Psalms 3:2
Many there be which say of my soul, There is no help for him in God. Selah.
Hebrew word · Strong H5542
What does Selah mean?
Selah is a Hebrew word that appears 74 times in the Bible — 71 in the Psalms and 3 in Habakkuk — almost always at the end of a stanza. Its exact meaning has been lost, but the most widely accepted reading is a pause: stop the music, lift the voice or the instruments, and reflect on what was just sung.
סֶלָה
çelâh · transliteration · seh'-law · pronunciation
- In Strong’s lexicon
- suspension (of music), i.e. pause
- In the King James
- Selah74
- Appears in
- 74 verses
The meaning of Selah in the Bible
Strong's lexicon defines selah as “suspension (of music), i.e. pause”. Other scholars connect it to the verb salal, “to lift up”. The two explanations fit together: selah would be a direction for the musicians — a pause or an interlude — and at the same time a call to lift up the praise. The ancient Greek translation, the Septuagint, rendered it diapsalma, an interval between parts of the psalm.
Selah often follows a striking line — “Many there be which say of my soul, There is no help for him in God” (Psalm 3:2) — as if asking for silence before going on. The King James keeps the Hebrew word untranslated. For readers today the invitation is the same: pause, and let the word sink in.
Where Selah appears
Psalms 46:3
Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.
Habakkuk 3:3
God came from Teman, and the Holy One from mount Paran. Selah. His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise.
Frequently asked questions
- How many times does selah appear in the Bible?
- 74 times: 71 in the book of Psalms and 3 in Habakkuk (3:3, 3:9 and 3:13).
- What does selah mean at the end of a psalm?
- It marks a pause. It signals an interval in the music and invites whoever sings or reads to stop and reflect on what was just said.
More Bible words
- Shalom
- Yahweh (YHWH)
- Hallelujah
- Elohim
- Agape
- Adonai
- Hosanna
- Amen
- Abba
- Immanuel
- Tetelestai
- Kairos
- El Shaddai
- Maranatha
- Ebenezer
- Jehovah Jireh
- Jehovah Rapha
- El Roi
- Metanoia
- Jehovah Nissi
- Hesed
- Rhema
- Koinonia
- Logos
- Sheol
- Nephilim
- Number 7
- Number 3
- Number 12
- Number 40
- 666
- 444
- 333
- 222
- 111
- Iniquity
- Gentleness
- Longsuffering
- Grace
- Lasciviousness
- Concupiscence
- Strife
- Covetousness
- Reproach
- Redemption
- Godliness
- Burnt offering
- Sodomite
- Heretic
- Exhort
- Equity
- Would to God
- Stiff-necked