Psalm 12:3 Kommentar

It is supposed that David penned this psalm in Saul's reign, when there was a general decay of honesty and piety both in court and country, which he here complains of to God, and very feelingly, for he himself suffered by the treachery of his false friends and the insolence of his sworn enemies. I. He begs help of God, because there were none among men whom he durst trust (Psa 12:1, Psa 12:2). II. He foretels the destruction of his proud and threatening enemies (Psa 12:3, Psa 12:4). III. He assures himself and others that, how ill soever things went now (Psa 12:8), God would preserve and secure to himself his own people (Psa 12:5, Psa 12:7), and would certainly make good his promises to them (Psa 12:6). Whether this psalm was penned in Saul's reign or no, it is certainly calculated for a bad reign; and perhaps David, in spirit foresaw that some of his successors would bring things to as bad a pass as is here described, and treasured up this psalm for the use of the church then. "O tempora, O mores! - Oh the times! Oh the manners!" To the chief musician upon Sheminith. A psalm of David.

INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 12 To the chief Musician upon Sheminith, a Psalm of David. The word "sheminith" is used in the title of Psa 6:1, and signifies "eighth"; and intends either the eighth note, to which the psalm was sung, or rather the harp of eight chords, to which it was set, as the Targum and Jarchi interpret it. Some Jewish writers (y) understand it of the times of the Messiah; and the Syriac version entitles the psalm, "an accusation of the wicked, and a prophecy concerning the coming of the Messiah:'' and the Arabic version says, it is concerning the end of the world, which shall be in the eighth day; and concerning the coming of the Messiah: but Arnobius interprets it of the Lord's day. (y) Sepher Lekach Shechachah apud Caphtor, fol. 64. 1. & Ceseph Misnah in Maimon. Hilch. Teshuvah, c. 9.

The Lord shall cut off all flattering lips,.... This is either a prophecy or a prayer, as Aben Ezra and Kimchi observe; that God either would or should cut off such who used flattery with their lips, by inflicting some judgment in this life, or everlasting punishment hereafter; by taking them away by death "out of the world", as the Targum paraphrases it; or by casting them into hell, where all liars and deceitful persons will have their portion; see Job 32:21; and the tongue that speaketh proud things, or "great things" (f), as the little horn, Dan 7:20; and the beast, or Romish antichrist, who is designed by both, Rev 13:5; and which will be accomplished when Christ shall destroy him with the breath of his mouth, and the brightness of his coming; and indeed every tongue that riseth up against God, Christ, and his people, will be condemned; when ungodly sinners will be convinced of all their hard speeches, Isa 54:17, Jde 1:15. Perhaps some regard may be had to the tongue of Doeg the Edomite; see Psa 52:3. (f) "magna", Pagninus, Montanus, Vatablus, Piscator, Gejerus, Michaelis; "grandia", Cocceius.

Let us cleave, therefore, to those who cultivate peace with godliness, and not to those who hypocritically profess to desire it. For [the Scripture] says in a certain place, "This people honours me with their lips, but their heart is far from me." [Isaiah 29:13] And again: "They bless with their mouth, but curse with their heart." [Psalm 62:4] And again it says, "They loved Him with their mouth, and lied to Him with their tongue; but their heart was not right with Him, neither were they faithful in His covenant." [Psalm 78:36-37] Let the deceitful lips become silent, [and "let the Lord destroy all the lying lips, ] and the boastful tongue of those who have said, Let us magnify our tongue: our lips are our own; who is lord over us? For the oppression of the poor, and for the sighing of the needy, will I now arise, says the Lord: I will place him in safety; I will deal confidently with him." [Psalm 12:3-5]

When the Lord wipes out those things that are base, he will destroy those very things, so that when those things that have come on a person unexpectedly have been destroyed, the foremost creation of God whom the baser things had overtaken may take up the higher things.

Do you see the solicitude of the inspired author, how he prays for them? The remark is not against them, no, but on their behalf. He did not ask for them to be destroyed, note, but for the evil to be done away with. He did not say “the Lord will destroy them,” note, but the “deceitful lips.” Again, he asks for the destruction not of their being but of their tongue, their folly, their deceit, and for an end to be put to their arrogance.

"May the Lord destroy all deceitful lips" [Psalm 12:3]. He says "all," that no one may suppose himself excepted: as the Apostle says, "Upon every soul of man that does evil, of the Jew first, and of the Greek." [Romans 2:9] "The tongue speaking great things:" the proud tongue.

