Psalm 31:18

Let the lying lips be put to silence; which speak grievous things proudly and contemptuously against the righteous.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(18) Silence.—As a different word is used from that rendered silent in Psalm 31:17, translate let the lying lips be made dumb.

Grievous.—Better, arrogant, as in 1Samuel 2:3. (Comp. Psalm 94:4.) So in Psalm 75:5, “a stiff neck” is a neck thrown impudently back.

Proudly and contemptuously.—Literally, in pride and contempt.

Benson Commentary

Psalm 31:18. Let the lying lips — The slanderous tongues; be put to silence — Either by thy discovery and vindication of my integrity; or by some imminent judgment, which may either convince them, or take them off. Which speak grievous things — Hebrews עתק, gnatak, what is hard, or hard things, the singular number being put for the plural; he means such things as were grievous and hard to be borne, such as bitter calumnies, cruel mockings, terrible threatenings, and the like. Proudly and contemptuously — With great arrogance, and confidence of success, and contempt of me and my friends, whom they look upon as few in number, and impotent fugitives, and such as they can blow away with their breath; against the righteous — Against us, whom thou knowest to be righteous, notwithstanding all their false accusations, and therefore for thy love of righteousness save us, and silence our unjust enemies.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

31:9-18 David's troubles made him a man of sorrows. Herein he was a type of Christ, who was acquainted with grief. David acknowledged that his afflictions were merited by his own sins, but Christ suffered for ours. David's friends durst not give him any assistance. Let us not think it strange if thus deserted, but make sure of a Friend in heaven who will not fail. God will be sure to order and dispose all for the best, to all those who commit their spirits also into his hand. The time of life is in God's hands, to lengthen or shorten, make bitter or sweet, according to the counsel of his will. The way of man is not in himself, nor in our friend's hands, nor in our enemies' hands, but in God's. In this faith and confidence he prays that the Lord would save him for his mercies's sake, and not for any merit of his own. He prophesies the silencing of those that reproach and speak evil of the people of God. There is a day coming, when the Lord will execute judgment upon them. In the mean time, we should engage ourselves by well-doing, if possible, to silence the ignorance of foolish men.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Let the lying lips be put to silence - See the notes at Psalm 12:2-3. The lips which speak lies. The reference here is especially to those who had spoken in this manner against the psalmist himself, though he makes the language general, or prays in general that God would silence all liars: a prayer certainly in which all persons may properly join.

Which speak grievous things - Margin, "a hard thing." The Hebrew word - עתק ‛âthâq - means "bold, impudent, wicked." Gesenius, Lexicon. The phrase here means, therefore, to speak wickedly, or to speak in a bold, reckless, impudent manner; that is, without regard to the truth of what is said.

Proudly and contemptuously - Hebrew, in pride and contempt: that is, in a manner which shows that they are proud of themselves and despise others. Slander always perhaps implies this. People are secretly proud of themselves; or they "desire" to cherish an exalted opinion of themselves, and to have others entertain the same opinion of them; and hence, if they cannot exalt themselves by their own merit, as they wish, they endeavor to humble others below their real merit, and to a level lower than themselves, by detraction.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

16. Make … shine—(Compare Nu 6:25; Ps 4:6). Deprecating from himself, he imprecates on the wicked God's displeasure, and prays that their virulent persecution of him may be stopped.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

Lying lips; slanderous tongues. Be put to silence, either by thy vindication and discovery of my integrity; or by some eminent judgment, which may either convince them, or cut them off.

Grievous things, Heb. hard words, or things, the singular number being put for the plural. Of this expression, see 1 Samuel 2:3 Psalm 60:3 94:4 Jude 15. He means such as were grievous, and hard to be borne, as bitter calumnies, cruel mockings, terrible threatenings, and the like.

Proudly and contemptuously; with great arrogancy, and confidence of success, and contempt of me and mine, whom they look upon as few in number, and impotent and fugitives, and such whom they can blow away with a breath.

