Psalms 64:8

8 And they [who] would cause him to stumble, their [own] tongue [will be] against them. All who gaze on them will shake.

Psalms 64:8 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 64:8

So shall they make their own tongue to fall upon themselves,
&c.] The evil things they have wished for, threatened unto, and imprecated on others, shall come upon themselves; the curses they have cursed others with shall come upon themselves; the pit they have dug for others, they fall into. So Haman, to whom some apply the psalm, was hanged on the gallows he made for Mordecai; and the accusers of Daniel, to whom others apply it, were cast into the same den of lions they procured for him; and Babylon, who has been drunk with the blood of the saints, shall have blood given her to drink.

all that see them shall flee away;
not being able to help them, nor to bear the horrible sight, and fearing the same judgments should fall on themselves; see ( Numbers 16:34 ) ( Revelation 18:10 Revelation 18:15 ) . Or, "they shall move themselves" F4; shake their heads in a way of derision, as Jarchi interprets it; or skip for joy, as the word is rendered in ( Jeremiah 48:27 ) ; and then it must be understood of the righteous; who, seeing the vengeance on the wicked, rejoice, as in ( Psalms 52:6 ) ( 58:10 ) ; though, as they are afterwards particularly mentioned, others seem to be designed. The word is used for lamenting and bemoaning one's self, in ( Jeremiah 31:18 ) ; and so may be applied to the friends of the wicked lamenting and bemoaning their ruin, and their being bereaved of them, ( Revelation 18:9 Revelation 18:11 ) .


FOOTNOTES:

F4 (wrdwnty) "amovebunt se", Montanus; "commovebuntur", Vatablus.

Psalms 64:8 In-Context

6 {They carefully plot} injustices [saying], "We have perfected {the perfect plot}!" Both [the] {inner thought} and heart of [a] man [are] deep.
7 But God will shoot them; with an arrow they will suddenly be wounded.
8 And they [who] would cause him to stumble, their [own] tongue [will be] against them. All who gaze on them will shake.
9 And then all men will fear, and will declare the working of God, and will understand his doing.
10 [The] righteous will rejoice in Yahweh and take refuge in him, and all [the] upright in heart will boast.

Footnotes 3

  • [a]. The Hebrew of this verse is very difficult
  • [b]. That is, the psalmist
  • [c]. Perhaps a shaking of the head; a similar Hebrew form could be translated "will flee"
Scripture quotations marked (LEB) are from the Lexham English Bible. Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software.