Psalm 9:17
New International Version
The wicked go down to the realm of the dead, all the nations that forget God.

New Living Translation
The wicked will go down to the grave. This is the fate of all the nations who ignore God.

English Standard Version
The wicked shall return to Sheol, all the nations that forget God.

Berean Standard Bible
The wicked will return to Sheol—all the nations who forget God.

King James Bible
The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.

New King James Version
The wicked shall be turned into hell, And all the nations that forget God.

New American Standard Bible
The wicked will return to Sheol, All the nations who forget God.

NASB 1995
The wicked will return to Sheol, Even all the nations who forget God.

NASB 1977
The wicked will return to Sheol, Even all the nations who forget God.

Legacy Standard Bible
The wicked will return to Sheol, Even all the nations who forget God.

Amplified Bible
The wicked will turn to Sheol (the nether world, the place of the dead), Even all the nations who forget God.

Christian Standard Bible
The wicked will return to Sheol — all the nations that forget God.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
The wicked will return to Sheol— all the nations that forget God.

American Standard Version
The wicked shall be turned back unto Sheol, Even all the nations that forget God.

Contemporary English Version
The wicked will go down to the world of the dead to be with those nations that forgot about you.

English Revised Version
The wicked shall return to Sheol, even all the nations that forget God.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Wicked people, all the nations who forget God, will return to the grave.

Good News Translation
Death is the destiny of all the wicked, of all those who reject God.

International Standard Version
The wicked will turn back to where the dead are — all the nations that have forgotten God.

Majority Standard Bible
The wicked will return to Sheol—all the nations who forget God.

NET Bible
The wicked are turned back and sent to Sheol; this is the destiny of all the nations that ignore God,

New Heart English Bible
The wicked shall be turned back to Sheol, even all the nations that forget God.

Webster's Bible Translation
The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.

World English Bible
The wicked shall be turned back to Sheol, even all the nations that forget God.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
The wicked turn back to Sheol, "" All nations forgetting God.

Young's Literal Translation
The wicked do turn back to Sheol, All nations forgetting God.

Smith's Literal Translation
The unjust shall be turned away into hades, all the nations forgetting God.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
The wicked shall be turned into hell, all the nations that forget God.

Catholic Public Domain Version
The sinners will be turned into Hell: all the Gentiles who have forgotten God.

New American Bible
To Sheol the wicked will depart, all the nations that forget God.

New Revised Standard Version
The wicked shall depart to Sheol, all the nations that forget God.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
The wicked shall be turned into Sheol, and all the peoples that forsake God.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
The wicked shall turn back to Sheol, and all the peoples that forget God
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
The wicked shall return to the nether-world, Even all the nations that forget God.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Let sinners be driven away into Hades, even all the nations that forget God.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
I Will Give Thanks to the LORD
16The LORD is known by the justice He brings; the wicked are ensnared by the work of their hands. Higgaion Selah 17The wicked will return to Sheol— all the nations who forget God. 18For the needy will not always be forgotten; nor the hope of the oppressed forever dashed.…

Cross References
Matthew 25:46
And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Revelation 20:15
And if anyone was found whose name was not written in the Book of Life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

Luke 16:23
In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham from afar, with Lazarus by his side.

2 Thessalonians 1:9
They will suffer the penalty of eternal destruction, separated from the presence of the Lord and the glory of His might,

Revelation 21:8
But to the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and sexually immoral and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur. This is the second death.”

Matthew 13:41-42
The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will weed out of His kingdom every cause of sin and all who practice lawlessness. / And they will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

John 3:36
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life. Whoever rejects the Son will not see life. Instead, the wrath of God remains on him.”

Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Revelation 14:11
And the smoke of their torment rises forever and ever. Day and night there is no rest for those who worship the beast and its image, or for anyone who receives the mark of its name.”

Mark 9:43-48
If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two hands and go into hell, into the unquenchable fire. / where ‘their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched.’ / If your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and be thrown into hell. ...

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

Isaiah 66:24
“As they go forth, they will see the corpses of the men who have rebelled against Me; for their worm will never die, their fire will never be quenched, and they will be a horror to all mankind.”

Daniel 12:2
And many who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake, some to everlasting life, but others to shame and everlasting contempt.

Ezekiel 18:4
Behold, every soul belongs to Me; both father and son are Mine. The soul who sins is the one who will die.

Isaiah 5:14
Therefore Sheol enlarges its throat and opens wide its enormous jaws, and down go Zion’s nobles and masses, her revelers and carousers!


Treasury of Scripture

The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.

The wicked

Proverbs 14:32
The wicked is driven away in his wickedness: but the righteous hath hope in his death.

Isaiah 3:11
Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him.

Isaiah 5:14
Therefore hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure: and their glory, and their multitude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth, shall descend into it.

forget

Psalm 44:17,20
All this is come upon us; yet have we not forgotten thee, neither have we dealt falsely in thy covenant…

Psalm 50:22
Now consider this, ye that forget God, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver.

