Psalms 106:42 — Word Study
WLCוַיִּלְחָצ֥וּם אוֹיְבֵיהֶ֑ם וַ֝יִּכָּנְע֗וּ תַּ֣חַת יָדָֽם׃
BSATheir enemiesʼôyêb [adversaries, those who oppose] oppressed themlâchats▸ [treated cruelly, dominated] and subdued themkânaʻ▸ [humbled, brought into subjection] undertachath [beneath, in subjection to] their handyâd [power, authority]
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| וַיִּלְחָצ֥וּם | and they oppressed them | Verb qal sequential imperfect third person masculine plural, suffix |
| אוֹיְבֵיהֶ֑ם | enemies their | Verb qal participle (active) masculine plural common, suffix |
| וַ֝יִּכָּנְע֗וּ | and they were humbled | Verb, Niphal, sequential imperfect third person masculine plural |
| תַּ֣חַת | under | Noun common, masculine singular construct |
| יָדָֽם׃ | hand their | Noun common both singular construct, suffix |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | Their enemies oppressed them, and subdued them under their hand. |
| KJV | Their enemies also oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection under their hand. |
| ASV | Their enemies also oppressed them, And they were brought into subjection under their hand. |
| YLT | And their enemies oppress them, And they are humbled under their hand. |
| WEB | Their enemies also oppressed them. They were brought into subjection under their hand. |
| BBE | By them they were crushed, and made low under their hands. |
Where they part company is אוֹיְבֵיהֶם — see How Translations Differ.
The sentence has a main clause followed by two phrases that elaborate on the actions taken against Israel.
6 commentators on this verse
Gill, Jamieson, Trapp, Ellicott & more — read them ›
clause
verbכָּנַע
The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
Every word here is used elsewhere in the Old Testament.
Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.
Deep Study — Psalms 106:42
Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.
Context — Israel's Oppression and God's Deliverancegenerated
Psalms 106:42 recounts the oppression of Israel by their enemies, emphasizing the cruelty they faced and their subjugation. This verse highlights a recurring theme in the Psalms, where the psalmist reflects on Israel's suffering and God's deliverance, as seen in the surrounding verses that discuss their history and God's faithfulness despite their rebellion.
Cross References
The Key Word — וַיִּלְחָצ֥וּם, vai.yil.cha.Tzumgenerated
The Hebrew verb לָחַץ (lachats) means to oppress or to treat someone cruelly, often by using power or force. It conveys a sense of pressing down or squeezing, which illustrates the harsh treatment Israel endured from their enemies.
In this verse, the verb is in the qal sequential imperfect form, indicating an ongoing action by the enemies against Israel. The use of this verb highlights the severity of their oppression and the continuous nature of their suffering.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
This study reads the verse in the Berean Standard Bible, so the BSB is the wording every comparison below is made against.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The main verb of the verse is וַיִּלְחָצ֥וּם, and they oppressed them, which governs the entire clause. It is followed by a second verb phrase וַ֝יִּכָּנְע֗וּ, and they were humbled, indicating the result of the oppression.
The structure shows a direct action of oppression leading to a state of humiliation, emphasizing the impact of the enemies' actions on Israel.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
In the Septuagint, the Hebrew verb וַיִּלְחָצ֥וּם is translated as αὐτοὺς, which means 'them.' This reflects a direct correspondence to the Hebrew, maintaining the focus on the oppressed.
The word choice in the Septuagint indicates a consistent understanding of the oppression described in the Hebrew text, preserving the meaning of subjugation.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
Psalms 106:42 describes how Israel's enemies treated them cruelly and brought them under their authority. The verse highlights the oppression they faced and the humbling that resulted from it.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
It means that the enemies treated Israel cruelly and used their power to dominate them.
This verse reflects Israel's suffering, which often leads to a cry for help, prompting God's deliverance as recounted in the Psalms.
Being humbled indicates a loss of power and autonomy, showing the severity of Israel's oppression and their need for God's intervention.
