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Psalm 82
Revised Standard Version
Psalm 82
Revised Standard Version
A Plea for Justice
A Psalm of Asaph.
82 God has taken his place in the divine council;
in the midst of the gods he holds judgment:
2 “How long will you judge unjustly
and show partiality to the wicked?Selah
3 Give justice to the weak and the fatherless;
maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.
4 Rescue the weak and the needy;
deliver them from the hand of the wicked.”
5 They have neither knowledge nor understanding,
they walk about in darkness;
all the foundations of the earth are shaken.
6 I say, “You are gods,
sons of the Most High, all of you;
7 nevertheless, you shall die like men,
and fall like any prince.”[a]
8 Arise, O God, judge the earth;
for to thee belong all the nations!
Footnotes
- Psalm 82:7 Or fall as one man, O princes
Psalm 82
New International Version
Psalm 82
New International Version
Psalm 82
A psalm of Asaph.
2 “How long will you[a] defend the unjust
and show partiality(C) to the wicked?[b](D)
3 Defend the weak and the fatherless;(E)
uphold the cause of the poor(F) and the oppressed.
4 Rescue the weak and the needy;
deliver them from the hand of the wicked.
5 “The ‘gods’ know nothing, they understand nothing.(G)
They walk about in darkness;(H)
all the foundations(I) of the earth are shaken.
Footnotes
- Psalm 82:2 The Hebrew is plural.
- Psalm 82:2 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here.
Psalm 82
New King James Version
Psalm 82
New King James Version
A Plea for Justice
A Psalm of Asaph.
82 God (A)stands in the congregation of [a]the mighty;
He judges among (B)the [b]gods.
2 How long will you judge unjustly,
And (C)show partiality to the wicked? Selah
3 [c]Defend the poor and fatherless;
Do justice to the afflicted and (D)needy.
4 Deliver the poor and needy;
Free them from the hand of the wicked.
5 They do not know, nor do they understand;
They walk about in darkness;
All the (E)foundations of the earth are [d]unstable.
6 I said, (F)“You are [e]gods,
And all of you are children of the Most High.
7 But you shall die like men,
And fall like one of the princes.”
8 Arise, O God, judge the earth;
(G)For You shall inherit all nations.
Footnotes
- Psalm 82:1 Heb. El, lit. God
- Psalm 82:1 Judges; Heb. elohim, lit. mighty ones or gods
- Psalm 82:3 Vindicate
- Psalm 82:5 moved
- Psalm 82:6 Judges; Heb. elohim, lit. mighty ones or gods
Psalm 82
English Standard Version
Psalm 82
English Standard Version
Rescue the Weak and Needy
A Psalm of (A)Asaph.
82 (B)God (C)has taken his place in the divine council;
in the midst of (D)the gods he (E)holds judgment:
2 “How long will you judge unjustly
and (F)show partiality to (G)the wicked? Selah
3 (H)Give justice to (I)the weak and the fatherless;
(J)maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.
4 (K)Rescue the weak and the needy;
(L)deliver them from the hand of the wicked.”
5 (M)They have neither knowledge nor understanding,
(N)they walk about in darkness;
(O)all the foundations of the earth are (P)shaken.
6 (Q)I said, “You are gods,
sons of the Most High, all of you;
7 nevertheless, like men (R)you shall die,
and fall like any prince.”[a]
Footnotes
- Psalm 82:7 Or fall as one man, O princes
Revised Standard Version (RSV)
Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1946, 1952, and 1971 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
English Standard Version (ESV) 
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.