Psalms 119:118

118 You spurn all who go astray from your statutes; for their cunning is in vain.

Psalms 119:118 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 119:118

Thou hast trodden down all them that err from thy statutes,
&c.] That wander from the way of the Lord's commandments; that deviate from his precepts, go astray constantly and wilfully; a people that err in their hearts, and with all their hearts. These the Lord treads down, as mire in the streets, as grapes in a winepress; which shows his abhorrence of them, his indignation at them, and how easily they are subdued under him;

for their deceit [is] falsehood:
or, "their hypocrisy [is] a lie" F13: the appearance they make is a false one; they appear outwardly righteous, but are inwardly wicked; have a form of godliness, but deny the power of it: or all their deceitful doctrines are lies in hypocrisy, though dressed up with all the art and cunning they are masters of; or all their subtle schemes to corrupt and subvert the true doctrines of the word are in vain and to no purpose.


FOOTNOTES:

F13 So Michaelis.

Psalms 119:118 In-Context

116 Uphold me according to your promise, that I may live, and let me not be put to shame in my hope.
117 Hold me up, that I may be safe and have regard for your statutes continually.
118 You spurn all who go astray from your statutes; for their cunning is in vain.
119 All the wicked of the earth you count as dross; therefore I love your decrees.
120 My flesh trembles for fear of you, and I am afraid of your judgments.
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.