This verse connects with the themes of suffering and deliverance found throughout the Psalms, where Israel often recounts their trials and God's faithfulness.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- How can I recognize areas in my life where I feel oppressed or overwhelmed?
- What does it mean for me to be humble under God's authority?
- In what ways can I support others who are facing oppression?
- How does understanding Israel's history of oppression help me in my own struggles?
Commentators on this verse — 6 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on Psalms 106:42 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
John Gill1697–1771Gill's Exposition of the Entire BibleTheir enemies also oppressed them,.... By taxes, and taking the increase of their fields and sustenance, which often obliged them to cry for a deliverer, who upon this was sent to them; see Jude 2:9.
Read John Gill on Psalms 106 →Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's CommentaryThey did not destroy the nations, concerning whom the LORD commanded them: -From the fathers in the wilderness the Psalmist turns to the sons in Canaan.
Read Robert Jamieson on Psalms 106 →John Trapp1601–1669Trapp's Complete Commentary on the Old and New TestamentsPsalms 106:42 Their enemies also oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection under their hand.Ver. 42. And they were brought into subjection] Heb. they were bowed down, or humbled, who would not humble themselves under the mighty hand of God, that he might exalt them.
Read John Trapp on Psalms 106 →Charles John Ellicott1819–1905Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(40-43) Having made review of the sinful past, the poet briefly but impressively describes the punishment which once and again had fallen on the nation. But as his purpose is to make his generation look on the Captivity as a supreme instance of this punishment, and to seek for deliverance by repentance, he mentions only the judgments inflicted by foreign foes.
Read Charles John Ellicott on Psalms 106 →CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges40–46. The alternations of chastisement, pardon, restoration, and relapse in the course of Israel’s history. As in Nehemiah 9:26 ff., the primary reference is to the period of the judges; but doubtless the verses are intended to be a summary survey of the characteristics of the whole course of Israel’s history, leading up to the prayer for restoration in Psalms 106:47.
Read Cambridge on Psalms 106 →Albert Barnes1798–1870Barnes' Notes on the BibleTheir enemies also oppressed them - Septuagint, “Afflicted them,” They invaded their country; they destroyed their vintages; they laid desolate their land; they made them captives.
Read Albert Barnes on Psalms 106 →The verse in English, compared — 17 translations, and where they part company
Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.
Modern formal
Their enemies oppressed them, and subdued them under their hand.
Their enemies also oppressed them. They were brought into subjection under their hand.
Their enemies oppressed them and subdued them under their hand.
Their enemies oppressed them; they were subject to their authority.
Tyndale line
Their enemies also oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection under their hand.
Their enemies also oppressed them, And they were brought into subjection under their hand.
Their enemies also oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection under their hand.
Their enemies also oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection under their hand.
Their enemies also oppressed them, and they were humbled vnder their hand.
Strictly literal
And their enemies oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection under their hand.
And their enemies oppress them, And they are humbled under their hand.
And their enemies oppress them, || And they are humbled under their hand.
And their enemies also oppressed them: and they were subdued under their hand.
Their enemies oppressed them, and they were brought into subjection to their authority.
From the Latin
The just shall see, and shall rejoice, and all iniquity shall stop their mouth.
Simplified
Their enemies dominated and subdued them with their power.
By them they were crushed, and made low under their hands.
Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.
The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank
This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.
Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.
The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran
The Masoretic Text and the Septuagint agree in the wording of this verse, with all five words matched. This shows a consistent transmission of the text regarding Israel's oppression.
וַיִּלְחָצ֥וּם אוֹיְבֵיהֶ֑ם וַ֝יִּכָּנְע֗וּ תַּ֣חַת יָדָֽם׃
5 of the 5 words are matched. This is the word-by-word correspondence, not the Septuagint's own sentence — its word order and its articles are its own.
Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.
The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with
This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.
Lexicons — every word in Psalms 106:42
One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.
Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.
The Hebrew word לָחַץ (lachats) is a primitive root meaning to press or squeeze, with a figurative sense of oppressing or distressing. It covers actions like crushing and forcing, and can also denote the act of squeezing oneself. The entries consistently highlight its meanings related to pressure and oppression.
לָחַץ vb. squeeze, press, fig. oppress
Qal
squeeze, press
oppress
Niph. squeeze oneself
base
H3905 לָחַץ squeeze, press, fig. oppress
3905 lachats law-khats'
a primitive root; properly, to press, i.e. (figuratively) to
distress:--afflict, crush, force, hold fast, oppress(-or),
thrust self.
לָחַץ (la.chats) — to oppress.
1) to squeeze, press, oppress
1a) (Qal)
1a1) to squeeze, press
1a2) to oppress
1b) (Niphal) to squeeze oneself
Conj | V-Qal-ConsecImperf-3mp | Suff — Verb qal sequential imperfect third person masculine plural · suffixHc/Vqw3mp/Sp3mp
אֹיֵב (oyeb) means 'enemy' or 'foe,' indicating hostility. It can refer to personal or national adversaries. The word is derived from the active participle of another root, אָיַב (ayab), which also conveys the sense of being hostile.
[אָיַב] 283 vb. be hostile to (enemy = אֹיֵב)
base
H341 אָיַב be hostile to (enemy = אֹיֵב)
341 'oyeb o-yabe'
or (fully) owyeb {o-yabe'}; active participle of 340;
hating; an adversary:--enemy, foe.
see HEBREW for 0340
אֹיֵב (o.yev) — enemy.
1) (Qal) enemy
1a) personal
1b) national
V-Qal | Suff — Verb qal participle (active) masculine plural common · suffixHVqrmpc/Sp3mp
כָּנַע (kana) is a Hebrew verb meaning to be humble or to humble oneself. It conveys the idea of subjugation or bringing down, whether in a reflexive sense (humbling oneself) or in an active sense (humbling others or subduing enemies). The entries indicate its use in different forms, including passive and active, but do not provide specific verse references.
[כָּנַע] vb. be humble, only in der. conj.
Niph.
reflex. humble oneself
pass. be humbled, subdued
Hiph.
humble
subdue enemies
base
H3665 [כָּנַע] be humble, only in der. conj. . . reflex. humble oneself
. pass. be humbled, subdued
. . humble
. subdue enemies
3665 kana` kaw-nah'
a primitive root; properly, to bend the knee; hence, to
humiliate, vanquish:--bring down (low), into subjection,
under, humble (self), subdue.
כָּנַע (ka.na) — be humble.
1) to be humble, be humbled, be subdued, be brought down, be low, be under, be brought into subjection
1a) (Niphal)
1a1) to humble oneself
1a2) to be humbled, be subdued
1b) (Hiphil)
1b1) to humble
1b2) to subdue
Conj | V-Niphal-ConsecImperf-3mp — Verb · Niphal · sequential imperfect third person masculine pluralHc/VNw3mp
תַּחַת (tachath) refers to the concept of being underneath or below. It can function as a noun meaning 'the under part,' or as an adverb and preposition indicating position or substitution, such as 'instead of' or 'for the sake of.' The word encompasses various uses, including physical placement and metaphorical meanings related to subjection or exchange.
תַּחַת n.[m.] the under part, hence as adv. accus. and prep. underneath, below, instead of
base
H8478 תַּחַת the under part, hence as adv. accus. and prep. underneath, below, instead of
8478 tachath takh'-ath
from the same as 8430; the bottom (as depressed); only
adverbially, below (often with prepositional prefix
underneath), in lieu of, etc.:--as, beneath, X flat,
in(-stead), (same) place (where...is), room, for...sake, stead
of, under, X unto, X when...was mine, whereas, (where-)fore,
with.
see HEBREW for 08430
תַּחַת (ta.chat) — underneath: under.