Against the righteous; against us, whom thou knowest to be righteous, notwithstanding all their false accusations; and therefore for thy love to righteousness save us, and silence our unjust enemies.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

Let the lying lips be put to silence,.... Being convicted of the lies told by them, and so silenced and confounded; or being cut off and destroyed, as all such will be in the Lord's own time, Psalm 12:3. It is very likely the psalmist may have respect either to Doeg the Edomite, who loved lying rather than righteousness; or to others that were about Saul, who lying said to him that David sought his harm, even to take away his kingdom and his life, Psalm 52:3;

which speak grievous things proudly and contemptuously against the righteous; meaning himself; not that he thought himself righteous in the sight of God by any righteousness of his own, but by the righteousness of Christ imputed to him; see Psalm 143:2. Though he may have regard here to the righteousness of his cause before men, and assert himself righteous, as he might with respect to the "grievous things", the hard and lying speeches, which were spoken against him, in a proud, haughty, and contemptuous manner. And it is no unusual thing for such false charges to be brought against righteous men; nay, such hard speeches were spoken by ungodly men against Jesus Christ the righteous himself, Jde 1:15. The Targum interprets it of "reproaches".

Geneva Study Bible

Let the lying lips be put to silence; which speak grievous things proudly and contemptuously against the righteous.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

18. Let the lying lips be dumb;

Which speak against the righteous arrogantly,

In pride and contempt.

Cp. Psalm 12:3; Psalm 94:4.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 18. - Let the lying lips be put to silence, which speak grievous things proudly and contemptuously against the righteous; rather, which speak arrogancy (camp. 1 Samuel 2:3). The pride and insolence of David's enemies is strongly noted in the Second Book of Samuel (see 16:7, 8; 17:1-3). Psalm 31:18

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

(Heb.: 31:15-19) But, although a curse of the world and an offscouring of all people, he is confident in God, his Deliverer and Avenger. By ואני prominence is given to the subject by way of contrast, as in Psalm 31:7. It appears as though Jahve had given him up in His anger; but he confides in Him, and in spite of this appearance, he even confides in Him with the prayer of appropriating faith. עתּות or אתּים (1 Chronicles 29:30) are the appointed events and circumstances, the vicissitudes of human life; like the Arabic 'idât (like עת from ועד), the appointed rewards and punishments. The times, with whatsoever they bring with them, are in the Lord's hand, every lot is of His appointment or sending. The Vulgate follows the lxx, in manibus tuis sortes meae. The petitions of Psalm 31:16, Psalm 31:17, spring from this consciousness that the almighty and faithful hand of God has mould his life. There are three petitions; the middle one is an echo of the Aaronitish blessing in Numbers 6:25. כּי קראתיך, which gives the ground of his hope that he shall not be put to shame (cf. Psalm 31:2), is to be understood like אמרתּי in Psalm 31:15, according to Ges. 126, 3. The expression of the ground for אל־אבושׁה, favours the explanation of it not so much as the language of petition (let me not be ashamed) of as hope. The futures which follow might be none the less regarded as optatives, but the order of the words does not require this. And we prefer to take them as expressing hope, so that the three petitions in Psalm 31:16, Psalm 31:17, correspond to the three hopes in Psalm 31:18, Psalm 31:19. He will not be ashamed, but the wicked shall be ashamed and silenced for ever. The form ידּמוּ, from דּמם, is, as in Jeremiah 8:14, the plural of the fut. Kal ידּם, with the doubling of the first radical, which is customary in Aramaic (other examples of which we have in יקּד, ישּׁם, יתּם), not of the fut. Niph. ידּם, the plural of which would be ידּמּוּ, as in 1 Samuel 2:9; conticescere in orcum is equivalent to: to be silent, i.e., being made powerless to fall a prey to hades. It is only in accordance with the connection, that in this instance נאלם, Psalm 31:19, just like דּמם, denotes that which is forcibly laid upon them by the judicial intervention of God: all lying lips shall be dumb, i.e., made dumb. עתק prop. that which is unrestrained, free, insolent (cf. Arabic 'âtik, 'atı̂k, unrestrained, free

(Note: But these Arabic words do not pass over into the signification "insolent."))

is the accusative of the object, as in Psalm 94:4, and as it is the nominative of the subject in 1 Samuel 2:3.