May their camp be a desolation; let no one dwell in their tents.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This verse isn't just wishing for empty houses; it's invoking a total removal of life and lineage from a place. The Hebrew word for "habitation" can specifically refer to a nomadic encampment or a fortified enclosure, suggesting not just buildings but a whole settled community's space, meant to be utterly abandoned and feared.
May their camp be a desolation; let no one dwell in their tents.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This psalm is a passionate cry to God from a place of deep suffering and betrayal, where the psalmist feels utterly abandoned and overwhelmed by enemies. Following a series of pleas for deliverance and descriptions of his anguish, these verses are imprecations, calling down God's judgment upon those who have wronged him. The surrounding verses detail the enemies' relentless persecution and the psalmist's desperation, leading into this powerful prayer for their complete destruction and removal from their homes.
Ever felt like you've been kicked out of a place you once called home? This verse speaks of a devastating eviction, a complete removal from what was once familiar and secure.
The Hebrew word for 'habitation' here, tiras, can refer to a palace, a castle, a fortified place, or even a nomadic encampment. It signifies a place of dwelling, security, and often, pride. The psalmist is praying for a total desolation of these places, for them to be utterly abandoned.
What 'Desolate' Really Means
This isn't just an empty house; it's a place stripped of life and purpose. It's a place so forsaken it becomes dreadful, a place no one can or will inhabit. This echoes the ultimate judgment – not just destruction, but complete removal and erasure from a place once held.
The Divine Judge at Work
This imprecation isn't just a wish; it's a prophetic declaration. Commentators point out its chilling fulfillment in the destruction of Jerusalem and the Jewish state, a judgment Jesus himself foretold. It shows God's power to utterly dismantle human structures and plans when they stand in defiance of Him.
Imagine a curse so potent that it renders not just a place, but an entire legacy uninhabitable for generations. This verse carries that weight.
The prayer doesn't stop at physical destruction; it extends to the people and their future. 'Let none dwell in their tents' speaks of a complete eradication – no descendants, no inheritors, no one to carry on their name or lineage in that place.
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More Than Just Empty Houses
This implies a judgment that affects not just buildings, but the very continuation of a people or a group. It's a prayer for their legacy to be erased, leaving behind only ruins and a warning.
A Holy Zeal, Not Personal Revenge
It’s crucial to understand this is a prayer under divine inspiration, not a petty human curse. As Calvin noted, David’s imprecations were driven by a 'holy zeal for the divine glory' and a desire for God's just judgment, not personal revenge. This verse reflects a profound recognition of divine justice that can completely dismantle those who oppose God's people and purposes.
Understand the original words
shemamah · Hebrew Noun
A state of emptiness, ruin, or abandonment resulting from divine judgment; it describes the loss of God's presence and blessing in a place where people once lived.
This psalm's imprecation for desolation reflects the profound trauma of exile and destruction, particularly the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem and its Temple in 586 BC. The language powerfully anticipates the complete devastation and abandonment of their homes and sacred spaces, a fate later echoed in the Roman destruction of the Second Temple in AD 70.
c. 8th Century BC
Assyrian and Babylonian Empires Rise
The growing power of the Neo-Assyrian and later Neo-Babylonian Empires cast a long shadow over Israel and Judah, leading to periods of tribute, vassalage, and eventual conquest.
586 BC— this verse
Destruction of Jerusalem and Temple
Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian army conquer Jerusalem, destroy Solomon's Temple, and deport many of the remaining Jewish population to Babylon.
c. 539 BC
Cyrus the Great Conquers Babylon
The Persian king Cyrus the Great defeats the Babylonians, allowing exiled peoples, including the Jews, to return to their homelands and rebuild their temples.
c. 515 BC
Second Temple Completed
Under Persian rule, the returned exiles complete the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem, a symbol of their restored worship and identity.
c. 458-430 BC
Ezra and Nehemiah's Reforms
The return of Ezra and Nehemiah from exile brought spiritual and social reforms to the post-exilic Jewish community in Jerusalem.
c. 167-164 BC
Maccabean Revolt
A Jewish rebellion against the Seleucid Empire (Hellenistic successor to Alexander the Great's empire) after Antiochus IV Epiphanes desecrated the Second Temple.
AD 70
Destruction of Second Temple
During the First Jewish-Roman War, Roman forces led by Titus destroy Jerusalem and the Second Temple, fulfilling earlier prophecies of desolation.
This passage directly quotes Psalm 69:25 and applies it to the apostasy and judgment of Judas, showing how this imprecation is seen as a prophecy fulfilled in the New Testament.
Matthew 23:38Jesus echoes the sentiment of desolation when He laments over Jerusalem, stating 'Behold, your house is forsaken and desolate,' linking the prophecy to the future destruction of the city and its temple.
Romans 11:9-10Paul quotes Psalm 69:22-23 (which immediately precedes this verse) and applies it to the spiritual blindness and judgment that fell upon Israel for rejecting Christ, demonstrating a pattern of divine retribution for spiritual rebellion.
Jeremiah 22:5This verse describes the desolation of Jerusalem and its royal palaces as a consequence of disobedience, paralleling the theme of divine judgment leading to abandoned habitations.
poolePsalms 69:25: "Let their habitation be desolate; and let none dwell in their tents."
Their habitation, Heb. their palace , as this word signifies, Genesis 25:16 Numbers 31:10 Song of Solomon 8:9 . Either, 1. Their temple, in which they place their glory and safety. Or rather, 2. and more generally, Their strongest and most magnificent buildings and houses, in which they dwelt, as it follows in the next clause, which explains this. None; either, 1. None of their posterity. Destroy them both root…
bensonPsalms 69:25: "Let their habitation be desolate; and let none dwell in their tents."
Psalm 69:25 . Let their habitation — Hebrew, שׂירתם , tiratham, their palace, as the same word is rendered Song of Solomon 8:9 , or castle, as Genesis 25:16 , and Numbers 31:10 . It is meant either of their temple, in which they placed their glory and their confidence for safety, or more generally of their strong and magnificent buildings and houses in which they dwelt, as it follows in the next clause. And let…
This verse isn't just wishing for empty houses; it's invoking a total removal of life and lineage from a place. The Hebrew word for "habitation" can specifically refer to a nomadic encampment or a fortified enclosure, suggesting not just buildings but a whole settled community's space, meant to be utterly abandoned and feared.
This psalm is a passionate cry to God from a place of deep suffering and betrayal, where the psalmist feels utterly abandoned and overwhelmed by enemies. Following a series of pleas for deliverance and descriptions of his anguish, these verses are imprecations, calling down God's judgment upon those who have wronged him. The surrounding verses detail the enemies' relentless persecution and the psalmist's desperation, leading into this powerful prayer for their complete destruction and removal from their homes.
This psalm is a passionate cry to God from a place of deep suffering and betrayal, where the psalmist feels utterly abandoned and overwhelmed by enemies. Following a series of pleas for deliverance and descriptions of his anguish, these verses are imprecations, calling down God's judgment upon those who have wronged him. The surrounding verses detail the enemies' relentless persecution and the psalmist's desperation, leading into this powerful prayer for their complete destruction and removal from their homes.
"May their camp be a desolation; let no one dwell in their tents." — This verse isn't just wishing for empty houses; it's invoking a total removal of life and lineage from a place. The Hebrew word for "habitation" can specifically refer to a nomadic encampment or a fo…
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Last reviewed October 2026