Psalms 26:2-12

2 (25-2) Prove me, O Lord, and try me; burn my reins and my heart.
3 (25-3) For thy mercy is before my eyes; and I am well pleased with thy truth.
4 (25-4) I have not sat with the council of vanity: neither will I go in with the doers of unjust things.
5 (25-5) I have hated the assembly of the malignant; and with the wicked I will not sit.
6 (25-6) I will wash my hands among the innocent; and will compass thy altar, O Lord:
7 (25-7) That I may hear the voice of thy praise: and tell of all thy wondrous works.
8 (25-8) I have loved, O Lord, the beauty of thy house; and the place where thy glory dwelleth.
9 (25-9) Take not away my soul, O God, with the wicked: nor my life with bloody men:
10 (25-10) In whose hands are iniquities: their right hand is filled with gifts.
11 (25-11) But as for me, I have walked in my innocence: redeem me, and have mercy on me.
12 (25-12) My foot hath stood in the direct way: in the churches I will bless thee, O 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.
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