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Psalm 55:5
Fearfulness and trembling have come on me. Horror has overwhelmed me.
3because of the voice of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked. For they bring suffering on me. In anger they hold a grudge against me.
4My heart is severely pained within me. The terrors of death have fallen on me.
5Fearfulness and trembling have come on me. Horror has overwhelmed me.
6I said, “Oh that I had wings like a dove! Then I would fly away, and be at rest.
7Behold, then I would wander far off. I would lodge in the wilderness.” Selah.
Notice
Trembling makes fear bodily here, and the word “overwhelmed” leaves no distance between the speaker and the horror brought by his enemies.
Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.
What do you notice about fear described as something that has “come on” the speaker?
Write on thisWhat, if anything, would you want to tell God using the words “Horror has overwhelmed me”?
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
Psalm 61:2From the end of the earth, I will call to you when my heart is overwhelmed. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.Both speakers describe being overwhelmed; Psalm 61 adds a plea for God to lead the speaker to a higher rock.
Psalm 119:120My flesh trembles for fear of you. I am afraid of your judgments. AYINBoth describe trembling with fear, though Psalm 119 names God's judgments as its cause, while Psalm 55's surrounding lines name enemies.
Job 21:6When I remember, I am troubled. Horror takes hold of my flesh.Horror takes hold of Job's flesh, echoing the trembling and overwhelming horror described in Psalm 55.
Luke 22:44Being in agony, he prayed more earnestly. His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down on the ground.Both passages describe distress with bodily signs: trembling in the psalm, and sweat like great drops of blood as Jesus prays.
Psalm 143:4Therefore my spirit is overwhelmed within me. My heart within me is desolate.Both speakers describe being overwhelmed, with Psalm 143 naming a desolate heart and Psalm 55 naming fear and trembling.
Proverbs 18:14A man’s spirit will sustain him in sickness, but a crushed spirit, who can bear?Both texts acknowledge distress that is hard to bear, though Proverbs contrasts a sustaining spirit with a crushed one.
Genesis 27:33Isaac trembled violently, and said, “Who, then, is he who has taken venison, and brought it to me, and I have eaten of all before you came, and have blessed …Trembling links these passages, though Genesis describes Isaac's reaction to discovering he has already given the blessing.
Job 23:15–16Therefore I am terrified at his presence. When I consider, I am afraid of him.Both speakers name terror and fear; Job fears God's presence, while Psalm 55's surrounding lines describe oppression by enemies.
2 Samuel 15:14David said to all his servants who were with him at Jerusalem, “Arise! Let’s flee, or else none of us will escape from Absalom. Hurry to depart, lest he …David urges flight from Absalom's threatened violence, while the frightened speaker in Psalm 55's surrounding lines longs to fly away.
Isaiah 21:4My heart flutters. Horror has frightened me. The twilight that I desired has been turned into trembling for me.Horror and trembling appear in both passages, with Isaiah also describing a fluttering heart and a desired twilight turned frightening.
Ezekiel 7:18They will also clothe themselves with sackcloth, and horror will cover them. Shame will be on all faces, and baldness on all their heads.Horror overwhelms the speaker in Psalm 55 and covers the people described in Ezekiel.
Psalm 88:15–16I am afflicted and ready to die from my youth up. While I suffer your terrors, I am distracted.Both speakers describe terror; Psalm 55's surrounding lines mention the terrors of death, while Psalm 88 speaks of readiness to die.
Where this verse fits
Anxiety or panic. fear for the future. injustice and anger.
One step
Something small to carry out of this verse
Encouragement
You do not have to make fear sound smaller when you pray. Scripture preserves this cry with its trembling intact, before any relief is described.
Now put it in your words.
Start an entry on Psalm 55:5. Write what it stirs. Psalmlog sets your words beside Scripture and gives you one next step. Your first entry is free, no account needed.
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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).