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Psalm 138:3
In the day that I called, you answered me. You encouraged me with strength in my soul.
1By David. I will give you thanks with my whole heart. Before the gods, I will sing praises to you.
2I will bow down toward your holy temple, and give thanks to your Name for your loving kindness and for your truth; for you have exalted your Name and your Word above all.
3In the day that I called, you answered me. You encouraged me with strength in my soul.
4All the kings of the earth will give you thanks, LORD, for they have heard the words of your mouth.
5Yes, they will sing of the ways of the LORD, for the LORD’s glory is great!
Notice
David’s memory of an answered call draws attention to inward strength as a gift worth naming when you look back on prayer.
Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.
What experiences, if any, help you understand David’s thanks for strength in his soul?
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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
Isaiah 40:31but those who wait for the LORD will renew their strength. They will mount up with wings like eagles. They will run, and not be weary. They will walk, and not …Both passages connect strength with dependence on God: David recalls calling, while Isaiah speaks of waiting for the LORD.
Psalm 27:14Wait for the LORD. Be strong, and let your heart take courage. Yes, wait for the LORD.Strength and courage connect these verses, with David recalling God’s answer and Psalm 27 urging the heart to wait for the LORD.
Ephesians 6:10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.Both passages locate the source of strength in the Lord, whose might sustains the one who depends on him.
Psalm 73:26My flesh and my heart fails, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.Both psalms name God as the source of inward strength, speaking of the soul in one and the heart in the other.
Psalm 31:24Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who hope in the LORD.Both verses connect courage and inward strength with the LORD, whether recalling his answer or urging those who hope in him.
1 Peter 5:10But may the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a little while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and …God’s strengthening help links David’s account of answered prayer with Peter’s prayer for those who have suffered.
Psalm 18:6In my distress I called on the LORD, and cried to my God. He heard my voice out of his temple. My cry before him came into his ears.Both psalms recall calling to God and being heard, with Psalm 138 also naming the strength received.
Deuteronomy 33:25Your bars will be iron and bronze. As your days, so your strength will be.Both verses connect strength with the days of life, though only the psalm describes an answered prayer.
Isaiah 40:29–31He gives power to the weak. He increases the strength of him who has no might.Isaiah describes God giving strength to the weak; David recalls receiving strength in his soul when he called.
Philippians 4:13I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.Both verses speak of strength received from a divine source, with Philippians naming Christ as the one who strengthens.
Ephesians 3:16that he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, that you may be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner person,Both passages describe God giving inward strength, named as strength in the soul and power in the inner person.
Isaiah 12:2Behold, God is my salvation. I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the LORD, the LORD, is my strength and song; and he has become my salvation.”Both passages acknowledge God as the source of strength in words of thanks and trust.
Where this verse fits
Answered prayer. gratitude. wanting a steady prayer habit.
One step
Something small to carry out of this verse
Encouragement
David’s thanks name inward strength as God’s gift. The verse leaves the outward circumstances undescribed; the answer he remembers reached his soul.
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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).