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Psalm 58:6
Break their teeth, God, in their mouth. Break out the great teeth of the young lions, LORD.
4Their poison is like the poison of a snake, like a deaf cobra that stops its ear,
5which doesn’t listen to the voice of charmers, no matter how skillful the charmer may be.
6Break their teeth, God, in their mouth. Break out the great teeth of the young lions, LORD.
7Let them vanish like water that flows away. When they draw the bow, let their arrows be made blunt.
8Let them be like a snail which melts and passes away, like the stillborn child, who has not seen the sun.
Notice
Broken teeth are a violent image: faced with people pictured as venomous snakes and lions, the speaker asks God to destroy their power to harm.
Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.
What troubles you about asking God to break the teeth of people pictured as lions?
Write on thisWhat harm would you ask God to stop by taking away someone's power to inflict it?
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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
Psalm 3:7Arise, LORD! Save me, my God! For you have struck all of my enemies on the cheek bone. You have broken the teeth of the wicked.Both prayers address God with the image of broken teeth, asking for action against enemies or recounting his blows against the wicked.
Psalm 57:4My soul is among lions. I lie among those who are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword.Both psalms picture threatening people as lions whose teeth express their capacity to injure.
Job 4:10The roaring of the lion, and the voice of the fierce lion, the teeth of the young lions, are broken.Both passages speak of young lions losing their teeth: the psalm asks God to break them, while Job's passage describes them as broken.
Hosea 5:14For I will be to Ephraim like a lion, and like a young lion to the house of Judah. I myself will tear in pieces and go away. I will carry off, and there will …Both use a young lion's violence as an image, though Hosea depicts God as the lion and the psalm depicts those facing judgment.
Proverbs 30:14There is a generation whose teeth are like swords, and their jaws like knives, to devour the poor from the earth, and the needy from among men.Both portray harmful people through dangerous teeth; Proverbs names the poor and needy as those being devoured.
Psalm 7:9Oh let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end, but establish the righteous; their minds and hearts are searched by the righteous God.Both prayers ask God to bring wickedness to an end, with Psalm 58 expressing that plea through broken teeth.
Psalm 10:15Break the arm of the wicked. As for the evil man, seek out his wickedness until you find none.Both prayers ask God to break a body part associated with the wicked person's ability to do harm.
Micah 5:8The remnant of Jacob will be among the nations, among many peoples, like a lion among the animals of the forest, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep; …Both use young lions to portray destructive strength, though Micah applies the image to Jacob's remnant and Psalm 58 to those opposed.
Job 29:17I broke the jaws of the unrighteous and plucked the prey out of his teeth.Both describe breaking the mouth of a predator-like wrongdoer; Job also describes rescuing prey from the unrighteous person's teeth.
Lamentations 3:16He has also broken my teeth with gravel. He has covered me with ashes.Both contain broken teeth, though the psalm requests this violence against others and Lamentations describes the speaker's own suffering.
Job 41:14Who can open the doors of his face? Around his teeth is terror.Both associate teeth with fearsome danger; the psalm asks God to break the teeth, while Job's passage describes their terror.
Where this verse fits
Injustice and anger. fear for the future.
One step
Something small to carry out of this verse
Encouragement
The prayer is fierce because the threat is fierce. Its demand is addressed to God; it gives no command to strike another person or take revenge.
Now put it in your words.
Start an entry on Psalm 58:6. 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).