The Meaning of Psalms 81:14 Explained

Psalms 81:14

KJV: I should soon have subdued their enemies, and turned my hand against their adversaries.

YLT: As a little thing their enemies I cause to bow, And against their adversaries I turn back My hand,

Darby: I would soon have subdued their enemies, and turned my hand against their adversaries.

ASV: I would soon subdue their enemies, And turn my hand against their adversaries.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

I should soon  have subdued  their enemies,  and turned  my hand  against their adversaries. 

What does Psalms 81:14 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalms 81:8-16 - "if Thou Wouldest Hearken Unto Me"
God wants our emptiness, which seems to Him like the gaping beak of the young fledgling, Psalms 81:10. Give me room! is his incessant appeal. It must be the wonder of eternity, and it will certainly be our regret when we come to review our life, that we have asked so little. Give me room! cries the river, as it comes with a rush to the plains. Give me room! cries the wind, as it searches into the narrow courts and alleys of the slums. Give me room! says the Spirit of God, as He breathes around the house of our heart, seeking by any tiny crack to enter.
In the closing Psalms 81:13-16, we have an enumeration of all the blessings which would be ours, if only we would open our mouths wide. God would constitute Himself as our champion in subduing our enemies-the temptations from without and the inward warrings of selfishness and passion. He would give us unbroken and enduring blessedness. He would allow us to eat of His flesh and drink of His blood, which are meat and drink indeed. He would surely satisfy us with the sweet honey of His love. Let us begin to claim these benefits! [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalms 81

1  An exhortation to a solemn praising of God
4  God challenges that duty by reason of his benefits
8  God, exhorting to obedience, complains of their disobedience, which proves their own hurt

What do the individual words in Psalms 81:14 mean?

Soon their enemies I would subdue and against their adversaries turn My hand
כִּ֭מְעַט אוֹיְבֵיהֶ֣ם אַכְנִ֑יעַ וְעַ֥ל צָ֝רֵיהֶ֗ם אָשִׁ֥יב יָדִֽי

כִּ֭מְעַט  Soon 
Parse: Preposition-k, Adjective, masculine singular
Root: מְעַט  
Sense: littleness, few, a little, fewness.
אוֹיְבֵיהֶ֣ם  their  enemies 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine plural construct, third person masculine plural
Root: אֹיֵב  
Sense: (Qal) enemy.
אַכְנִ֑יעַ  I  would  subdue 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Imperfect, first person common singular
Root: כָּנַע  
Sense: to be humble, be humbled, be subdued, be brought down, be low, be under, be brought into subjection.
וְעַ֥ל  and  against 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
צָ֝רֵיהֶ֗ם  their  adversaries 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine plural
Root: צַר 
Sense: narrow, tight.
אָשִׁ֥יב  turn 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Imperfect, first person common singular
Root: שׁוּב  
Sense: to return, turn back.
יָדִֽי  My  hand 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, first person common singular
Root: יָד  
Sense: hand.