Psalms 119:157 (LSB)

Passage

Many are my persecutors and my adversaries, Yet I do not turn aside from Your testimonies.

Nearby Context

Psalms 119:155 Salvation is far from the wicked, For they do not seek Your statutes.

Psalms 119:156 Many are Your compassions, O Yahweh; Revive me according to Your judgments.

Psalms 119:157 Many are my persecutors and my adversaries, Yet I do not turn aside from Your testimonies.

Psalms 119:158 I see the treacherous and loathe them, Those who do not keep Your word.

Psalms 119:159 See how I love Your precepts; O Yahweh, revive me according to Your lovingkindness.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "persecutors", "adversaries", "turn", "aside", and "testimonies". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "persecutors" and "adversaries", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 156's "Many are Your compassions O Yahweh Revive..." into verse 158's "I see the treacherous and loathe them...", so "persecutors" and "adversaries" belong inside that flow. In Psalms context, the local focus is worship, trust, the LORD's kingship, and covenant mercy.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "persecutors" and "adversaries" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.