What Does Psalm 119:150 Mean?
They draw near, those who pursue their schemes; from your instruction they are far.
Key words are shown with the Hebrew or Greek and what each word meant.
Selah Decoded Version The Selah Decoded Version renders what the Hebrew and Greek words meant to the people who first heard them.
King James wording
King James Version
They draw nigh that follow after mischief: they are far from thy law.THE KEY
A person can draw near to a scheme while moving farther from the instruction that gives direction.
THE MEANING
People can move toward harm with great purpose while moving away from God’s instruction. The verse shows that nearness is measured by the direction of pursuit, not by how close something feels. That same split is present whenever a chosen pursuit carries someone farther from the guidance that directs them.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It undoes the belief that closeness itself proves alignment: a person can be actively moving toward something while becoming more distant from God’s instruction.
THE ROOT
קָרְבוּ
qārĕvû
GROWS FROM
ק־ר־ב
q-r-b
To approach, come near, or bring near.
“draw near” in this verse is qārĕvû. The same root gives the verse’s language of approach and also appears in קָרְבָּן (qorbān), drawing near. Nearness always has an object: coming closer to a scheme does not mean coming closer to instruction.
ALSO GROWS
qarov: Near
קָרוֹב
This branch makes the contrast plain: the pursuers draw near to mischief while remaining far from instruction.
qorbān: Drawing near
קָרְבָּן
This branch shows that approach is movement toward something; the verse makes the object of that movement matter.
זִמָּה
zimmāh
GROWS FROM
ז־מ־ם
z-m-m
To plan or devise.
“their schemes” in this verse is zimmāh. The word carries the sense of a devised scheme, so the pursuit is purposeful rather than accidental. The verse pictures people closing in on what they have set out to do.
ALSO GROWS
zāmam: To devise or plan
זָמַם
The verb reveals the intentional quality beneath the word translated “mischief.”
mezimmāh: A plan or scheme; also discretion
מְזִמָּה
This related form shows how planning can serve wise direction or become a scheme pursued toward harm.
תּוֹרָתֶךָ
tôrātekhā
GROWS FROM
י־ר־ה
y-r-h
To direct, point out, or teach.
The word is Torah, instruction, whose root carries the sense of pointing or directing. The verse sets a pursued scheme beside the guidance that points a path: the pursuers have a direction, but they are far from God’s instruction.
ALSO GROWS
yārāh: To direct, point, or teach
יָרָה
The root gives instruction its sense of guidance that points toward a way.
môreh: Teacher or instructor
מוֹרֶה
This related form shows the root’s movement from pointing toward a path to teaching someone its direction.
THE PATTERN
Nearness is disclosed by pursuit: what a person chases can draw them away from instruction.
Flourishing is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the way of those who miss the mark, nor sit in the seat of the scoffers.My son, do not walk the way with them; hold back your foot from their path.THE THREAD
The LORD is near to all who call out to him, to all who call out to him in truth.Both verses use the Hebrew root ק־ר־ב (q-r-b), meaning to approach or be near. Psalm 119 shows people drawing near to a scheme while far from instruction; Psalm 145 uses the same root for the LORD’s nearness to those who call upon him in truth.
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