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Psalm 18:41
They cried, but there was no one to save; even to the LORD, but he didn’t answer them.
39For you have armed me with strength to the battle. You have subdued under me those who rose up against me.
40You have also made my enemies turn their backs to me, that I might cut off those who hate me.
41They cried, but there was no one to save; even to the LORD, but he didn’t answer them.
42Then I beat them small as the dust before the wind. I cast them out as the mire of the streets.
43You have delivered me from the strivings of the people. You have made me the head of the nations. A people whom I have not known shall serve me.
Notice
The enemies’ cry reaches even to YHWH, yet receives no answer, a stark moment within David’s account of battle and the crushing defeat of his foes.
Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.
What changes in your reading when you identify the people crying as David’s defeated enemies?
Write on thisWhat troubles you, if anything, about YHWH leaving their cries unanswered?
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Where else Scripture says this
11 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
John 9:31We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, he listens to him.John records a claim about whom God hears; David recounts enemies whose appeal to the LORD goes unanswered.
Micah 3:4Then they will cry to the LORD, but he will not answer them. Yes, he will hide his face from them at that time, because they made their deeds evil.”Both describe people crying to the LORD without an answer; Micah names their evil deeds as the reason.
Job 27:9Will God hear his cry when trouble comes on him?Job asks whether God will hear a cry in trouble; David describes enemies crying to the LORD without an answer.
Proverbs 1:28Then they will call on me, but I will not answer. They will seek me diligently, but they will not find me,Both describe a call met with no answer; Proverbs presents Wisdom speaking, while David describes an appeal to the LORD.
Jeremiah 11:11Therefore the LORD says, ‘Behold, I will bring evil on them which they will not be able to escape; and they will cry to me, but I will not listen to them.Both describe cries to the LORD that receive no response amid disaster from which the sufferers find no escape.
Proverbs 15:29The LORD is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous.Both concern whether God hears prayer; Proverbs contrasts the wicked and righteous, while David recounts his enemies’ unanswered cries.
Proverbs 21:13Whoever stops his ears at the cry of the poor, he will also cry out, but shall not be heard.Both describe an unheard cry; Proverbs names refusal to hear the poor as the cause, which this psalm verse does not.
1 Samuel 8:18You will cry out in that day because of your king whom you will have chosen for yourselves; and the LORD will not answer you in that day.”Both describe cries to the LORD receiving no answer; Samuel’s warning concerns distress caused by the people’s chosen king.
Job 35:12There they cry, but no one answers, because of the pride of evil men.Both describe people crying without an answer; Job’s passage names the pride of evil men, while David describes defeated enemies.
Psalm 50:22“Now consider this, you who forget God, lest I tear you into pieces, and there be no one to deliver.Both portray violent destruction with no one to deliver; Psalm 50 addresses those who forget God.
Hosea 7:14They haven’t cried to me with their heart, but they howl on their beds. They assemble themselves for grain and new wine. They turn away from me.Both mention cries in relation to God; Hosea says the cries lack heart, while David records that the LORD gave no answer.
Where this verse fits
Sermon or Bible study notes. injustice and anger. doubt.
One step
Something small to carry out of this verse
Encouragement
An unanswered prayer in your life does not identify you with these enemies. Here David recounts a battle in which YHWH gave him victory.
Now put it in your words.
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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).