Psalms 51:4

“Against you, against you alone, I have sinned, and what is evil in your eyes I have done, so that you may be righteous when you speak, pure when you judge.”
Psalms 51:4 · direct translation from the Hebrew

Study it in the app

David, after his fall, asks God to wipe out his wrongdoingTurning back to God David, confronted by Nathan, asks God to cleanse himForgiveness After his fall, David asks God to wash him and owns his guiltTemptation

With the Hebrew beneath

Against you,לְךָagainst you alone,לְבַדְּךָI have sinned,חָטָאתִיand what is evilוְהָרַעin your eyesבְּעֵינֶיךָI have done,עָשִׂיתִיso thatלְמַעַןyou may be righteousתִּצְדַּקwhen you speak,בְּדָבְרֶךָpureתִּזְכֶּהwhen you judge.בְשָׁפְטֶךָ

Quotation · Romans 3:4

Go to Romans 3:4

Paul quotes the second half of Psalm 51:4. Where the Hebrew says “pure when you judge,” Romans says “and prevail when you are judged.”

Formula: καθὼς γέγραπται “as it is written” (Romans 3:4)

See the original texts

Greek of the New Testament: μὴ γένοιτο γινέσθω δὲ ὁ θεὸς ἀληθής πᾶς δὲ ἄνθρωπος ψεύστης καθὼς γέγραπται Ὅπως ἂν δικαιωθῇς ἐν τοῖς λόγοις σου καὶ νικήσεις ἐν τῷ κρίνεσθαί σε

Hebrew (Masoretic text): לְךָ לְבַדְּךָ חָטָאתִי וְהָרַע בְּעֵינֶיךָ עָשִׂיתִי לְמַעַן תִּצְדַּק בְּדָבְרֶךָ תִּזְכֶּה בְשָׁפְטֶךָ

Septuagint (Psalms 50:6 in the Septuagint numbering): σοὶ μόνῳ ἥμαρτον, καὶ τὸ πονηρὰν ἐνώπιον σοῦ ἐποίησα· ὅπως ἂν δικαιωθῇς ἐν τοῖς λόγοις σου, καὶ νικήσῃς ἐν τῷ κρίνεσθαί σε.

The Greek of the NT matches the Septuagint word for word in 8 consecutive words: “Ὅπως ἂν δικαιωθῇς ἐν τοῖς λόγοις σου καὶ.”

Septuagint, Swete’s text, First1KGreek transcription (with reading errors), CC BY-SA 4.0

Psalms 51:4, word by word

against you aloneבַדְּvad

alone

One thing alone, set apart from the rest; also the expression 'besides'.

Where else “vad” appears

I have sinnedחָטָאתִיchatati

sin

To do wrong, fail God or another.

Where else “chatati” appears

and what is evilרַעra

evil

What is evil, the opposite of good.

Where else “ra” appears

in your eyesעֵינֶיene

sight

"In the eyes of" someone: in their view.

Where else “ene” appears

I have doneעָשִׂיתִיasiti

To carry out an act or to deal with someone in a certain way, for good or ill.

Where else “asiti” appears

you may be righteousתִּצְדַּקtitsdak

be righteous

To be in the clear before God.

Where else “titsdak” appears

when you speakדָבְרֶdavre

speak

To speak, say something; above all God to his people.

Where else “davre” appears

pureתִּזְכֶּהtizke

be pure, be clean

To be pure, clean, clear; figuratively, to be innocent.

Where else “tizke” appears

when you judgeשָׁפְטֶshafte

judge

To judge and do justice, defend the weak.

Where else “shafte” appears

Translation note

Paul quotes this verse in Romans 3:4 with the words “and prevail when you are judged.”

Parallel passages

Other books that tell the same thing or quote these words.

Quotation · Romans 3:4

Paul quotes the second half of Psalm 51:4. Where the Hebrew says “pure when you judge,” Romans says “and prevail when you are judged.”

See them side by side

Psalms 51:4

⁴Against you, against you alone, I have sinned, and what is evil in your eyes I have done, so that you may be righteous when you speak, pure when you judge.

Romans 3:4

⁴By no means! Rather, let God be true, and every human being a liar, as it is written: So that you may be declared righteous in your words and prevail when you are judged.

The context

3For my transgressions I know, and my sin is before me always.

4 · This verse (above)

5Look, in iniquity I was brought forth, and in sin my mother conceived me.

Read all of Psalms 51

How to use it