rights as the firstborn were passed on to the sons of Joseph son of Israel. He lost his "firstborn" place in the family tree. And even though Judah became the strongest of his brothers and King David eventually came from that family, the firstborn rights stayed with Joseph.
1 Chronicles 5:3
The sons of Reuben, firstborn of Israel: Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

My mouth shall speak of wisdom,.... Or "wisdoms" m; of Christ, who is so called, Proverbs 1:20. He being as a divine Person the wisdom of God, and the only wise God; and having all the treasures of wisdom in him, as man and Mediator: of him the prophet spake, and of him the apostles and all Gospel ministers speak; of the glories of his Person, of the fulness of his grace, and of his wonderful works; especially of that of redemption and salvation by him, in which there is an abounding of wisdom and prudence. Or the Gospel may be meant, and all the truths of it, in which there is a glorious display of divine wisdom; it is the wisdom of God in a mystery; hidden and ancient wisdom; and which, when truly understood, makes a man wise unto salvation; see 1 Corinthians 2:6;

and the meditation of my heart [shall be] of understanding; or "understandings" n; and this is in order to the former; what the heart meditates the mouth speaks. If the heart meditates on understanding, the mouth will speak of wisdom; and a man should think before he speaks, especially the ministers of the Gospel: they ought to meditate on the word of God, the Gospel, and the truths of it, that their profiling may appear to all; that they may understand divine things themselves, and deliver them out to the understanding of others: their concern should be, that through meditation they may have a good treasure of wisdom and knowledge in their hearts, that out of it they may bring forth things pleasant and profitable unto others.

m חכמות "sapientias", Pagninus, Montanus, Vatablus, Cocceius, Gejerus, Michaelis. n תבונות "intelligentias", Pagninus, Montanus.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

My mouth shall speak of wisdom - That is, I will utter sentiments that are wise, or that are of importance to all; sentiments that will enable all to take a just view of the subject on which I speak. This indicates “confidence” in what he was about to utter, as being eminently deserving of attention.

And the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding - What I reflect on, and what I give utterance to, in the matter under consideration. The idea is, that he had meditated on the subject, as to what was real wisdom in the matter, and that he would now give utterance to the result of his meditations. It was not wisdom in general, or intelligence or understanding as such on which he designed to express the results of his thoughts, but it was only in respect to the proper value to be attached to wealth, and as to the fact of its causing fear Psalms 49:5 in those who were not possessed of it, and who might be subjected to the oppressive acts of those who were rich.


 
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