Psalm 109:2

For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me: they have spoken against me with a lying tongue.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(2) Of the deceitful.—Properly, as in margin, of deceit; consequently, to make the two expressions alike, it is proposed to read, instead of “mouth of the wicked” (properly, of a wicked man), “mouth of wickedness.” In any case the best English equivalent will be, “a wicked mouth and a deceitful mouth.” “A blow with a word strikes deeper than a blow with a sword” (Whichcote).

Spoken against me.—Rather (comp. Psalm 12:3), talked with me.

Benson Commentary

Psalm 109:2-4. The mouth of the wicked, and the mouth of the deceitful — Of those who add hypocrisy and perfidiousness to their malice; are opened against me — They speak against me freely, boldly, and publicly, without any fear or shame. They have spoken against me — Hebrew, אתי, itti, to, or with me, as this particle commonly signifies; with a lying tongue — With deep dissimulation, and professions of friendship and kindness: or, against me, with calumnies, or false and malicious reports. They compassed me with words of hatred — Which, though covered with specious pretences, proceeded from deep malice and hatred, and were designed to work my destruction. Without a cause — Without any just provocation given by me. For my love they are my adversaries — They requite my love and goodwill with enmity and mischief, Psalm 109:5; but I give myself unto prayer —

Hebrew, ואני תפלה, vaani tephillah, but I prayer, that is, I am a man of prayer. Thus, I peace, is put for, I am for peace, as we render it, Psalm 120:7. The sense here is, While they reproach and curse me, I pray, either, 1st, For them, as Psalm 35:13; or, 2d, For himself: I do not render unto them evil for evil, but quietly commit myself and my cause to God by prayer, desiring him to plead my cause against them.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

109:1-5. It is the unspeakable comfort of all believers, that whoever is against them, God is for them; and to him they may apply as to one pleased to concern himself for them. David's enemies laughed at him for his devotion, but they could not laugh him out of it.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful - literally, "The mouth of wickedness, and the mouth of deceit." This acquaints us with the nature of the wrong which had been done him. It was slander; undeserved reproach.

Are opened against me - Margin, "have opened;" that is, have opened themselves.

They have spoken against me with a lying tongue - They have accused me of things which are not true; they have made false charges against me. David, as has not been uncommon with good people, was called repeatedly to this trial.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

2. For the mouth … opened—or, "They have opened a wicked mouth"

against me—literally, "with me," that is, Their intercourse is lying, or, they slander me to my face (Mt 26:59).

Matthew Poole's Commentary

Of the deceitful; of those who add hypocrisy and perfidiousness to their malice.

Are opened; they speak freely, boldly, and publicly, without any fear or shame.

Against me; or, to or with me, as this particle commonly signifies.

With a lying tongue; either,

1. With calumnies, or false and malicious reports. Or,

2. With deep dissimulation and professions of friendship and kindness.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me,.... Or "of deceit" (x) itself; most wicked and very deceitful men, who sometimes flattered and pretended friendship, as the Jews did to Christ, when they designed ill against him; though at other times their mouths were opened, and they poured out their calumnies and reproaches very freely and largely; traducing his person, and aspersing his character as a wicked man; blaspheming his miracles, as if done by the help of the devil; charging his doctrine with novelty, falsehood, and blasphemy; loading him with invidious names, as Samaritan, madman, &c; representing him as an enemy to the state, as a seditious person, and a disturber of the nation's peace; particularly their mouths were opened against him when they called for his crucifixion, and would have no denial; and especially when he was on the cross, where they gaped upon him with their mouths, and poured out their scoffs and jeers at him; see Psalm 22:14.

They have spoken against me with a lying tongue, false witnesses rose up against him, and laid things to his charge he knew nothing of, and which they could not prove, Matthew 26:59.

(x) "os doli", Vatablus, Cocceius; "os fraudis", Gejerus, Michaelis; so Ainsworth.

Geneva Study Bible

For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me: they have spoken against me with a lying tongue.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

2. For a wicked man’s mouth, yea a mouth of deceit, have they opened against me:

They have spoken with me with a tongue of falsehood.

It would be easy to smooth the style of the first line by reading ‘a mouth of wickedness’ for ‘a wicked man’s mouth’; it is only a question of vowel points in the Heb.: but the Versions support the reading of the Massoretic text, and it points at once to the leader of the gang, who has been set on by his fellows to compass the Psalmist’s ruin. The phrase they have spoken with me (R.V. to me, marg. against me) seems to be used in a forensic sense as in Psalm 127:5. His enemies—there is no need to explain to God who are meant by ‘they’—are scheming to effect his ruin by groundless charges supported by false witness. The word for falsehood is that used in Exodus 20:16, and frequently in Proverbs (Proverbs 6:19, &c.) of false witness.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 2. - For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful; literally, of deceit - the abstract for the concrete. Are opened against me; literally, hare they opened upon me (Kay, Cheyne, Revised Version). They have spoken against ms with a lying tongue (comp. Psalm 27:12; Psalm 35:11). Calumny and misrepresentation are ever the portion of the children of God. David was calumniated by Saul (1 Samuel 22:7-13), by Absalom (2 Samuel 15:3, 4), by Shimei (2 Samuel 16:8), and others. One more perfect than David was even more calumniated (Matthew 11:19; Matthew 12:24; Matthew 26:61; Luke 23:2, etc.). Psalm 109:2

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

A sign for help and complaints of ungrateful persecutors form the beginning of the Psalm. "God of my praise" is equivalent to God, who art my praise, Jeremiah 17:14, cf. Deuteronomy 10:21. The God whom the Psalmist has hitherto had reason to praise will also now show Himself to him as worthy to be praised. Upon this faith he bases the prayer: be not silent (Psalm 28:1; Psalm 35:22)! A mouth such as belongs to the "wicked," a mouth out of which comes "deceit," have they opened against him; they have spoken with him a tongue (accusative, vid., on Psalm 64:6), i.e., a language, of falsehood. דּברי of things and utterances as in Psalm 35:20. It would be capricious to take the suffix of אהבתי in Psalm 109:4 as genit. object. (love which they owe me), and in Psalm 109:5 as genit. subject.; from Psalm 38:21 it may be seen that the love which he has shown to them is also meant in Psalm 109:4. The assertion that he is "prayer" is intended to say that he, repudiating all revenges of himself, takes refuge in God in prayer and commits his cause into His hands. They have loaded him with evil for good, and hatred for the love he has shown to them. Twice he lays emphasis on the fact that it is love which they have requited to him with its opposite. Perfects alternate with aorists: it is no enmity of yesterday; the imprecations that follow presuppose an inflexible obduracy on the side of the enemies.