Psalm 106:13
They soon forgat his works; they waited not for his counsel:

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Depart Forget Forgetting Grave Hell Memory Nations Nether-World Sheol Sinners Turn Turned Underworld Wicked
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Depart Forget Forgetting Grave Hell Memory Nations Nether-World Sheol Sinners Turn Turned Underworld Wicked
Psalm 9
1. David praises God for executing judgment
11. He incites others to praise him
13. He prays that he may have cause to praise him














The wicked
The term "wicked" in Hebrew is "רְשָׁעִים" (resha'im), which refers to those who are morally wrong, guilty, or hostile towards God. In the biblical context, the wicked are often contrasted with the righteous, those who live in accordance with God's laws. The wicked are characterized by their rebellion against God and their pursuit of sinful desires. This phrase serves as a reminder of the moral order established by God, where actions have consequences, and those who live in opposition to God's will are ultimately accountable.

will return
The phrase "will return" suggests a movement back to a previous state or place. In Hebrew, the word "יָשׁוּבוּ" (yashuvu) implies a turning back or a reversal. This can be understood as a return to a state of separation from God, which is the natural consequence of living a life opposed to His ways. It emphasizes the inevitability of divine justice, where the wicked, despite their temporary success or prosperity, will ultimately face the consequences of their actions.

to Sheol
"Sheol" is a Hebrew term "שְׁאוֹל" (She'ol) that refers to the realm of the dead, a place of darkness and separation from the living. In the Old Testament, Sheol is often depicted as a shadowy existence where the dead reside, regardless of their moral standing. However, in this context, it signifies a place of judgment for the wicked. The use of Sheol underscores the seriousness of divine judgment and the ultimate fate of those who reject God. It serves as a sobering reminder of the eternal consequences of one's earthly choices.

all the nations
The phrase "all the nations" expands the scope of the verse beyond individual wickedness to include entire groups or societies that turn away from God. In Hebrew, "גּוֹיִם" (goyim) refers to nations or peoples. This highlights the universal application of God's justice, indicating that no nation is exempt from accountability. It serves as a warning to societies that forget God, emphasizing that collective rebellion against divine principles leads to collective consequences.

who forget God
To "forget God" in Hebrew is "שְׁכֵחֵי אֱלֹהִים" (shekhei Elohim), which implies a deliberate neglect or disregard for God's presence and commandments. Forgetting God is not merely an act of memory lapse but a willful choice to live as if God does not exist or matter. This phrase underscores the root cause of wickedness: a failure to acknowledge and honor God. It serves as a call to remember and revere God, recognizing that true wisdom and righteousness begin with the fear of the Lord. The verse, therefore, is both a warning and an invitation to return to a life centered on God.

(17) The wicked.--This is a most unfortunate rendering. The true translation is, the wicked shall return, as in LXX. and Vulg. (not "be turned") to the grave, i.e., to dust, according to the doom in Genesis 3:19, or to the unseen world, as in Job 30:23; Psalm 90:1-3; or the verbs may be imperative, as in LXX. and Vulg., let them return. The verse is closely connected with the previous one. The wicked are bringing about their own destruction, and so witnessing to the righteous judgment of Jehovah. There is an intensity about the original word, lisheolah, with its double sign of direction, "right down to the world of death." And all.--Better, the heathen all, forgetters of God.

Verse 17. - The wicked shall be tamed into hell; literally, shall be turned backwards to Sheol, or Hades; i.e. shall be removed from earth to the place of departed spirits. There is no direct threat of retribution or punishment, beyond the peens damni, or loss of all that is pleasing and delightful in this life. And all the nations that forget God; rather, even all the people (Kay). "The wicked" and "the people that forget God" are identical.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
The wicked
רְשָׁעִ֣ים (rə·šā·‘îm)
Adjective - masculine plural
Strong's 7563: Wrong, an, bad person

will return
יָשׁ֣וּבוּ (yā·šū·ḇū)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 7725: To turn back, in, to retreat, again

to Sheol—
לִשְׁא֑וֹלָה (liš·’ō·w·lāh)
Preposition-l | Noun - common singular | third person feminine singular
Strong's 7585: Underworld (place to which people descend at death)

all
כָּל־ (kāl-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

the nations
גּ֝וֹיִ֗ם (gō·w·yim)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 1471: A foreign nation, a Gentile, a troop of animals, a flight of locusts

who forget
שְׁכֵחֵ֥י (šə·ḵê·ḥê)
Adjective - masculine plural construct
Strong's 7913: Forgetting, forgetful

God.
אֱלֹהִֽים׃ (’ĕ·lō·hîm)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative


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OT Poetry: Psalm 9:17 The wicked shall be turned back (Psalm Ps Psa.)
Psalm 9:16
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