1David prayeth for deliverance, complaining of his enemies: 7he promiseth himself to see such an evident destruction of his enemies, that the righteous shall rejoice at it.
0To the 1chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
1 See the first annotation at Psalm 4 in the title.
1HEAR my voice, O God, 2in my prayer: preserve my life from 3fear of the enemy.
2 That is, while I complain, or, devoutly pray and groan.
3 That is, which the enemy inflicts me with his persecutions.
2Hide me from the secret counsel of the wicked; from the 4insurrection of the workers of iniquity:
4 Or, stir, tumultuously assemble. See of the Hebrew word Psalm 2 on verse 1.
3Who whet their tongue like a sword, and 5bend their bows to shoot their arrows, even bitter words:
5 Hebr. tread, that is, bend it, as they were wont to tread their foot bows, and so to lay on and fit their arrows; thus Psalm 58:7, etc. Or, they have bent; a bitter word is their arrow.
4That they may shoota in secret at the perfect: 6suddenly do they shoot at him, and 7fear not.
aPsalm 11:2.
6 That is, unexpectedly; and so in verse 7.
7 Dread or fear neither God nor men.
5They encourage themselves in an evil matter: they commune of laying snares privily; they say, Who shall see them?
6They search out 8iniquities; they accomplish a 9diligent search: both the inward thought of every one of them, and the heart, is deep.
8 Hebr. villainies, or iniquities, base, vile, perverse practices, that is, they use all the wit and industry they can to find out all manner of sly devices and base projects, to execute under a pretense their wicked purposes.
9 Hebr. they perform a thorough search, or an enquiring that is to be enquired. Compare Psalm 137 on verse 8. They (he wants to say) ransack, attempt and find out everything, if it would succeed the best either this way or that way. Other, We are consumed through their thorough searching search (that is, crafty practices) so deep is the inmost of a man and the heart.
7But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; 10suddenly shall they be wounded.
10 He speaks by a prophetical spirit of what is to come, as if it were in being, or done and before the eyes already.
8So they shall make 11their own 12tongue to fall upon themselves: 13all that see them 14shall flee away.
11 Hebr. his, that is, every one of them, them altogether.
12 Wherewith they have so abominably and bitterly transgressed against God, against me and all the godly; that is, their own words shall take and ensnare them, yea they shall by their slanderous tongues vex and offend one another among themselves, and bring to ruin.
13 Other, they shall wander about, every one shall look upon them, or set on them, namely, the righteous judgment of God, as Psalm 59:10, etc.
14 Such, as were formerly well affected to them, shall now be so alienated from them that they will have nothing to do anymore with them. Hebr. they shall swerve away, or flee away, in the plural, and so in the next verse.
9And 15all men shall fear, and shall declare the work of God; for they shall wisely consider of his doing.
15 That is, many, persons of all kinds and positions. Hebr. all, or every man, shall fear.
10The righteous shall be glad in the LORD, and shall trust in him; and all the 16upright in heart shall glory.
16 Hebr. right, or straight of heart. See Psalm 7 on verse 10.