Version: King James Version (public domain)
Psalm 27
The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
Psalm 27 opens with “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?” and moves from confidence to a plea for help, ending with a word of advice: wait on the Lord.
Bible text
1 The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
2 When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell.
3 Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident.
4 One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple.
5 For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock.
6 And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round about me: therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy; I will sing, yea, I will sing praises unto the Lord.
7 Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
8 When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek.
9 Hide not thy face far from me; put not thy servant away in anger: thou hast been my help; leave me not, neither forsake me, O God of my salvation.
10 When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up.
11 Teach me thy way, O Lord, and lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies.
12 Deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies: for false witnesses are risen up against me, and such as breathe out cruelty.
13 I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
14 Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the Lord.
Original text
v. 1: LeDavid. Adonai ori veyish’i, mimi ira? Adonai ma’oz chayai, mimi efchad?
Plain-language version
vv. 1–3 God is my light and saves me, so I have no reason to be afraid. Even if an army surrounds me, I will keep trusting.
vv. 4–6 The one thing I ask is to live close to God and see his goodness. In hard times he hides me and sets me in a safe place.
vv. 7–12 Hear my prayer, do not hide from me. Even if my father and mother left me, the Lord would take me in. Teach me your way and keep me from those who accuse me falsely.
vv. 13–14 I believe I will see God’s goodness in this life. Wait for the Lord, be brave, and keep waiting.
Historical context
Authorship. The Hebrew heading simply says leDavid, “of David”. Tradition links the psalm to the times David was hunted, but the text does not name a specific episode.
Two parts. Verses 1–6 are a song of trust that speaks about God; verses 7–14 are a plea addressed to God. The shift in tone is so marked that some scholars think two psalms were joined.
The house of the Lord. To “dwell in the house of the Lord” (v. 4) refers to the sanctuary, the place of God’s presence and also a refuge for the persecuted.
Explanation
Light, salvation and strength
The psalm opens with three images for God and two questions: “whom shall I fear? … of whom shall I be afraid?” The answer is implied: if God is light, salvation and strength, fear loses its ground.
One thing
In verse 4 the psalmist sums up his longing in one thing: to be near God and to behold his “beauty” (Hebrew no’am, also “goodness”, “delight”). Security does not come from defeating enemies but from this nearness.
Father and mother
Verse 10 says: “When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up.” In that society, family was a person’s basic protection; the psalm claims that God’s care goes beyond even that bond.
Waiting with courage
The ending does not promise an instant solution. “Wait on the Lord” appears twice in the last verse, with a call to courage in between: here, waiting is an active form of trust.
How each tradition reads it
Catholic
In the Vulgate numbering it is Psalm 26, “Dominus illuminatio mea”. The psalm appears in the Liturgy of the Hours and in funeral rites, because of its hope to “see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living”.
Protestant
For many Protestants it is a go-to psalm in times of fear and anxiety. Verses 1 and 14 are among the most shared, and “wait on the Lord” is read as persevering trust.
Jewish
In Jewish tradition, LeDavid Adonai Ori is recited every day from the month of Elul until the end of the autumn festivals, as preparation for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. The Midrash links “my light” to Rosh Hashanah and “my salvation” to Yom Kippur (Vayikra Rabbah 21:4).
Academic
Many scholars see two genres joined here: a psalm of trust (vv. 1–6) and an individual lament (vv. 7–14). Others defend its unity, noting that trust and plea sit together in other psalms too. In the Masoretic text, the first word of verse 13 (lulê, “unless”) carries extraordinary points, a sign that the scribes had doubts about it.
Each reading is attributed to the tradition that holds it. VersePath does not take sides.
Reflect
The psalmist names his fear openly: armies, false accusations, abandonment. Yet he ends with “wait”. What are you waiting for today, and what would change if you waited with courage rather than anxiety?
Did you know?
- The Latin of verse 1, Dominus illuminatio mea, is the motto of the University of Oxford.
- In the Hebrew text, the word that opens verse 13 carries special scribal dots, one of very few such cases in the Bible.
Frequently asked questions
What is the meaning of Psalm 27?
It is a prayer of trust in the middle of fear: God is light, salvation and strength, so those who trust him can wait with courage.
Who wrote Psalm 27?
The heading attributes it to David. It does not point to a specific episode in his life.
When is Psalm 27 prayed?
In times of fear, persecution or waiting. In Jewish tradition it is recited daily during the month of Elul, before the High Holy Days.
What does “wait on the Lord” mean?
It is not passivity: it means continuing to trust with courage while the answer has not yet come, as verse 14 says.