Psalms 52:2

2 Your tongue plans destruction, like a sharp razor, working deceit.

Psalms 52:2 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 52:2

Thy tongue deviseth mischiefs
Abundance of mischiefs, in a variety of ways, against many persons, even all good men. What properly belongs to the heart is here ascribed to the tongue; because, as Aben Ezra observes, it is the interpreter and discoverer of the thoughts of the heart: out of the abundance of that the tongue speaks and declares the mischief it has devised. Doeg intended mischief to David, when he spoke to Saul, ( 1 Samuel 22:9 1 Samuel 22:10 ) ; so antichrist devises mischiefs against the saints of the most High, to wear them out, and thinks to change times and laws, ( Daniel 7:25 ) ;

like a sharp razor, working deceitfully;
that is, his tongue was like a razor; the razor is but a small instrument, and the tongue is but a little member: the razor is a sharp and cutting one, and so is the tongue; and therefore compared to a sharp sword, ( Psalms 57:4 ) ; see ( Jeremiah 18:18 ) ; the razor takes off the beard cleanly and wholly; Doeg's tongue was the cause of the utter ruin of Ahimelech's family and the city of Nob; and as a razor may be said to "work deceitfully", when it turns aside in the hand of him that useth it, and with the hair takes off more than it should, even skin and flesh, or cuts the man's throat; so in a deceitful and insidious manner did Doeg work the destruction of Ahimelech and the priests of the Lord.

Psalms 52:2 In-Context

1 Why do you boast about evil, O mighty man? The loyal love of God [endures] {continually}.
2 Your tongue plans destruction, like a sharp razor, working deceit.
3 You love evil more than good, a lie more than speaking {what is right}. Selah
4 You love all devouring words, O deceitful tongue,
5 but God will pull you down forever. He will snatch you and tear you away from [your] tent, and [he] will uproot you from [the] land of [the] living. Selah
Scripture quotations marked (LEB) are from the Lexham English Bible. Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software.