"When I am afraid, I put my trust in you."
— Psalm 56:3 (NIV)
Psalm 56:3 is the "when I am afraid, I will trust in you" verse. This page gives the verse, where it sits in Psalm 56, and a plain reading. For more on the theme, see Bible verses about fear, Love and fear, and Bible verses about trust.
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The verse
The King James reads: "What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee."
"Afraid" is yare (H3372), to fear or be afraid. "Trust" is batach (H982), to lean on or feel secure in. The next verse continues the thought: "In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust and am not afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?" (Psalm 56:4). There "word" is dabar (H1697), "praise" is halal (H1984), and "mortals" (KJV "flesh") is basar (H1320).
Where it sits in Psalm 56
The heading says the psalm is "Of David. A miktam. When the Philistines had seized him in Gath." The story is in 1 Samuel 21:10-15, where David, running from Saul, ends up among enemies and pretends to be insane to escape.
The psalm opens, "Be merciful to me, my God, for my enemies are in hot pursuit; all day long they press their attack" (Psalm 56:1). Later David says, "Record my misery; list my tears on your scroll" (Psalm 56:8). It ends, "For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life" (Psalm 56:13).
What the verse is saying
David does not say "I am never afraid." He says "when." Fear comes, and the verse tells you what to do with it: put your weight on God. Trust is a choice made in the middle of fear, not after it is gone.
By verse 4 the order has flipped: "in God I trust and am not afraid." Trust, kept up, starts to quiet the fear. Isaiah 41:10 gives God's side of the same exchange: "So do not fear, for I am with you." See also Psalm 27:1 and Perfect love casts out fear.
Questions people ask
What does Psalm 56:3 say?
In the NIV it says, "When I am afraid, I put my trust in you." The KJV says, "What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee."
What is the context of Psalm 56:3?
David wrote it when the Philistines seized him in Gath (Psalm 56 heading; 1 Samuel 21:10-15). He was surrounded by enemies and far from home.
What does Psalm 56:3-4 mean together?
Verse 3 says to trust God when fear comes. Verse 4 says that trust in God and his word leaves David "not afraid," asking, "What can mere mortals do to me?"
Who wrote Psalm 56?
The heading credits David.
What other verses are like Psalm 56:3?
Isaiah 41:10 (do not fear, for I am with you), Psalm 27:1 (the Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear), and 2 Timothy 1:7 (God gave us a spirit not of fear) are close companions.
