Psalm 73:4
New International Version
They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong.

New Living Translation
They seem to live such painless lives; their bodies are so healthy and strong.

English Standard Version
For they have no pangs until death; their bodies are fat and sleek.

Berean Standard Bible
They have no struggle in their death; their bodies are well-fed.

King James Bible
For there are no bands in their death: but their strength is firm.

New King James Version
For there are no pangs in their death, But their strength is firm.

New American Standard Bible
For there are no pains in their death, And their belly is fat.

NASB 1995
For there are no pains in their death, And their body is fat.

NASB 1977
For there are no pains in their death; And their body is fat.

Legacy Standard Bible
For there are no pains in their death, And their body is fat.

Amplified Bible
For there are no pains in their death, Their body is fat and pampered.

Christian Standard Bible
They have an easy time until they die, and their bodies are well fed.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
They have an easy time until they die, and their bodies are well fed.

American Standard Version
For there are no pangs in their death; But their strength is firm.

Contemporary English Version
They never have to suffer, they stay healthy,

English Revised Version
For there are no bands in their death: but their strength is firm.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
They suffer no pain. Their bodies are healthy.

Good News Translation
They do not suffer pain; they are strong and healthy.

International Standard Version
For there is no struggle at their deaths, and their bodies are healthy.

Majority Standard Bible
They have no struggle in their death; their bodies are well-fed.

NET Bible
For they suffer no pain; their bodies are strong and well-fed.

New Heart English Bible
For there are no struggles in their death, but their strength is firm.

Webster's Bible Translation
For there are no bands in their death: but their strength is firm.

World English Bible
For there are no struggles in their death, but their strength is firm.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
And their might [is] firm.

Young's Literal Translation
And their might is firm.

Smith's Literal Translation
For not the pains to their death, and their body fat.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
For there is no regard to their death, nor is there strength in their stripes.

Catholic Public Domain Version
For they have no respect for their death, nor do they have support in their wounds.

New American Bible
For they suffer no pain; their bodies are healthy and sleek.

New Revised Standard Version
For they have no pain; their bodies are sound and sleek.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
For there is no end to their death, and their folly is great.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Because there is no expectation of their death and their madness is great.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
For there are no pangs at their death, And their body is sound.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
For there is no sign of reluctance in their death: and they have firmness under their affliction.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Endow the King with Your Justice
3For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. 4 They have no struggle in their death; their bodies are well-fed. 5They are free of the burdens others carry; they are not afflicted like other men.…

Cross References
Job 21:7-13
Why do the wicked live on, growing old and increasing in power? / Their descendants are established around them, and their offspring before their eyes. / Their homes are safe from fear; no rod of punishment from God is upon them. ...

Jeremiah 12:1-2
Righteous are You, O LORD, when I plead before You. Yet about Your judgments I wish to contend with You: Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all the faithless live at ease? / You planted them, and they have taken root. They have grown and produced fruit. You are ever on their lips, but far from their hearts.

Psalm 37:35-36
I have seen a wicked, ruthless man flourishing like a well-rooted native tree, / yet he passed away and was no more; though I searched, he could not be found.

Psalm 49:16-19
Do not be afraid when a man grows rich, when the splendor of his house increases. / For when he dies, he will carry nothing away; his abundance will not follow him down. / Though in his lifetime he blesses his soul—and men praise you when you prosper— ...

Ecclesiastes 8:14
There is a futility that is done on the earth: There are righteous men who get what the actions of the wicked deserve, and there are wicked men who get what the actions of the righteous deserve. I say that this too is futile.

Ecclesiastes 7:15
In my futile life I have seen both of these: A righteous man perishing in his righteousness, and a wicked man living long in his wickedness.

Malachi 3:15
So now we call the arrogant blessed. Not only do evildoers prosper, they even test God and escape.’”

Isaiah 57:1-2
The righteous perish, and no one takes it to heart; devout men are taken away, while no one considers that the righteous are taken away from the presence of evil. / Those who walk uprightly enter into peace; they find rest, lying down in death.

Proverbs 3:33
The curse of the LORD is on the house of the wicked, but He blesses the home of the righteous.

Proverbs 14:32
The wicked man is thrown down by his own sin, but the righteous man has a refuge even in death.

Luke 16:19-25
Now there was a rich man dressed in purple and fine linen, who lived each day in joyous splendor. / And a beggar named Lazarus lay at his gate, covered with sores / and longing to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. ...

James 5:5
You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in the day of slaughter.

1 Timothy 6:9-10
Those who want to be rich, however, fall into temptation and become ensnared by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. / For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. By craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.

Revelation 3:17
You say, ‘I am rich; I have grown wealthy and need nothing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind, and naked.

Matthew 5:45
that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.


Treasury of Scripture

For there are no bands in their death: but their strength is firm.

no

Psalm 17:14
From men which are thy hand, O LORD, from men of the world, which have their portion in this life, and whose belly thou fillest with thy hid treasure: they are full of children, and leave the rest of their substance to their babes.

