1 Chronicles 16:19 (YLT)

Passage

When ye are few of number, As a little thing, and sojourners in it.

Nearby Context

1 Chronicles 16:17 And He establisheth it to Jacob for a statute, To Israel--a covenant age-during.

1 Chronicles 16:18 Saying: To thee I give the land of Canaan, The portion of your inheritance,

1 Chronicles 16:19 When ye are few of number, As a little thing, and sojourners in it.

1 Chronicles 16:20 And they go up and down, From nation unto nation, And from a kingdom unto another people.

1 Chronicles 16:21 He hath not suffered any to oppress them, And reproveth on their account kings:

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "number", "little", and "sojourners". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "number" and "little", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 18's "Saying To thee I give the land..." into verse 20's "And they go up and down From...", so "number" and "little" belong inside that flow. In 1 Chronicles context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

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