Read
Psalm 116:18
I will pay my vows to the LORD, yes, in the presence of all his people,
16LORD, truly I am your servant. I am your servant, the son of your servant girl. You have freed me from my chains.
17I will offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and will call on the LORD’s name.
18I will pay my vows to the LORD, yes, in the presence of all his people,
19in the courts of the LORD’s house, in the middle of you, Jerusalem. Praise the LORD!
Notice
A vow made to YHWH becomes a commitment carried out among his people, bringing the weight of promised words into shared worship.
Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.
What promises to God, if any, come to mind as you read this resolve?
Write on thisWhat difference does the presence of God's people make to the speaker's commitment?
Write on thisConnect
Where else Scripture says this
12 passages readers most often link with this verse, and the thread each one shares with it.
This verse's connections, by chapterThe Bible's strongest chapter linksHover or tap a book to trace it
Deuteronomy 23:21When you vow a vow to the LORD your God, you shall not be slack to pay it, for the LORD your God will surely require it of you; and it would be sin in you.Both passages concern paying vows to the LORD: Deuteronomy commands payment without delay, and the psalm expresses the resolve to pay.
Psalm 116:14I will pay my vows to the LORD, yes, in the presence of all his people.Both verses repeat the same resolve to pay vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people.
Psalm 149:1Praise the LORD! Sing to the LORD a new song, his praise in the assembly of the saints.Both passages place worship of the LORD among his gathered people, through paying vows or singing praise.
Psalm 22:25My praise of you comes in the great assembly. I will pay my vows before those who fear him.Both speakers pledge to pay their vows before others who belong to God, making the assembly part of their response.
Numbers 30:2When a man vows a vow to the LORD, or swears an oath to bind his soul with a bond, he shall not break his word. He shall do according to all that proceeds out …Numbers requires a person to keep a vow made to the LORD; the psalmist declares his intent to do so.
Psalm 76:11Make vows to the LORD your God, and fulfill them! Let all of his neighbors bring presents to him who is to be feared.Both passages join vows to their fulfillment: Psalm 76 commands it, while Psalm 116 voices a personal commitment.
Genesis 28:20Jacob vowed a vow, saying, “If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and clothing to put on,Both passages name vows to God; Jacob speaks of hoped-for provision, while the psalmist declares his intent to pay.
Numbers 21:2Israel vowed a vow to the LORD, and said, “If you will indeed deliver this people into my hand, then I will utterly destroy their cities.”Both passages speak of vows to the LORD; Numbers records Israel's pledge to destroy cities, while the psalm declares payment.
Ecclesiastes 5:5It is better that you should not vow, than that you should vow and not pay.Both passages treat paying a vow as essential: Ecclesiastes warns against unpaid vows, and the psalmist commits to payment.
Leviticus 7:16“‘But if the sacrifice of his offering is a vow, or a free will offering, it shall be eaten on the day that he offers his sacrifice. On the next day what …Vows connect these texts: Leviticus gives rules for eating a vow offering, while the psalmist pledges to pay his vows.
Leviticus 22:18“Speak to Aaron, and to his sons, and to all the children of Israel, and say to them, ‘Whoever is of the house of Israel, or of the foreigners in Israel, who …Vows to the LORD appear in both texts; Leviticus addresses offerings, while the psalm places payment among God's people.
Deuteronomy 23:23You shall observe and do that which has gone out of your lips. Whatever you have vowed to the LORD your God as a free will offering, which you have promised …Deuteronomy requires carrying out what someone has vowed to the LORD; the psalmist voices that commitment before God's people.
Where this verse fits
Gratitude. answered prayer. praise and worship.
One step
Something small to carry out of this verse
Encouragement
YHWH has freed the speaker from chains before these vows are paid. Keeping his word takes its place within thanksgiving for what God has done.
Now put it in your words.
Start an entry on Psalm 116:18. Write what it stirs. Psalmlog sets your words beside Scripture and gives you one next step. Your first entry is free, no account needed.
Keep goingPsalm 116 · the whole chapter with its connection mapPsalms · every chapterBuild a reading plan through Psalms
Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).