Job 21:23,24
One dieth in his full strength, being wholly at ease and quiet…

Job 24:20
The womb shall forget him; the worm shall feed sweetly on him; he shall be no more remembered; and wickedness shall be broken as a tree.

firm.

Psalm 17:10
They are inclosed in their own fat: with their mouth they speak proudly.

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Bands Bodies Body Death Fat Firm Healthy Nourished Pain Pains Pangs Sleek Sound Strength Strong
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Bands Bodies Body Death Fat Firm Healthy Nourished Pain Pains Pangs Sleek Sound Strength Strong
Psalm 73
1. The prophet, prevailing in a temptation
2. Shows the occasion thereof, the prosperity of the wicked
13. The wound given thereby, diffidence
15. The victory over it, knowledge of God's purpose.














They have no struggle
The Hebrew word for "struggle" here is "חֲבָלִים" (ḥăḇālîm), which can also mean "pains" or "torments." This phrase suggests a life seemingly free from the common afflictions and hardships that others face. In the context of Psalm 73, Asaph, the psalmist, is observing the apparent ease and comfort of the wicked. Historically, this reflects a common biblical theme where the prosperity of the wicked is a source of confusion and distress for the righteous. Theologically, it challenges believers to trust in God's ultimate justice, even when immediate circumstances seem unfair.

in their death
The phrase "in their death" indicates the culmination of a life lived without apparent divine retribution. The Hebrew word "מוֹתָם" (môtām) for "death" underscores the finality and inevitability of death. In the ancient Near Eastern context, death was often seen as the great equalizer, yet here, the psalmist notes an absence of struggle even in this ultimate moment. This observation serves to heighten the psalmist's perplexity and sets the stage for a deeper exploration of divine justice and the fate of the wicked versus the righteous.

their bodies
The term "bodies" is translated from the Hebrew word "בָּרִיא" (bārî), which can also mean "flesh" or "physical form." This word choice emphasizes the physical, tangible aspect of the wicked's prosperity. In biblical times, a well-nourished body was a sign of wealth and blessing, often associated with God's favor. However, Asaph's observation here is ironic, as it contrasts the external appearance of well-being with the internal spiritual decay that he later reveals.

are well-fed
The phrase "are well-fed" comes from the Hebrew "שָׁמֵן" (šāmēn), meaning "fat" or "sleek." This description conveys an image of abundance and prosperity. In the ancient world, being well-fed was a sign of affluence and success, often envied by those who struggled to meet basic needs. Asaph's use of this term highlights the disparity between the wicked's outward prosperity and the struggles of the righteous. It serves as a reminder that material wealth is not always indicative of spiritual health or divine approval.

(4) For there are no bands in their death.--This is quite unintelligible, and does not fairly render the Hebrew, which gives, For there are no bands to their death. And by analogy of the derivation of tormenta from tor queo, we might give the Hebrew word bands the sense of pangs, rendering, "they have a painless death," if such a statement about the wicked were not quite out of keeping with the psalm. The ancient versions give us no help. Some emendation of the text is absolutely necessary. In the only other place it occurs (Isaiah 58:6) the word means specially the bands of a yoke; hence a most ingenious conjecture, which, by only a change of one letter, gives there are no bands to their yoke, i.e., they are "chartered libertines," men of libido effrenata et indomita, a description admirably in keeping with that of the animal grossness in the next clause, "fat is their belly." (Comp. the image of an animal restive from over-feeding, Deuteronomy 32:15; Burgess, Notes on the Hebrew Psalms.)

Strength.--The word is curious, but explained by Arabic cognates to mean belly, possibly from its roundness ("a fair round belly with good capon lined"); from root meaning roll.

Verse 4. - For there are no bands in their death; or, no sufferings (δυσπάθειαι, Aquila; "torments," Cheyne); comp. Job 21:13, "They spend their days in wealth, and in a moment go down to the grave;" and ver. 23, "One dieth in his full strength, being wholly at ease and quiet." Such deaths often happen, and are a severe trial of faith to those who have no firm conviction of the reality of a hereafter. But their strength is firm; literally, their body is plump (Cheyne). But the Authorized Version probably gives the true meaning. They drop into the grave while their strength is still undiminished.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
They have no
אֵ֖ין (’ên)
Adverb
Strong's 369: A non-entity, a negative particle

struggle
חַרְצֻבּ֥וֹת (ḥar·ṣub·bō·wṯ)
Noun - feminine plural
Strong's 2784: Bond, fetter, pang

in their death;
לְמוֹתָ֗ם (lə·mō·w·ṯām)
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine plural
Strong's 4194: Death, the dead, their place, state, pestilence, ruin

their bodies
אוּלָֽם׃ (’ū·lām)
Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine plural
Strong's 193: The body, powerful

are well-fed.
וּבָרִ֥יא (ū·ḇā·rî)
Conjunctive waw | Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 1277: Fatted, plump


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OT Poetry: Psalm 73:4 For there are no struggles in their (Psalm Ps Psa.)
Psalm 73:3
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