Psalms 101:3

3 I will not set before my eyes any wicked thing. I hate the work of those who fall away; it will not cling to me.

Psalms 101:3 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 101:3

I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes,
Either the eyes of the body, which are the inlets of lust and are easily caught with objects that inflame the heart, and should be turned aside from beholding vanity; or the eyes of the mind; so the Targum,

``I will not propose to my heart;''

or, as Kimchi,

``in my thought'',

that is, I will not set up an evil thing in my imagination, to dwell upon in my thoughts, and take delight and pleasure in meditating upon it; or set it before me, to imitate as a pattern, to work by, and copy after: Christ did not so; he set the Lord always before him, ( Psalms 16:8 ) , not anything of Belial F11 or Satan, as the phrase here may be rendered; no, he always bid Satan, or anything of his, be gone, and get behind him, ( Matthew 4:10 ) ( 16:23 ) .

I hate the work of them that turn aside;
from God, and from his law; from the paths of religion, truth, and virtue; and from the Gospel, and a profession of it; such are not fit for the kingdom of God, and in these God and Christ have no pleasure, ( Hebrews 10:38 ) ,

it shall not cleave to me;
neither the wicked thing, or thing of Belial, nor the work of apostasy; that is, he would have no familiarity nor fellowship with it; not come near it, nor connive at it, but hate and abhor it: the Jews said, an evil disease, or a thing of Belial, "cleaveth fast unto him", ( Psalms 41:8 ) , but they were mistaken.


FOOTNOTES:

F11 (leylb rbd) "verbum Belijahal", Montanus; so Cocceius, Gejerus, Ainsworth.

Psalms 101:3 In-Context

1 I will sing of loyal love and justice; I will sing praises to you, O Yahweh.
2 I will give attention to [the] way of integrity. When will you come to me? I will walk in the integrity of my heart in the midst of my house.
3 I will not set before my eyes any wicked thing. I hate the work of those who fall away; it will not cling to me.
4 A perverse heart will depart from me; I will not know evil.
5 One who slanders his neighbor in secret, him I will destroy. [One] haughty of eyes and {arrogant} of heart, him I will not endure.

Footnotes 1

  • [a]. The term "those who fall away" is a rare noun. The verb from the same root is found in Psa 40:5(4)
Scripture quotations marked (LEB) are from the Lexham English Bible. Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software.