: under/below
1) the under part, beneath, instead of, as, for, for the sake of, flat, unto, where, whereas n m
1a) the under part adv accus
1b) beneath prep
1c) under, beneath
1c1) at the foot of (idiom)
1c2) sweetness, subjection, woman, being burdened or oppressed (fig)
1c3) of subjection or conquest
1d) what is under one, the place in which one stands
1d1) in one's place, the place in which one stands (idiom with reflexive pronoun)
1d2) in place of, instead of (in transferred sense)
1d3) in place of, in exchange or return for (of things mutually interchanged)
conj
1e) instead of, instead of that
1f) in return for that, because that in compounds
1g) in, under, into the place of (after verbs of motion)
1h) from under, from beneath, from under the hand of, from his place, under, beneath
תַּחַת (ta.chat) — underneath: instead.
: instead/in_place/exchange
Prep — Noun common · masculine singular constructHNcmsc
יָד (yad) means 'hand' and can also refer to strength or power in a figurative sense. It encompasses various technical uses, such as a sign or monument, parts or shares, and even specific components in construction, like axle-trees and supports for the laver. The word is versatile, appearing in both literal and metaphorical contexts.
יָד 1604 n.f. hand
hand
Fig. = strength, power
Fig. = side
יָד is used in various special, technical senses:—
sign, monument
part, fractional part or share
time, repetition
axle-trees
stays, supports for laver
tenons on sides of boards of tabernacle
a (beckoning) hand
יַד with prep.
base
H3027 יָד hand . hand
. Fig. = strength, power
. Fig. = side
. יָד is used in various special, technical senses:— . sign, monument
. part, fractional part or share
. time, repetition
. axle-trees
. stays, supports for laver
. tenons on sides of boards of tabernacle
. a (beckoning) hand
. יַד with prep.
3027 yad yawd
a primitive word; a hand (the open one (indicating power,
means, direction, etc.), in distinction from 3709, the closed
one); used (as noun, adverb, etc.) in a great variety of
applications, both literally and figuratively, both proximate
and remote (as follows):--(+ be) able, X about, + armholes,
at, axletree, because of, beside, border, X bounty, + broad,
(broken-)handed, X by, charge, coast, + consecrate, +
creditor, custody, debt, dominion, X enough, + fellowship,
force, X from, hand(-staves, -y work), X he, himself, X in,
labour, + large, ledge, (left-)handed, means, X mine,
ministry, near, X of, X order, ordinance, X our, parts, pain,
power, X presumptuously, service, side, sore, state, stay,
draw with strength, stroke, + swear, terror, X thee, X by
them, X themselves, X thine own, X thou, through, X throwing,
+ thumb, times, X to, X under, X us, X wait on, (way-)side,
יָד (yad) — hand.
: hand/arm[anatomy]
1) hand
1a) hand (of man)
1b) strength, power (fig.)
1c) side (of land), part, portion (metaph.) (fig.)
1d) (various special, technical senses)
1d1) sign, monument
1d2) part, fractional part, share
1d3) time, repetition
1d4) axle-trees, axle
1d5) stays, support (for laver)
1d6) tenons (in tabernacle)
1d7) a phallus, a hand (meaning unsure)
1d8) wrists
יָד (yad) — hand: power.
: hand/arm[anatomy]
1) hand
1a) hand (of man)
1b) strength, power (fig.)
1c) side (of land), part, portion (metaph.) (fig.)
1d) (various special, technical senses)
1d1) sign, monument
1d2) part, fractional part, share
1d3) time, repetition
1d4) axle-trees, axle
1d5) stays, support (for laver)
1d6) tenons (in tabernacle)
1d7) a phallus, a hand (meaning unsure)
1d8) wrists
יָד (yad) — hand: themselves.
: hand/arm[anatomy]
1) hand
1a) hand (of man)
1b) strength, power (fig.)
N-cs | Suff — Noun common both singular construct · suffixHNcbsc/Sp3mp