Psalms 16:1–11, King James Version
Italic words were supplied in the English translation for clarity.
Psalms 16:1–11
The LORD as chosen portion beyond death
A chosen portion, not a second god
The speaker asks preservation because he takes refuge in God. He says to the LORD, 'You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.' The holy ones in the land are the excellent in whom he delights.
Sorrows multiply for those who hurry after another god. He will not pour out their drink offerings of blood or take their names on his lips. The LORD is his chosen portion and cup; God holds his lot. The boundary lines have fallen in pleasant places.
Flesh that rests in hope, and a path of life
He blesses the LORD who counsels him; even at night his heart instructs him. He has set the LORD always before him, at his right hand, so he will not be shaken. Therefore his heart is glad and his flesh also dwells secure.
He trusts that God will not abandon his soul to Sheol, nor let the loyal one see the pit. God will make known the path of life; in God's presence is fullness of joy. Later resurrection preaching, including Christian use of these lines, is significant reception. The first horizon is Israelite trust that the LORD is portion even at the edge of death.
How this should shape us
Choose the LORD as portion before you chase a safer god. Receive later hope without erasing this speaker's night counsel. Do not treat Sheol language as a chart you can master, and do not use this joy to deny grief.
Teach it back
Explain Psalms 16:1–11 in your own words. Name the poetic voice and movement, trace its place in Psalm 16 and Book I, identify one exact source control or uncertainty, and reject one use the passage does not authorize.
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Go deeper
The explanation above is meant to stand on its own. Open these notes only if you want language, history, disagreements, or source locations.
Where careful interpreters disagreeThe strongest options and their difficulties
Where do responsible readings differ?
Best judgment: Later resurrection and Christian readings are significant reception, but the psalm's first horizon speaks from Israelite trust and contested language about Sheol.
How certain? probableResearch trail and exact locationsThe source record behind this section
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete thought-unit coverage.
Psalms 16:1–11, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology checked at the exact unit without treating morphology as a complete apparatus or interpretation.
Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Ps.xml, OSIS 16:1–11
Supports: Verse-level controls for poetic syntax, imagery, older KJV language, textual issues, headings, and alternatives in Psalms 16:1–11.
Official NET Bible Psalm 16 HTML, translator, textual, and study notes attached to Psalms 16:1–11
Supports: Five-book, genre, poetic, historical, theological, liturgical, communal, and reception synthesis with visible limits.
Enter the Bible Psalms course, Summary, Outline, Introductory Issues, and Theological Themes; applied to Psalms 16:1–11
Supports: Ancient Greek wording, numbering, division, and superscription evidence where it materially clarifies translation or reception.
NETS Psalms, Pietersma introduction pp. 542–543 and exact Greek translation headed Ps 16 for Psalms 16:1–11
Sources for This Section
These records identify the source, the claim it supports, and the exact location used. A source remains evidence to evaluate; it does not replace the biblical text.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete thought-unit coverage.
Exact location: Psalms 16:1–11, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Psalms
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology checked at the exact unit without treating morphology as a complete apparatus or interpretation.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Ps.xml, OSIS 16:1–11
Open the fixed Hebrew Psalms file ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible Notes: Psalms 1-150
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, current official online edition
Supports: Verse-level controls for poetic syntax, imagery, older KJV language, textual issues, headings, and alternatives in Psalms 16:1–11.
Exact location: Official NET Bible Psalm 16 HTML, translator, textual, and study notes attached to Psalms 16:1–11
Open the official NET Psalms notes ↗modern scholarly book course
Psalms course: summary, outline, background, introductory issues, theological themes, and Bible in the world
Fred Gaiser; revised by Nicholas Schaser
Enter the Bible, Luther Seminary, revised May 2024
Supports: Five-book, genre, poetic, historical, theological, liturgical, communal, and reception synthesis with visible limits.
Exact location: Enter the Bible Psalms course, Summary, Outline, Introductory Issues, and Theological Themes; applied to Psalms 16:1–11
Open the Enter the Bible Psalms course ↗ancient greek text translation and introduction
A New English Translation of the Septuagint: Psalms
Albert Pietersma
International Organization for Septuagint and Cognate Studies; Oxford University Press, 2009
Supports: Ancient Greek wording, numbering, division, and superscription evidence where it materially clarifies translation or reception.
Exact location: NETS Psalms, Pietersma introduction pp. 542–543 and exact Greek translation headed Ps 16 for Psalms 16:1–11
Open NETS Psalms ↗