Psalms 31:13

13 For I hear the slander of many; there is terror on every side. They conspire against me and plot to take my life.

Psalms 31:13 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 31:13

For I have heard the slander of many
Both enemies and neighbours;

fear [was] on every side;
his enemies were a "Magormissabib" to him, ( Jeremiah 20:3 ) ; encompassed him around, so that he was in fear from every quarter;

while they took counsel together against me;
how to apprehend him, and what to do with him;

they devised to take away my life;
nothing short of that would satisfy; but life is in the hand of God; men may devise, but God disappoints, and his counsel stands; hence the psalmist was encouraged, after all, to trust in him, in this time of imminent danger, as follows.

Psalms 31:13 In-Context

11 Among all my enemies I am a disgrace, and among my neighbors even more. I am dreaded by my friends— they flee when they see me on the street.

12 I am forgotten like a dead man, out of mind. I am like a broken vessel.

13 For I hear the slander of many; there is terror on every side. They conspire against me and plot to take my life.

14 But I trust in You, O LORD; I say, “You are my God.”

15 My times are in Your hands; deliver me from my enemies and from those who pursue me.