Psalms 52 - ESV - Bible Reading / Study Notes

Psalm 52

The Steadfast Love of God Endures

To the choirmaster. A Maskil¹ of David, when Doeg, the Edomite, came and told Saul, “David has come to the house of Ahimelech.”

52:1   Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man?
    The steadfast love of God endures all the day.
2   Your tongue plots destruction,
    like a sharp razor, you worker of deceit.
3   You love evil more than good,
    and lying more than speaking what is right. Selah
4   You love all words that devour,
    O deceitful tongue.
5   But God will break you down forever;
    he will snatch and tear you from your tent;
    he will uproot you from the land of the living. Selah
6   The righteous shall see and fear,
    and shall laugh at him, saying,
7   “See the man who would not make
    God his refuge,
  but trusted in the abundance of his riches
    and sought refuge in his own destruction!”²
8   But I am like a green olive tree
    in the house of God.
  I trust in the steadfast love of God
    forever and ever.
9   I will thank you forever,
    because you have done it.
  I will wait for your name, for it is good,
    in the presence of the godly.

Footnotes

[1] 52:1 Probably a musical or liturgical term
[2] 52:7 Or in his work of destruction

Commentary

In this psalm, and in Psalms 53 and 54, we see the reaction of the godly to the ungodly, either in the person of specific individuals, or the ungodly in general.

v1-4: Doeg the wicked man, see 1 Sam 21-22; he was mighty, being a commander of Saul's army; he was wealthy (v7), but deceitful, preferring evil to good, falsehood to truth. His words cut like a razor. So often, the ungodly are marked out by their words.

v5-7: The promise is that the wicked man who remains wicked will be punished by God. The righteous, sharing God's perspective, "laugh at him," not in mocking, but in recognising his folly; Ps 2.4; 37.13; 59.8. Doeg may have had great influence with men, but his life did not impress God.

v8-9: The godly man trusts in God, knowing His love and mercy are unfailing. He cannot boast in his own goodness, but knows that the grace of God is essential. The godly man is one among many "saints," who love and trust God. Here is confidence for us, for we approach one who is merciful. How different to Doeg, and so many others, who are proud and cruel.