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Psalm 56:5

All day long they twist my words. All their thoughts are against me for evil.

3When I am afraid, I will put my trust in you.
4In God, I praise his word. In God, I put my trust. I will not be afraid. What can flesh do to me?
5All day long they twist my words. All their thoughts are against me for evil.
6They conspire and lurk, watching my steps. They are eager to take my life.
7Shall they escape by iniquity? In anger cast down the peoples, God.
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← Psalm 56:4Psalm 56:6 →
Notice

“All day long” makes the twisting of words feel relentless: the speaker faces people intent on harm, with no pause in their hostility.

Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.

What experience, if any, comes to mind when you read “they twist my words”?

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What would you want to tell God about the cost of having your words distorted?

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What do you notice about the movement from trust in verses 3–4 to complaint in verse 5?

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Connect

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
Genesis 50:20As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to save many people alive, as is happening today.Both speakers describe people intending evil against them; Genesis also names God's good purpose in preserving lives.
Matthew 22:15Then the Pharisees went and took counsel how they might entrap him in his talk.The twisting of the speaker's words shares a thread with the Pharisees' plan to entrap Jesus through his talk.
Luke 11:54lying in wait for him, and seeking to catch him in something he might say, that they might accuse him.Both passages describe hostile attention to someone's words, with Luke naming the aim of finding grounds for accusation.
Psalm 41:7All who hate me whisper together against me. They imagine the worst for me.Both psalms describe enemies whose thoughts are directed against the speaker, with Psalm 41 also naming their whispered collaboration.
Isaiah 29:20–21For the ruthless is brought to nothing, and the scoffer ceases, and all those who are alert to do evil are cut off—Both texts describe people intent on evil; Isaiah also declares an end to those who watch for chances to do it.
2 Peter 3:16as also in all of his letters, speaking in them of these things. In those, there are some things that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unsettled …Both texts name the twisting of words, though Peter speaks of letters and Scripture rather than the psalm's personal complaint.
1 Samuel 18:21Saul said, I will give her to him, that she may be a snare to him and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him. Therefore Saul said to David a …Saul's plan to make marriage a snare for David shares the psalm's concern with deliberate intent to harm.
John 2:19Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”John records Jesus' words about the temple; the psalm describes distorted words, a response John's verse does not report.
Luke 22:3–6Satan entered into Judas, who was also called Iscariot, who was counted with the twelve.The psalm names evil intent; Luke names Satan entering Judas, though this verse does not describe Judas's actions.
1 Samuel 18:17Saul said to David, “Behold, my elder daughter Merab. I will give her to you as wife. Only be valiant for me, and fight the LORD’s battles.” For Saul said, …Saul's stated wish for the Philistines to harm David makes concrete the hostile intent described in the psalm.
Jeremiah 18:18Then they said, “Come! Let’s devise plans against Jeremiah; for the law won’t perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. …Both passages describe speech turned against a person, with Jeremiah's opponents planning a verbal attack while refusing his words.
1 Samuel 18:29Saul was even more afraid of David; and Saul was David’s enemy continually.Saul's ongoing enmity toward David shares the psalm's emphasis on hostility that persists without relief.
Where this verse fits

Work conflict. broken friendship. injustice and anger.

What the Bible says about anger →
One step

Something small to carry out of this verse

Read Psalm 56:5 aloud before praying about one strained conversation

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Encouragement

Trust in God has already been spoken when this complaint begins. You do not have to soften an account of harm to pray; this psalm includes both trust and protest.

Now put it in your words.

Start an entry on Psalm 56:5. Write what it stirs. Psalmlog sets your words beside Scripture and gives you one next step. Your first entry is free, no account needed.

Keep goingPsalm 56 · 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).