What Does Psalm 13:5 Mean?
Two renderings of the same sentence, the verses it belongs to, and what the passage is doing — so you can decide what it means rather than take someone's word for it.
"But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation." Psalm 13:5, King James Version
The same verse in modern English
"But I have trusted in Your loving devotion; my heart will rejoice in Your salvation." Psalm 13:5, Berean Standard Bible
What it sits inside
A verse quoted on its own is the commonest way one gets misread. Here it is with what comes immediately before and after, in the King James Version.
Psalm 13:3 Consider and hear me, O Lord my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death;
Psalm 13:4 Lest mine enemy say, I have prevailed against him; and those that trouble me rejoice when I am moved.
Psalm 13:5 But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation.
Psalm 13:6 I will sing unto the Lord, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.
A conversation built on it
Feeling forgotten doesn't mean you are forgotten. The psalmist cried out 'How long?' — and God didn't scold him for asking. Trust isn't a feeling. It's a decision you make when the feelings haven't caught up yet. He has never looked away.
Questions people ask
What does Psalm 13:5 mean?
In modern English (Berean Standard Bible) it reads: “But I have trusted in Your loving devotion; my heart will rejoice in Your salvation.” The King James rendering most people know is: “But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation.”
What is the context of Psalm 13:5?
The verses immediately around it read: (Psalm 13:3) Consider and hear me, O Lord my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death; (Psalm 13:4) Lest mine enemy say, I have prevailed against him; and those that trouble me rejoice when I am moved. (Psalm 13:5) But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation. (Psalm 13:6) I will sing unto the Lord, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.
How is Psalm 13:5 used in a conversation about this?
Feeling forgotten doesn't mean you are forgotten. The psalmist cried out 'How long?' — and God didn't scold him for asking. Trust isn't a feeling. It's a decision you make when the feelings haven't caught up yet. He has never looked away.
Reading it is one thing. Saying what it stirs up is another.
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