Psalm 55:10-11
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The "they" who patrol the city walls aren't just people, but violence and strife personified, acting as grim watchmen. This isn't just about a city under attack from the outside; it reveals how internal corruption, like "iniquity and trouble," has taken over its very defenses and heart.
Day and night they go around it on its walls, and iniquity and trouble are within it; ruin is in its midst; oppression and fraud do not depart from its marketplace.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The Psalmist is describing a city under siege, not necessarily by an external army, but by the pervasive presence of wickedness. Violence and strife are personified as constant patrols on the city walls, while within its heart, iniquity and sorrow fester, painting a picture of a community consumed by corruption and its devastating consequences.
Imagine the guards patrolling your city walls. What if those guards were symbols of crime itself? This verse paints a chilling picture of a society under siege from within.
The Psalmist uses powerful imagery in Psalm 55:10 to describe a city completely consumed by wickedness. He says, 'Day and night they go around it on its walls.' Who are 'they'? Commentators suggest these aren't ordinary soldiers, but rather 'violence' and 'strife' themselves, personified.
A Bitter Irony
Instead of security, the walls are patrolled by the very forces that threaten the city. It's a profound irony: the guardians are the criminals. This means:
What happens when violence is on the walls and 'mischief and sorrow' fill the streets? This verse reveals the devastating inner state of a city overrun by iniquity.
Psalm 55:10 doesn't just describe external patrols of evil; it dives into the heart of the city's condition: 'and iniquity and trouble are within it.' This speaks volumes about the internal landscape.
A Double Threat
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The verse presents a stark contrast and a compounding problem:
This combination paints a picture of a place where there is no escape. The very structures meant to protect are corrupted, and the inner life of the city is consumed by misery and wrongdoing. It's a state of total crisis, affecting both the outward appearance and the inner reality.
Understand the original words
’āwen · Hebrew Noun
Refers to lawlessness, moral perversion, or deliberate wickedness. It describes actions that miss the mark of God's righteousness and disrupt the community.
‘āmāl · Hebrew Noun
Harassment, mischief, or injurious behavior. It signifies the result of wickedness that causes suffering and misery to others.
havvot · Hebrew Noun
A state of destruction, calamity, or collapse, often used in the context of divine judgment or the consequences of human wickedness. It signifies the undoing of order and security within a community or individual life.
tok · Hebrew Noun
Refers to the act of crushing, extorting, or abusing others through power or authority. In a biblical context, it describes the systematic cruelty inflicted by the strong upon the weak, often violating the covenantal duty of justice.
mirmah · Hebrew Noun
Refers to deceit, guile, or treachery used to gain an unfair advantage or harm another. It involves the intentional distortion of truth to manipulate or betray trust.
This psalm likely reflects the deep distress and betrayal felt during a period of internal strife or external threat, possibly during the Babylonian exile when Jerusalem's walls were breached and its heart broken, or even during periods of civil unrest like Absalom's rebellion, where 'violence and strife' seemed to rule the city.
c. 1000 BC
David establishes Jerusalem
King David captures the city of Jerusalem from the Jebusites and establishes it as the capital of Israel, making it a center of political and religious life.
c. 970-931 BC
Solomon's Reign and Temple
Solomon's reign sees great prosperity and the construction of the First Temple in Jerusalem, solidifying its importance as the religious heart of the nation.
c. 701 BC
Assyrian Siege of Jerusalem
Under King Hezekiah, Jerusalem withstands a massive siege by the Assyrian army led by Sennacherib, a pivotal moment of divine deliverance for the city.
c. 597 BC
First Babylonian Deportation
Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon captures Jerusalem and deports a significant portion of its population, including King Jehoiachin, marking the beginning of the Babylonian exile.
c. 586 BC— this verse
Destruction of Jerusalem
Nebuchadnezzar's forces return, destroy Jerusalem and the First Temple, and deport most of the remaining population to Babylon, devastating the city and the nation.
c. 539 BC
Cyrus's Decree
Cyrus the Great of Persia conquers Babylon and issues a decree allowing exiled peoples, including the Jews, to return to their homelands and rebuild their temples.
c. 516 BC
Rebuilding of the Temple
The Second Temple in Jerusalem is completed, signifying a return of worship and a partial restoration of national life for the returning exiles.
This passage describes a city where violence and deceit are rampant, similar to the 'iniquity and trouble' within the walls of the city in Psalm 55:10, illustrating how wickedness can pervade an entire community.
Jeremiah 6:13Here, false prophets are described as promoting wickedness and deceit, echoing the sense in Psalm 55:10 that internal corruption and trouble are deeply embedded within the city's fabric.
Matthew 21:13Jesus' cleansing of the temple, calling it a 'den of robbers,' highlights how a place meant for worship can become filled with iniquity and trouble, mirroring the corruption described in Psalm 55:10.
Galatians 5:19-21This passage lists 'works of the flesh' like strife, dissension, and wickedness, which directly correspond to the 'iniquity and trouble' that pervade the city in Psalm 55:10.
gillPsalms 55:10: "Day and night they go about it upon the walls thereof: mischief also and sorrow are in the midst of it."
Day and night they go about it, upon the walls thereof,.... That is, "violence" and "strife" go about the walls of it continually; men of violence and contention are the only watchmen of it: a city must be sadly guarded that has no better watch than this; mischief also and sorrow are in the midst of it; it was full of wickedness within and without; the city, as Aben Ezra obser…
clarkePsalms 55:10: "Day and night they go about it upon the walls thereof: mischief also and sorrow are in the midst of it."
Day and night they go about - This and the following verse show the state of Jerusalem at this time. Indeed, they exhibit a fair view of the state of any city in the beginning of an insurrection. The leaders are plotting continually; going about to strengthen their party, and to sow new dissensions by misrepresentation, hypocrisy, calumny, and lies.
The "they" who patrol the city walls aren't just people, but violence and strife personified, acting as grim watchmen. This isn't just about a city under attack from the outside; it reveals how internal corruption, like "iniquity and trouble," has taken over its very defenses and heart.
The Psalmist is describing a city under siege, not necessarily by an external army, but by the pervasive presence of wickedness. Violence and strife are personified as constant patrols on the city walls, while within its heart, iniquity and sorrow fester, painting a picture of a community consumed by corruption and its devastating consequences.
The Psalmist is describing a city under siege, not necessarily by an external army, but by the pervasive presence of wickedness. Violence and strife are personified as constant patrols on the city walls, while within its heart, iniquity and sorrow fester, painting a picture of a community consumed by corruption and its devastating consequences.
"Day and night they go around it on its walls, and iniquity and trouble are within it; ruin is in its midst; oppression and fraud do not depart from its marketplace." — The "they" who patrol the city walls aren't just people, but violence and strife personified, acting as grim watchmen. This isn't just about a city under attack from the outside; it reveals how i…
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Last reviewed October 2026
