Psalms 26:2-12

2 ¹Examine me, O LORD, and try me; ²Test my mind and my heart.

3 For Your ³lovingkindness is before my eyes, And I have ⁴walked in Your truth.

4 I do not ⁵sit with deceitful men, Nor will I go with ⁶pretenders.

5 I ⁷hate the assembly of evildoers, And I will not sit with the wicked.

6 I shall ⁸wash my hands in innocence, And I will go about ⁹Your altar, O LORD,

7 That I may proclaim with the voice of ¹⁰thanksgiving And declare all Your wonders.

8 O LORD, I ¹¹love the habitation of Your house And the place where Your ¹²glory dwells.

9 ¹³Do not take my soul away along with sinners, Nor my life with ¹⁴men of bloodshed,

10 In whose hands is a ¹⁵wicked scheme, And whose right hand is full of ¹⁶bribes.

11 But as for me, I shall ¹⁷walk in my integrity; ¹⁸Redeem me, and be gracious to me.

12 ¹⁹My foot stands on a ²⁰level place; In the ²¹congregations I shall bless the LORD.

Psalms 26:2-12 Meaning and Commentary

Psalm of David. The occasion of this psalm seems to be the quarrel between Saul and David, the former listening to calumnies and reproaches cast upon the latter, and persecuting him in a violent manner. The argument of it is the same, in a great measure, with the seventh psalm, and is an appeal made to God, the Judge of the whole earth, by the psalmist, for his innocence and integrity; Theodoret thinks it was written by David when he fled from Saul.

Cross References

• 1. Psalms 17:3; Psalms 139:23
• 2. Psalms 7:9
• 3. Psalms 48:9
• 4. 2 Kings 20:3; Psalms 86:11
• 5. Psalms 1:1
• 6. Psalms 28:3
• 7. Psalms 31:6; Psalms 139:21
• 8. Psalms 73:13
• 9. Psalms 43:3, 4
• 10. Psalms 9:1
• 11. Psalms 27:4
• 12. Psalms 24:7
• 13. Psalms 28:3
• 14. Psalms 139:19
• 15. Psalms 37:7
• 16. Psalms 15:5
• 17. Psalms 26:1
• 18. Psalms 44:26; Psalms 69:18
• 19. Psalms 40:2
• 20. Psalms 27:11
• 21. Psalms 22:22

Footnotes

• [a]. Lit "kidneys," figurative for inner man
• [b]. Or "faithfulness"
• [c]. Or "worthless men;" lit "men of falsehood"
• [d]. Or "dissemblers, hypocrites"
• [e]. Or "miracles"
• [f]. Lit "of the tabernacle of Your glory"
• [g]. Lit "gather"