Psalm 35:16
New International Version
Like the ungodly they maliciously mocked; they gnashed their teeth at me.

New Living Translation
They mock me and call me names; they snarl at me.

English Standard Version
like profane mockers at a feast, they gnash at me with their teeth.

Berean Standard Bible
Like godless jesters at a feast, they gnashed their teeth at me.

King James Bible
With hypocritical mockers in feasts, they gnashed upon me with their teeth.

New King James Version
With ungodly mockers at feasts They gnashed at me with their teeth.

New American Standard Bible
Like godless jesters at a feast, They gnashed at me with their teeth.

NASB 1995
Like godless jesters at a feast, They gnashed at me with their teeth.

NASB 1977
Like godless jesters at a feast, They gnashed at me with their teeth.

Legacy Standard Bible
Amongst the godless jesters at a feast, They gnashed at me with their teeth.

Amplified Bible
Like godless jesters at a feast, They gnashed at me with their teeth [in malice].

Christian Standard Bible
With godless mockery they gnashed their teeth at me.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
With godless mockery they gnashed their teeth at me.

American Standard Version
Like the profane mockers in feasts, They gnashed upon me with their teeth.

Contemporary English Version
Worthless people make fun and never stop laughing.

English Revised Version
Like the profane mockers in feasts, they gnashed upon me with their teeth.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
With crude and abusive mockers, they grit their teeth at me.

Good News Translation
Like those who would mock a cripple, they glared at me with hate.

International Standard Version
Malicious mockers — they gnashed their teeth against me.

Majority Standard Bible
Like godless jesters at a feast, they gnashed their teeth at me.

NET Bible
When I tripped, they taunted me relentlessly, and tried to bite me.

New Heart English Bible
When I tripped, they mocked me relentlessly; they gnashed their teeth at me.

Webster's Bible Translation
With hypocritical mockers in feasts, they gnashed upon me with their teeth.

World English Bible
Like the profane mockers in feasts, they gnashed their teeth at me.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
With profane ones, mockers in feasts, "" Gnashing their teeth against me.

Young's Literal Translation
With profane ones, mockers in feasts, Gnashing against me their teeth.

Smith's Literal Translation
With profane mocking parasites, gnashing their teeth against me.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
They were separated, and repented not : they tempted me, they scoffed at me with scorn : they gnashed upon me with their teeth.

Catholic Public Domain Version
They have been scattered, yet they were unremorseful. They have tested me. They scoffed at me with scorn. They gnashed their teeth over me.

New American Bible
without respect they mocked me, gnashed their teeth against me.

New Revised Standard Version
they impiously mocked more and more, gnashing at me with their teeth.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
With their boasting and mocking, they gnashed at me with their teeth.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
In their boasting and in their scorning, they gnashed against me with their teeth.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
With the profanest mockeries of backbiting They gnash at me with their teeth.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
They tempted me, they sneered at me most contemptuously, they gnashed their teeth upon me.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Contend with My Opponents
15But when I stumbled, they assembled in glee; they gathered together against me. Assailants I did not know slandered me without ceasing. 16Like godless jesters at a feast, they gnashed their teeth at me. 17How long, O Lord, will You look on? Rescue my soul from their ravages, my precious life from these lions.…

Cross References
Matthew 27:39-44
And those who passed by heaped abuse on Him, shaking their heads / and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross!” / In the same way, the chief priests, scribes, and elders mocked Him, saying, ...

Mark 15:29-32
And those who passed by heaped abuse on Him, shaking their heads and saying, “Aha! You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, / come down from the cross and save Yourself!” / In the same way, the chief priests and scribes mocked Him among themselves, saying, “He saved others, but He cannot save Himself! ...

Luke 23:35-39
The people stood watching, and the rulers sneered at Him, saying, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.” / The soldiers also mocked Him and came up to offer Him sour wine. / “If You are the King of the Jews,” they said, “save Yourself!” ...

Job 30:1-10
“But now they mock me, men younger than I am, whose fathers I would have refused to put with my sheep dogs. / What use to me was the strength of their hands, since their vigor had left them? / Gaunt from poverty and hunger, they gnawed the dry land, and the desolate wasteland by night. ...

Isaiah 53:3
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. Like one from whom men hide their faces, He was despised, and we esteemed Him not.

Lamentations 3:14
I am a laughingstock to all my people; they mock me in song all day long.

Proverbs 14:9
Fools mock the making of amends, but goodwill is found among the upright.

1 Peter 2:23
When they heaped abuse on Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats, but entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.

John 19:3
And they went up to Him again and again, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and slapping Him in the face.

Matthew 5:11-12
Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. / Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets before you.

2 Chronicles 36:16
But they mocked the messengers of God, despising His words and scoffing at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD against His people was stirred up beyond remedy.

Nehemiah 4:1-4
Now when Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he was furious and filled with indignation. He ridiculed the Jews / before his associates and the army of Samaria, saying, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Can they restore the wall by themselves? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they complete it in a day? Can they bring these burnt stones back to life from the mounds of rubble?” / Then Tobiah the Ammonite, who was beside him, said, “If even a fox were to climb up on what they are building, it would break down their wall of stones!” ...

Psalm 22:6-8
But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by men and despised by the people. / All who see me mock me; they sneer and shake their heads: / “He trusts in the LORD, let the LORD deliver him; let the LORD rescue him, since He delights in him.”

Psalm 69:12
Those who sit at the gate mock me, and I am the song of drunkards.

