1David complaining of the slanders and ingratitude of his enemies devoteth them to destruction; 21complaining of his own misery he prayeth for help; 30he promiseth thankfulness.
0To the 1chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
1 See the first annotation at Psalm 4 in the title.
1HOLD2 not thy peace, O God of 3my praise;
2 That is, but answer me, and hear my prayer, and help me that it may appear indeed that Thou hast heard me. So likewise Psalm 28:1; 35:22; 39:12; 83:1.
3 Thou, Who art the matter and subject of my songs of praise, and Who gives me abundant cause of praising Thee, as Exod. 15:2.
2For the mouth of the wicked and 4the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me: 5they have spoken against me with a lying tongue.
4 That is, the deceitful mouth, whereby is understood the false, deceitful people.
5 Namely, those deceitful courtiers of Saul and others like them, by whom are typified the enemies of the Lord Christ, and especially Judas.
3They compassed me about also 6with words of hatred; and foughta against me without a cause.
6 That is, with words which proceeded by mere hate and envy against me. Hebr. with words of hate.
a Psalm 69:4.
47For my love they are my adversaries: 8but I give myself unto prayer.
7 Namely, for the love and affection with which I loved them.
8 Hebr. but I the prayer. Other, but I was a man of prayer, that is, I gave myself to prayer. So we have it in Psalm 120:7: I am for peace, and Obadiah 7: thy bread, for: those who eat thy bread. It is as if the prophet had said here: Praying to God has been my only defense and refuge; I have made use of no unlawful means against them. See Psalm 69:13. Or, I have not refrained to pray for them who have done me so much harm. See Psalm 35:13.
5And they have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for my love.
69Set thou a wicked man over him: and 10let 11Satan stand at his right hand.
9 That is, give charge and power to a hard, severe man over him, to force and vex him as he did to others.
10 That is, overcome him in judgment by continual urging and pressing. Others take it thus: and the Satan stand at his right hand, namely, to resist him, so that he shall not be able to make use of his right hand, that is, he is hindered and troubled still to expedite and dispatch his affairs. See Zech. 3:1, but verse 31 this phrase is taken for securing and protecting.
11 Or, adversary. See the annotation Job 1 on verse 6. The psalmist wishes that his adversary may have an accuser, continually charging and informing against him before the judge; as the devil has dealt with Job.
7When he shall be judged, let him be 12condemned: and let 13hisb prayer become sin.
12 That is, let him be known and judged as an ungodly. See Num. 35 on verse 31.
13 That is, let him by an entreaty not go free by the judge after he has judged him, but thereby he makes his cause more evil and is therefore refused to him, as being unrighteous. Or one may understand here the prayer that he makes to God, in this sense, that God shall refuse the same to him, since it is hypocritical.
b Prov. 15:8; 28:9.
8Let 14his days be few; and let another take his 15office.
14 Namely, the days of his life. See Psalm 55:23.
15 Or, charge, inspection, ministry. These words of David are to be applied to Judas, whose office or ministry was given away to Matthias, Acts 1:20.
916Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow.
16 This is one of the curses of the law, Exod. 22:24; Jer. 18:21.
10Let his children be continually 17vagabonds, and beg: let them seek their bread also 18out of their desolate places.
17 Hebr. wandering wander.
18 Other, because of their desolation, that is, because their own lands and dwellings are desolate.
11Let 19the extortioner 20catch all that he hath; and let the strangers spoil 21his labour.
19 That is, he to whom he is indebted. Or, understand by the extortioner the pawn-broker or executor.
20 Hebr. ensnare, that is, get or bring into his snare, power or arrest.
21 That is, that which he has gotten and heaped together with toil and labor. See Job 20 on verse 18.
12Let there be none to extend mercy unto him: neither let there be any to favour his fatherless children.
13Let 22his posterity be cut off; and 23in the generation following let their name 24be blotted out.
22 Other, his last, or his end. See the annotation on Psalm 37 on verse 37.
23 That is, in the generation, which is to succeed after this one.
24 Or, wiped out, worn out. See Psalm 37:28.
14Let the 25iniquity of his fathers be remembered with the LORD; and let not 26the sin of his mother be blotted out.