We find many who occasionally mix poison with sweet words in one and the same conversation and enter into conflicts by feigned persuasions to peace. What can be more unfortunate or dangerous than the case of those people who with all the ardor of their deceitful tongues plot against someone’s life? Why do they fail to consider the prophet’s psalm, which states, “May the Lord destroy sinful lips.” Do you perceive under what a curse one lives who is contriving one plan in his heart and placing another on his tongue

Consider the piety of the speaker, for he does not direct his prayer against people, since many of them needed to be converted, but against the vices themselves.

"May the Lord destroy." Here he asks for their destruction. And first he asks for it; second, he suggests the cause, at "all deceitful lips," etc. -- as though he would destroy them twice, namely in soul and body. Jer. 17: "Bring upon them the day of affliction, and with a double destruction destroy them, O Lord God." Then he sets forth the cause of their malice, and he mentions three things: namely, fraudulence, because of "deceitful lips" -- for deceit is when one does one thing and pretends another. Deceit is conceived in the heart but concealed by words or deeds. Prov. 12: "Deceit is in the heart of those who plot evil." God scatters these, because He uncovers them; for then it no longer has the character of deceit, since deceit is hidden malice. Hence he does not ask for their destruction, but for the detection of their malice. Or he asks for their perdition through grace. Prov. 19: "When the pestilent man is scourged, the fool shall become wiser." Hence he says, "deceitful lips." The Gloss says this is, as it were, the reason for the petition: deceitfulness. Or God will destroy them, as if punishing them for their malice, so that they themselves fall into it by God's just judgment, as is said of Haman in Est. 7, against Mordecai: "Haman was hanged on the gallows which he had prepared for Mordecai." Ezek. 3: "I will make your tongue cleave to the roof of your mouth, and you shall be mute," as though not daring to commit frauds any longer. Prov. 21: "When the pestilent man is punished, the little one becomes wiser." Likewise Prov. 22: "Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child, and the rod of discipline shall drive it away." Second, he sets forth their boasting and their grandiloquent tongue, about themselves among those who consider them great. Ps. 72: "They set their mouth against heaven, and their tongue passed through the earth." Now what is greater in another we are accustomed to revere, and what is lesser we disregard. In order therefore to appear great and equal to God, they despise God, that is, divine honors. Thus it is said of the Antichrist that he speaks against the God of gods. 2 Thess. 2: "He opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sits in the temple of God, showing himself as if he were God." And of Antiochus, 2 Macc. 9: "It is just to be subject to God, and a mortal should not think things equal to God." And Acts 12, of Herod, that the people acclaimed him with the voices of a god and not of a man. And lest they could be excused that they did not do it deliberately, he adds: "who have said," namely on purpose, "we will magnify our tongue." Third, he sets forth their blasphemy or pride: "our lips are our own." For this is the first species of pride, when someone considers that he has something from himself. 1 Sam. 2: "Do not multiply speaking lofty things, boasting." 2 Cor. 3: "We are not sufficient to think anything of ourselves, as from ourselves; but our sufficiency is from God." The second species of pride is when someone wishes to glory in something above others; hence he says, "who is our lord?" Job 21: "Who is the Almighty, that we should serve Him?" Hos. 7: "They have returned so as to be without a yoke, and they have become like a deceitful bow." Job 11: "A vain man is lifted up in pride, and thinks himself born free like a wild donkey's colt."

On title, see Introduction and see on Psa 6:1. The Psalmist laments the decrease of good men. The pride and deceit of the wicked provokes God's wrath, whose promise to avenge the cause of pious sufferers will be verified even amidst prevailing iniquity. (Psa 12:1-8) the faithful--or literally, "faithfulness" (Psa 31:23).

Boasting (Dan 7:25) is, like flattery, a species of lying. lips, and . . . tongue--for persons.

(Heb.: 12:4-5) In this instance the voluntative has its own proper signification: may He root out (cf. Psa 109:15, and the oppositive Psa 11:6). Flattering lips and a vaunting tongue are one, insofar as the braggart becomes a flatterer when it serves his own selfish interest. אשׁר refers to lips and tongue, which are put for their possessors. The Hiph. הגבּיר may mean either to impart strength, or to give proof of strength. The combination with ל, not בּ, favours the former: we will give emphasis to our tongue (this is their self-confident declaration). Hupfeld renders it, contrary to the meaning of the Hiph.: over our tongue we have power, and Ewald and Olshausen, on the ground of an erroneous interpretation of Dan 9:27, render: we make or have a firm covenant with our tongue. They describe their lips as being their confederates (את as in Kg2 9:32), and by the expression "who is lord over us" they declare themselves to be absolutely free, and exalted above all authority. If any authority were to assert itself over them, their mouth would put it down and their tongue would thrash it into submission. But Jahve, whom this making of themselves into gods challenges, will not always suffer His own people to be thus enslaved.