Psalms 57:6
They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down: they have digged a pit before me, into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves. Selah.
Original Language Analysis
הֵכִ֣ינוּ
They have prepared
H3559
הֵכִ֣ינוּ
They have prepared
Strong's:
H3559
Word #:
2 of 11
properly, to be erect (i.e., stand perpendicular); hence (causatively) to set up, in a great variety of applications, whether literal (establish, fix,
לִפְעָמַי֮
for my steps
H6471
לִפְעָמַי֮
for my steps
Strong's:
H6471
Word #:
3 of 11
a stroke, literally or figuratively (in various applications, as follow)
נַ֫פְשִׁ֥י
my soul
H5315
נַ֫פְשִׁ֥י
my soul
Strong's:
H5315
Word #:
5 of 11
properly, a breathing creature, i.e., animal of (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or ment
כָּר֣וּ
they have digged
H3738
כָּר֣וּ
they have digged
Strong's:
H3738
Word #:
6 of 11
properly, to dig; figuratively, to plot; generally, to bore or open
לְפָנַ֣י
before
H6440
לְפָנַ֣י
before
Strong's:
H6440
Word #:
7 of 11
the face (as the part that turns); used in a great variety of applications (literally and figuratively); also (with prepositional prefix) as a preposi
נָפְל֖וּ
whereof they are fallen
H5307
נָפְל֖וּ
whereof they are fallen
Strong's:
H5307
Word #:
9 of 11
to fall, in a great variety of applications (intransitive or causative, literal or figurative)
Cross References
Psalms 145:14The LORD upholdeth all that fall, and raiseth up all those that be bowed down.Micah 7:2The good man is perished out of the earth: and there is none upright among men: they all lie in wait for blood; they hunt every man his brother with a net.Proverbs 28:10Whoso causeth the righteous to go astray in an evil way, he shall fall himself into his own pit: but the upright shall have good things in possession.Psalms 140:5The proud have hid a snare for me, and cords; they have spread a net by the wayside; they have set gins for me. Selah.Psalms 142:3When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then thou knewest my path. In the way wherein I walked have they privily laid a snare for me.Proverbs 29:5A man that flattereth his neighbour spreadeth a net for his feet.Psalms 143:4Therefore is my spirit overwhelmed within me; my heart within me is desolate.Psalms 42:6O my God, my soul is cast down within me: therefore will I remember thee from the land of Jordan, and of the Hermonites, from the hill Mizar.
Historical Context
Ancient warfare involved literal pits and snares to trap enemies. David's experience included evading Saul's traps and seeing Saul repeatedly endangered by his own schemes (e.g., Saul endangered by Philistines while pursuing David, 1 Samuel 23:27-28).
Questions for Reflection
- How have you witnessed the principle of wickedness rebounding on the wicked?
- What does God's justice operating through natural consequences reveal about moral order?
Analysis & Commentary
The image of enemies falling into their own pit demonstrates the principle of lex talionis (law of retribution) operating under divine providence. Proverbs repeatedly affirms this pattern (Proverbs 26:27), fulfilled paradigmatically in Haman's hanging on his own gallows (Esther 7:10). This reveals God's poetic justice—the wicked's schemes rebound upon themselves.