Psalms 49:3

3 My mouth shall speak wisdom; the meditation of my heart shall be understanding.

Psalms 49:3 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 49:3

My mouth shall speak of wisdom
Or "wisdoms" F13; of Christ, who is so called, ( Proverbs 1:20 ) ( 9:1 ) . He being as a divine Person the wisdom of God, and the only wise God; and having all the treasures of wisdom in him, as man and Mediator: of him the prophet spake, and of him the apostles and all Gospel ministers speak; of the glories of his Person, of the fulness of his grace, and of his wonderful works; especially of that of redemption and salvation by him, in which there is an abounding of wisdom and prudence. Or the Gospel may be meant, and all the truths of it, in which there is a glorious display of divine wisdom; it is the wisdom of God in a mystery; hidden and ancient wisdom; and which, when truly understood, makes a man wise unto salvation; see ( 1 Corinthians 2:6 1 Corinthians 2:7 ) ;

and the meditation of my heart [shall be] of understanding;
or "understandings" F14; and this is in order to the former; what the heart meditates the mouth speaks. If the heart meditates on understanding, the mouth will speak of wisdom; and a man should think before he speaks, especially the ministers of the Gospel: they ought to meditate on the word of God, the Gospel, and the truths of it, that their profiling may appear to all; that they may understand divine things themselves, and deliver them out to the understanding of others: their concern should be, that through meditation they may have a good treasure of wisdom and knowledge in their hearts, that out of it they may bring forth things pleasant and profitable unto others.


FOOTNOTES:

F13 (twmkx) "sapientias", Pagninus, Montanus, Vatablus, Cocceius, Gejerus, Michaelis.
F14 (twnwbt) "intelligentias", Pagninus, Montanus.

Psalms 49:3 In-Context

1 To the choirmaster. A Psalm of the Sons of Korah. Hear this, all peoples! Give ear, all inhabitants of the world,
2 both low and high, rich and poor together!
3 My mouth shall speak wisdom; the meditation of my heart shall be understanding.
4 I will incline my ear to a proverb; I will solve my riddle to the music of the lyre.
5 Why should I fear in times of trouble, when the iniquity of my persecutors surrounds me,
Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952 [2nd edition, 1971] by the 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.