Psalms 73:5 Meaning: When the Wicked Seem Untroubled
They are free from burdens of men, neither are they plagued like other men.
They are not in trouble as other men; neither are they plagued like other men.
They are not in trouble asothermen; Neither are they plagued likeothermen.
In the misery of mortals they are not, And with common men they are not plagued.
They have not the hardships of mankind, neither are they plagued like [other] men:
Meaning in one sentence
Psalm 73:5 describes how the wicked appear free from common human troubles. Asaph shares his honest struggle with envy and the sanctuary resolution.
Context
Asaph, a worship leader in Israel, wrote this psalm as a personal confession. He watched arrogant people thrive while he struggled. In verses 2-3 he admits his feet almost slipped because he envied the prosperity of the wicked. Verse 5 captures what troubled him most: the wicked seem to escape the ordinary miseries that weigh down other people. They live as if immune to the labor, pain and disappointment that mark human life. Asaph is being brutally honest about how this looked unfair to him. The whole psalm records his journey from envy to clarity, ending with the resolution he found when he entered God’s sanctuary (v. 17).
Key Words
The Hebrew word for “burdens” is amal (עָמָל). It means toil, trouble, or exhausting labor, the kind that wears a person down over a lifetime. Asaph saw the wicked free from this grinding weariness. The verb “free” is actually a phrase: einemo (“not with them”), meaning the common labor of humankind simply does not touch them.
The word for “plagued” is naga (נָגַע), which means to touch, strike, or be afflicted. In this verse it is a passive verb: “they are not stricken.” The same root is used elsewhere for a blow from God or from illness (Isaiah 53:4). So the wicked appear not only to avoid daily exhaustion but also to escape the heavier blows that come to others.
Notice the two words for “men”: first enosh (אֱנוֹשׁ), mortal, frail human, and then adam (אָדָם), mankind in general. Asaph piles up the contrast: the wicked seem to be a separate species, untouched by the mortality and weakness that define everyone else. That is what made him nearly slip.
How Christians Read This Verse
Matthew Henry (Presbyterian) says this verse describes the temptation Asaph felt when he saw the wicked “not in trouble as other men”, they seemed free from the common cross that believers carry. Calvin (Reformed) reads the whole psalm as a struggle of faith against appearances: the wicked prosper now, but the godly must wait for God’s final judgment. The Cambridge Bible (Anglican) notes that the psalmist later realizes this exemption is temporary, the wicked are set in slippery places (v.18). Gill (Baptist) points out that the wicked are not “smitten of God” as His children are, but that very absence of discipline is ominous. Across traditions, Christians agree: Asaph is describing what he saw with his eyes, not the full truth he learned in the sanctuary.
A common misunderstanding
Living This Out
This week you might catch yourself looking at someone who seems to have it easy, no financial strain, no family drama, no health worries, while you carry a heavy load. That moment is dangerous. The psalmist shows you what to do: take that envy into the sanctuary. Bring it to God honestly. Don't pretend you aren't bothered. Say, “Lord, this doesn't look fair.” Then ask Him to show you the end of the story. The sanctuary changes everything because you see from God’s perspective, not from ground level.
Main takeaway: The apparent freedom of the wicked from trouble is a temptation to envy, but God’s long view in the sanctuary reveals their true end.
For Families
For ages 5, 8
Asaph saw some people who seemed to never have problems. It made him feel like God wasn't fair. But he went to God's house and learned the truth.
For ages 9, 12
Have you ever seen someone who seems to get away with everything and never gets in trouble? Asaph felt that way too. He watched people who did wrong things live easy lives while he tried to follow God and still had hard days. But Asaph didn't stay stuck in envy. He went to God's special place, the sanctuary, and God showed him that the easy life of the wicked doesn't last forever. God sees the whole picture, and He is always fair in the end.
Questions People Ask
What does “free from burdens of men” mean in Psalm 73:5?
The Hebrew word for “burdens” is amal, meaning exhausting labor or trouble. Asaph is describing his perception: the wicked seem to have no part in the daily weariness and hardship that most people experience. They appear exempt from the common toil of life.
Does Psalm 73:5 teach that the wicked never suffer?
No. The verse records Asaph’s envious observation, not an eternal truth. Later in the psalm (verse 17-19) he learns in God’s sanctuary that the wicked are actually in slippery places and will be destroyed. Their apparent immunity is temporary and deceptive.
How does the rest of Psalm 73 resolve the problem raised in verse 5?
Asaph goes into the sanctuary of God (v.17) and there understands the final destiny of the wicked: God sets them in slippery places and casts them down into destruction (v.18). He also realizes that God is continually with him (v.23) and that God’s goodness is the true reward.
What is the “sanctuary” Asaph refers to in Psalm 73?
The sanctuary likely means the physical Temple or tabernacle where God’s presence dwelt. Going there symbolically represents turning from human reasoning to seek God’s perspective through worship, prayer, and the Word. It is where Asaph’s envy turned to faith.
Why does Asaph use two different Hebrew words for “men” in verse 5?
The first word is enosh, which emphasizes human frailty and mortality. The second is adam, referring to mankind generally. By using both, Asaph highlights that the wicked appear to escape not only ordinary hardships but also the very condition of being fragile, mortal humans.
For pastors & researchers
Hebrew interlinear, 8 commentaries & word study