Psalms 36:5-12

5 Your steadfast love, O LORD, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds.
6 1Your righteousness is like the mountains of God; 2your judgments are like the great deep; man and beast you 3save, O LORD.
7 4How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge 5in the shadow of your wings.
8 They feast on 6the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from 7the river of 8your delights.
9 For with you is 9the fountain of life; 10in your light do we see light.
10 Oh, continue your steadfast love to those who 11know you, and your righteousness to 12the upright of heart!
11 Let not the foot of arrogance come upon me, nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.
12 There 13the evildoers lie fallen; they are thrust down, 14unable to rise.

Psalms 36:5-12 Meaning and Commentary

To the chief Musician, [a Psalm] of David, the servant of the Lord. This title, which the psalmist takes to himself, regards him not only as a creature, every man being the servant of the Lord as such, of right, though not in fact; but as a king, he being a minister of God for good to good men, and for evil to evil men; and also may respect him as a renewed man; and it is here used in opposition to and distinction from the wicked, who are the servants of sin and Satan, of whom he speaks in this psalm. The Syriac and Arabic versions in their titles suggest that this psalm was written when David was persecuted by Saul, and which is the sense of some interpreters; but R. Obadiah thinks Ahithophel is designed by the wicked man in it; and so it was penned on account of Absalom's rebellion.

Cross References 14

  • 1. [Psalms 71:19]
  • 2. Psalms 92:5; Romans 11:33
  • 3. Psalms 104:14, 15; Psalms 145:9, 15, 16; Nehemiah 9:6
  • 4. [Psalms 31:19]
  • 5. See Ruth 2:12
  • 6. Psalms 23:5; Psalms 27:4; Psalms 65:4; Isaiah 25:6; See Jeremiah 31:12-14
  • 7. Psalms 46:4; Revelation 22:1
  • 8. Psalms 16:11
  • 9. Jeremiah 2:13; John 4:10, 14; John 5:26
  • 10. John 1:9; Acts 26:18; 1 Peter 2:9
  • 11. Jeremiah 22:16; Galatians 4:9; [Psalms 79:6]
  • 12. See Psalms 7:10
  • 13. Psalms 94:4
  • 14. See Psalms 1:5
The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.