Jeremiah 20:7
You have deceived me, O LORD, and I was deceived. You have overcome me and prevailed. I am a laughingstock all day long; everyone mocks me.


Treasury of Scripture

With hypocritical mockers in feasts, they gnashed on me with their teeth.

hypocritical

1 Samuel 20:24
So David hid himself in the field: and when the new moon was come, the king sat him down to eat meat.

Isaiah 1:14,15
Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them

John 18:28
Then led they Jesus from Caiaphas unto the hall of judgment: and it was early; and they themselves went not into the judgment hall, lest they should be defiled; but that they might eat the passover.

gnashed

Psalm 37:12
The wicked plotteth against the just, and gnasheth upon him with his teeth.

Job 16:9
He teareth me in his wrath, who hateth me: he gnasheth upon me with his teeth; mine enemy sharpeneth his eyes upon me.

Lamentations 2:16
All thine enemies have opened their mouth against thee: they hiss and gnash the teeth: they say, We have swallowed her up: certainly this is the day that we looked for; we have found, we have seen it.

Jump to Previous
Backbiting Bread Deceit Feast Feasts Gnash Gnashed Gnashing Godless Hypocritical Impiously Loud Maliciously Mocked Mockeries Mockers Ones Profane Shame Teeth Ungodly Voice Wrath
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Backbiting Bread Deceit Feast Feasts Gnash Gnashed Gnashing Godless Hypocritical Impiously Loud Maliciously Mocked Mockeries Mockers Ones Profane Shame Teeth Ungodly Voice Wrath
Psalm 35
1. David prays for his own safety, and his enemies' confusion
11. He complains of their wrongful dealing
22. Thereby he incites God against them














Like godless jesters at a feast
The phrase "like godless jesters at a feast" paints a vivid picture of mockery and derision. The Hebrew word for "jesters" can be understood as "hypocritical mockers," indicating individuals who are not only irreverent but also deceitful in their intentions. In ancient Near Eastern culture, feasts were times of celebration and community, yet here, the psalmist finds himself surrounded by those who should be companions but instead are adversaries. The term "godless" underscores their lack of reverence for God, highlighting a moral and spiritual deficiency. This imagery serves to emphasize the psalmist's isolation and the betrayal he feels, as those who should be allies are instead ridiculing him.

they gnashed their teeth at me
The expression "they gnashed their teeth at me" conveys intense anger and hostility. In biblical literature, gnashing of teeth often symbolizes rage and scorn, as seen in other scriptural contexts such as Job 16:9 and Acts 7:54. The Hebrew root for "gnash" suggests a grinding or clenching, indicative of deep-seated animosity. This phrase not only reflects the physical manifestation of their contempt but also the spiritual and emotional assault the psalmist endures. Historically, such expressions of enmity were common in the face of perceived threats or disdain, and here it underscores the severity of the opposition the psalmist faces. The psalmist's plight is a reminder of the trials faced by the faithful, yet it also points to the ultimate justice and vindication that God promises to His people.

(16) With hypocritical mockers in feasts.--This clause is full of difficulty. The LXX. and Vulg. have, "they tempted me, they mocked me with a mocking"; Symmachus, "in hypocrisy, with feigned words"; Chaldee, "with derisive words of flattery." All these take the word rendered in the Authorised Version, "feasts," as a cognate of a word in Isaiah 28:11, translated "stammering," but which means rather, "barbarisms." (Comp. Isaiah 33:19.) The word rendered "hypocritical" more properly means "profane" or "impious." With these meanings we get a very good sense (with evident reference to the malicious attacks of foreigners, or of the anti-national party that affected foreign ways) in the manner of profane barbaric barbarisms, or with profanity and barbarism.

As to the rendering "feasts," it comes from treating the word as the same used (1Kings 17:13) for a "cake." "Cake-mockers" are explained to be parasites who hang about the tables of the rich, getting their dinner in return for their buffooneries. (Comp. the Greek ????????????; Latin, bucellarii.)

Verse 16. - With hypocritical mockers in feasts; literally, profane jesters of cakes; i.e. ribald parasites at a great man's table, whose coarse buffoonery entitles them to a share of the dainties; they made me their butt, their jest, and their byword (cf. Job 30:9). They gnashed upon me with their teeth; i.e. spoke fiercely and angrily against me, like dogs that snarl and show their teeth (comp. Job 16:9; Psalm 37:12).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Like godless
בְּ֭חַנְפֵי (bə·ḥan·p̄ê)
Preposition-b | Adjective - masculine plural construct
Strong's 2611: Profane, irreligious

jesters
לַעֲגֵ֣י (la·‘ă·ḡê)
Adjective - masculine plural construct
Strong's 3934: A buffoon, a foreigner

at a feast,
מָע֑וֹג (mā·‘ō·wḡ)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 4580: A cake of bread, parasite

they gnashed
חָרֹ֖ק (ḥā·rōq)
Verb - Qal - Infinitive absolute
Strong's 2786: To grate the teeth

their teeth
שִׁנֵּֽימוֹ׃ (šin·nê·mōw)
Noun - cdc | third person masculine plural
Strong's 8127: A tooth, ivory, a cliff

at me.
עָלַ֣י (‘ā·lay)
Preposition | first person common singular
Strong's 5921: Above, over, upon, against


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OT Poetry: Psalm 35:16 Like the profane mockers in feasts they (Psalm Ps Psa.)
Psalm 35:15
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