As he loved cursing, so let it come unto him: as he delighted not in blessing, so let it be far from him.

PSALMS 109:17KJV
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Psalms 109:17 (KJV)

What does Psalms 109:17 mean?

Psalms 109:17 asks that a man experience the harm he has wished on others and be kept from the good he refused to welcome. The speaker’s request is shaped by the man’s own conduct: the outcome sought for him matches what he has favored.

A “curse” here is a wish or call for harm, while a “blessing” is a wish or call for good. After describing the man’s cruelty in verse 16, the speaker turns to a request about what should happen to him.

The Hebrew behind Psalms 109:17

  • “cursing” — קְלָלָה (qelalah): This word refers to a curse or a call for harm. Here, “loved cursing” presents such speech as something the man welcomed, not merely words he spoke once.
  • “blessing” — בְּרָכָה (berakhah): This word refers to a blessing, an expression or gift of good. Set against “cursing,” it gives the verse its two contrasting directions: harm coming near and good staying far away.

Why Psalms 109:17 matters

  • The verse expresses a request, not a report that punishment has already happened. The KJV says “let it come” and “let it be far,” presenting the speaker’s words as a plea.
  • The surrounding passage gives the request a personal setting. Earlier, the speaker says that others have repaid his love with accusations and hatred (verses 4–5).
  • Verse 18 extends the picture of the curse with clothing and liquid: the man puts on cursing like a garment, and it enters him like water and oil. Those images make the requested consequence more vivid.

Where else these words appear

“cursing” Hebrew H7045 · used in 33 verses

  • Genesis 27:12 My father peradventure will feel me, and I shall seem to him as a deceiver; and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not a blessing.
  • Deuteronomy 29:27 And the anger of the LORD was kindled against this land, to bring upon it all the curses that are written in this book:
  • Proverbs 27:14 He that blesseth his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, it shall be counted a curse to him.

“far” Hebrew H7368 · used in 56 verses

  • Genesis 21:16 And she went, and sat her down over against him a good way off, as it were a bowshot: for she said, Let me not see the death of the child. And she sat over against him, and lift up her voice, and wept.
  • Psalms 22:11 Be not far from me; for trouble is near; for there is none to help.
  • Isaiah 6:12 And the LORD have removed men far away, and there be a great forsaking in the midst of the land.

“blessing” Hebrew H1293 · used in 64 verses

  • Genesis 12:2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:
  • Deuteronomy 28:8 The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
  • Psalms 84:6 Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools.

“delighted” Hebrew H2654 · used in 71 verses

  • Genesis 34:19 And the young man deferred not to do the thing, because he had delight in Jacob's daughter: and he was more honourable than all the house of his father.
  • Job 13:3 Surely I would speak to the Almighty, and I desire to reason with God.
  • Song of Solomon 2:7 I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he please.