Psalms 90:5 (WEB)

Passage

You sweep them away as they sleep. In the morning they sprout like new grass.

Nearby Context

Psalms 90:3 You turn man to destruction, saying, “Return, you children of men.”

Psalms 90:4 For a thousand years in your sight are just like yesterday when it is past, like a watch in the night.

Psalms 90:5 You sweep them away as they sleep. In the morning they sprout like new grass.

Psalms 90:6 In the morning it sprouts and springs up. By evening, it is withered and dry.

Psalms 90:7 For we are consumed in your anger. We are troubled in your wrath.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "sweep", "away", "sleep", "morning", "sprout", "like", and "grass". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "sweep" and "away", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 4's "For a thousand years in your sight..." into verse 6's "In the morning it sprouts and springs...", so "sweep" and "away" 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 "sweep" and "away" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.