Psalms 55:15 (KJV)

Passage

Let death seize upon them, and let them go down quick into hell: for wickedness is in their dwellings, and among them.

Nearby Context

Psalms 55:13 But it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide, and mine acquaintance.

Psalms 55:14 We took sweet counsel together, and walked unto the house of God in company.

Psalms 55:15 Let death seize upon them, and let them go down quick into hell: for wickedness is in their dwellings, and among them.

Psalms 55:16 As for me, I will call upon God; and the LORD shall save me.

Psalms 55:17 Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "death", "seize", "upon", "down", "quick", "hell", "wickedness", and "dwellings". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "death" and "seize", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 14's "We took sweet counsel together and walked..." into verse 16's "As for me I will call upon...", so "death" and "seize" 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 "death" and "seize" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.