Psalms 26:1-8

1 A Psalm of David. Vindicate me, O LORD, for I have walked in my integrity, and I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.

2 Prove me, O LORD, and try me; test my heart and my mind.

3 For thy steadfast love is before my eyes, and I walk in faithfulness to thee.

4 I do not sit with false men, nor do I consort with dissemblers;

5 I hate the company of evildoers, and I will not sit with the wicked.

6 I wash my hands in innocence, and go about thy altar, O LORD,

7 singing aloud a song of thanksgiving, and telling all thy wondrous deeds.

8 O LORD, I love the habitation of thy house, and the place where thy glory dwells.

Psalms 26:1-8 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.