25 That is, the Lord punish him not only for his own sins, but also for those of his forefathers. Here the psalmist has respect to the threatening of the second commandment, Exod. 20:5.
26 That is, God does punish him likewise for his mother’s sin, as above.
15Let them be before the LORD 27continually, thatc28he may cut off 29the memory of them from the earth.
27 Namely, those iniquities and sins mentioned in verse 14.
c Job 18:17; Psalm 34:16.
28 The contrary hereof is promised to the godly, Psalm 41:2; 112:6.
29 Namely, the memory of his father and mother.
16Because that he remembered not to shew mercy, but persecuted the poor and needy man, that he might even slay 30the broken in heart.
30 Or, the sickness in the heart.
1731As he loved cursing, so let it come unto him: as he delighted not 32in blessing, so let it be 33far from him.
31 That is, since he took such pleasure and delight in cursing others, he himself incurs the curse upon his own neck by his wickedness.
32 That is, to wish a blessing to others, and that they live godly to be blessed. Compare with this place Prov. 8:36.
33 Namely, the blessing.
18As he clothed himself with cursing like as with his garment, so let it come into his bowels like water, and like oil into his bones.
19Let 34it be unto him as the garment which covereth him, and for a girdle wherewith he is girded continually.
34 Namely, the curse. He prays that the curse, which he wished to others, may cleave to him continually.
20Let this be 35the reward of mine adversaries from the LORD, and of them 36that speak evil against my soul.
35 Hebr. the work or labor, that is, the wages for work or labor, as Lev. 19:13; Job 7:2; Isa. 49:4; Ezek. 29:20.
36 That is, who slander and revile me.
21But 37do thou for me, O GOD the Lord, for thy name's sake: because thy mercy is good, deliver thou me.
37 Or, do well. Compare Psalm 37:5; 119:65.
22For I am poor and needy, and 38my heart is wounded within me.
38 As if he said: I am in such a fear and anguish as they are who have received a mortal wound in their heart.
23I am gone like the shadow 39when it declineth: I am 40tossed up and down 41as the locust.
39 When it is ready to vanish with the going down of the sun. See the annotation on Psalm 102 on verse 11.
40 Hebr. shaken forth.
41 Which has no nest nor abiding place, but is hopping and skipping continually from one place to the other. See Job 39:20; Nahum 3:17. Or, which is hurried and scattered by the wind, Exod. 10:19.
24My knees are weak through fasting; and my flesh faileth 42of fatness.
42 That is, for want of fat. So in Lam. 4:9, the fruits, that is, for want of the fruits; in Gen. 18:28, five, that is, for lack of five; in 1 Cor. 7:2, fornication, to avoid fornication.
2543I became also a reproach unto them: when they looked upon me they 44shaked their heads.
43 That is, they mock me instead of having compassion about my misery.
44 Unto a sign of contempt. See the annotation in 2 Kings 19:21. See also Job 16:4; Psalm 22:7; Mat. 27:39, 40; Mark 15:29.
26Help me, O LORD my God: O save me according to thy mercy:
27That they may know 45that this is thy hand; that thou, LORD, hast done it.
45 That is, that the deliverance, which Thou showest me, is come from Thy hand, O God.
28Let them curse, but bless thou: when they 46arise, let them be ashamed; but let thy servant rejoice.
46 Namely, against me.
29Let mine adversaries be clothed 47with shame, and let them cover themselves with 48their own confusion, as with a mantle.
47 See the annotation on Job 8 on verse 22.
48 Namely, which they have brought upon themselves by their wickedness.
30I will 49greatly praise the LORD with my mouth; yea, I will praise him 50among the multitude.
49 That is, publicly, with many words and great affections.
50 Or, of the mighty or great ones.
31For he shall stand 51at the right hand of the poor, to save him from those that condemn 52his soul.
51 That is, to protect, defend and assist. See verse 6; Psalm 16:8; Acts 2:25.
52 That is, him.