Psalms 140:8-13

8 O Lord, give not the wrongdoer his desire; give him no help in his evil designs, or he may be uplifted in pride. (Selah.)

9 As for those who come round me, let their heads be covered by the evil of their lips.

10 Let burning flames come down on them: let them be put into the fire, and into deep waters, so that they may not get up again.

11 Let not a man of evil tongue be safe on earth: let destruction overtake the violent man with blow on blow.

12 I am certain that the Lord will take care of the cause of the poor, and of the rights of those who are troubled.

13 Truly, the upright will give praise to your name: the holy will have a place in your house.

Psalms 140:8-13 Meaning and Commentary

To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. This psalm, A ben Ezra says, was composed by David before he was king; and Kimchi says, it is concerning Doeg and the Ziphites, who calumniated him to Saul; and, according to our English contents, it is a prayer of David to be delivered from Saul and Doeg. The Syriac inscription is, "said by David, when Saul threw a javelin at him to kill him, but it struck the wall; but, spiritually, the words of him that cleaves to God, and contends with his enemies." R. Obadiah says, it was made at the persecution of David by Saul, which was before the kingdom of David; as the persecution (of Gog) is before the coming of the Messiah. It is indeed before his spiritual coming, but not before his coming in the flesh; and David may be very well considered in the psalm as a type of Christ, for he was particularly so in his sufferings, as well as in other things.