Let their way be dark and slippery: and let the angel of the LORD persecute them.

PSALMS 35:6KJV
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Psalms 35:6 (KJV)

What does Psalms 35:6 mean?

Psalms 35:6 asks that the path of David’s enemies would become dark and dangerously slippery, and that the angel of the LORD would pursue them. The verse is a vivid prayer for confusion and trouble to overtake those who are unjustly attacking him.

King David is speaking in this psalm, crying out to God for help against people who are treating him unfairly. He uses strong imagery—darkness, slipperiness, and an angel sent by the LORD—to describe how he wants his enemies’ plans to fail and for them to be driven into chaos. The verse fits into a larger prayer where David seeks God’s justice against those who plot harm against him.

The Hebrew behind Psalms 35:6

  • way (דֶּרֶךְ, derek): This word means a road, path, or manner of life. Here, it refers to the course or direction the enemies are taking.
  • dark (חֹשֶׁךְ, ḥoshekh): This word means darkness, both literal and figurative. David is asking that his enemies’ path be covered in darkness, making it hard for them to see or succeed.
  • slippery (חֲלַקְלַקּוֹת, ḥalaqlakkot): This word describes something smooth or slippery, suggesting danger and instability. The image is of a path where it is easy to fall.
  • angel (מַלְאָךְ, mal’akh): This word means messenger, often used for a supernatural being sent by God. Here, it is the angel of the LORD acting as an agent of God’s judgment.
  • LORD (יְהוָה, YHWH): This is the personal name of God in the Hebrew Bible, emphasizing that the angel is sent by the God of Israel.
  • persecute (רָדַף, radaf): This word means to pursue or chase. David is asking that God’s angel would actively chase down his enemies, not just passively watch.

Why Psalms 35:6 matters

  • The verse uses strong, poetic images to express a desire for God to intervene directly and powerfully against injustice, not just to protect but to actively oppose wrongdoers.
  • The mention of the “angel of the LORD” highlights that David is asking for more than natural consequences; he is asking for God’s personal involvement in bringing justice.
  • The verse fits into a larger pattern in Psalms where the writer honestly voices distress and calls for God’s help, showing that such prayers have a place in the Bible’s language of faith.

Where else these words appear

“slippery” Hebrew H2519 · used in 4 verses

  • Jeremiah 23:12 Wherefore their way shall be unto them as slippery ways in the darkness: they shall be driven on, and fall therein: for I will bring evil upon them, even the year of their visitation, saith the LORD.
  • Daniel 11:21 And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.
  • Daniel 11:34 Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries.

“dark” Hebrew H2822 · used in 77 verses

  • Genesis 1:2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
  • Job 19:8 He hath fenced up my way that I cannot pass, and he hath set darkness in my paths.
  • Ecclesiastes 5:17 All his days also he eateth in darkness, and he hath much sorrow and wrath with his sickness.

“persecute” Hebrew H7291 · used in 135 verses

  • Genesis 14:14 And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan.
  • Judges 8:4 And Gideon came to Jordan, and passed over, he, and the three hundred men that were with him, faint, yet pursuing them.
  • Psalms 69:26 For they persecute him whom thou hast smitten; and they talk to the grief of those whom thou hast wounded.