Psalm 52:2
New International Version
You who practice deceit, your tongue plots destruction; it is like a sharpened razor.

New Living Translation
All day long you plot destruction. Your tongue cuts like a sharp razor; you’re an expert at telling lies.

English Standard Version
Your tongue plots destruction, like a sharp razor, you worker of deceit.

Berean Standard Bible
Your tongue devises destruction like a sharpened razor, O worker of deceit.

King James Bible
Thy tongue deviseth mischiefs; like a sharp rasor, working deceitfully.

New King James Version
Your tongue devises destruction, Like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.

New American Standard Bible
Your tongue devises destruction, Like a sharp razor, you worker of deceit.

NASB 1995
Your tongue devises destruction, Like a sharp razor, O worker of deceit.

NASB 1977
Your tongue devises destruction, Like a sharp razor, O worker of deceit.

Legacy Standard Bible
Your tongue devises destruction, Like a sharp razor, O worker of deceit.

Amplified Bible
Your tongue devises destruction, Like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.

Christian Standard Bible
Like a sharpened razor, your tongue devises destruction, working treachery.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Like a sharpened razor, your tongue devises destruction, working treachery.

American Standard Version
Thy tongue deviseth very wickedness, Like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.

Contemporary English Version
You plan brutal crimes, and your lying words cut like a sharp razor.

English Revised Version
Thy tongue deviseth very wickedness; like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Your tongue makes up threats. It's like a sharp razor, you master of deceit.

Good News Translation
You make plans to ruin others; your tongue is like a sharp razor. You are always inventing lies.

International Standard Version
Your tongue, like a sharp razor, devises wicked things and crafts treachery.

Majority Standard Bible
Your tongue devises destruction like a sharpened razor, O worker of deceit.

NET Bible
Your tongue carries out your destructive plans; it is as effective as a sharp razor, O deceiver.

New Heart English Bible
Your tongue plots destruction, like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.

Webster's Bible Translation
Thy tongue deviseth mischiefs; like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.

World English Bible
Your tongue plots destruction, like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
Your tongue devises mischiefs, "" Like a sharp razor, working deceit.

Young's Literal Translation
Mischiefs doth thy tongue devise, Like a sharp razor, working deceit.

Smith's Literal Translation
The original Julia E. Smith Bible records the following as a verse reference for Ps 52:4Thy tongue will purpose mischief as a razor being sharpened, working deceit.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
All the day long thy tongue hath devised injustice: as a sharp razor, thou hast wrought deceit.

Catholic Public Domain Version
All day long your tongue thinks up injustice. Like a sharp razor, you have wrought deceit.

New American Bible
All day long you are thinking up intrigues; your tongue is like a sharpened razor, you worker of deceit.

New Revised Standard Version
you are plotting destruction. Your tongue is like a sharp razor, you worker of treachery.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
It is like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Your tongue conceives evil and, like a sharpened razor, you have worked deceit.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
Thy tongue deviseth destruction; Like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
thy tongue has devised unrighteousness; like a sharpened razor thou hast wrought deceit.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Why Do You Boast of Evil?
1For the choirmaster. A Maskil of David. After Doeg the Edomite went to Saul and told him, “David has gone to the house of Ahimelech.” Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man? The loving devotion of God endures all day long. 2Your tongue devises destruction like a sharpened razor, O worker of deceit. 3You love evil more than good, falsehood more than speaking truth. Selah…

Cross References
James 3:6
The tongue also is a fire, a world of wickedness among the parts of the body. It pollutes the whole person, sets the course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.

Proverbs 12:18
Speaking rashly is like a piercing sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.

Proverbs 18:21
Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.

James 3:8
but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

Psalm 5:9
For not a word they speak can be trusted; destruction lies within them. Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.

Romans 3:13
“Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.” “The venom of vipers is on their lips.”

Proverbs 10:31
The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom, but a perverse tongue will be cut out.

Proverbs 15:4
A soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit.

Matthew 12:34-37
You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. / The good man brings good things out of his good store of treasure, and the evil man brings evil things out of his evil store of treasure. / But I tell you that men will give an account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. ...

Ephesians 4:29
Let no unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building up the one in need and bringing grace to those who listen.

Psalm 57:4
My soul is among the lions; I lie down with ravenous beasts—with men whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords.

Psalm 64:3
who sharpen their tongues like swords and aim their bitter words like arrows,

Psalm 140:3
They sharpen their tongues like snakes; the venom of vipers is on their lips. Selah

Proverbs 6:16-19
There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to Him: / haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, / a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that run swiftly to evil, ...

Jeremiah 9:3
“They bend their tongues like bows; lies prevail over truth in the land. For they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not take Me into account,” declares the LORD.


Treasury of Scripture

The tongue devises mischiefs; like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.

Thy

Psalm 50:19
Thou givest thy mouth to evil, and thy tongue frameth deceit.

Psalm 64:2-6
Hide me from the secret counsel of the wicked; from the insurrection of the workers of iniquity: …

Psalm 140:2,3
Which imagine mischiefs in their heart; continually are they gathered together for war…

like

Psalm 57:4
My soul is among lions: and I lie even among them that are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword.

Psalm 59:7
Behold, they belch out with their mouth: swords are in their lips: for who, say they, doth hear?

Proverbs 12:18
There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health.

working

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.

Psalm 120:2
Deliver my soul, O LORD, from lying lips, and from a deceitful tongue.

2 Corinthians 4:2
But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.

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Blade Deceit Deceitfully Destruction Devises Deviseth Mischiefs Mischievous Plots Plotting Practice Practising Purposing Razor Sharp Sharpened Tongue Treachery Using Wickedness Worker Working
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Psalm 52
1. David, condemning the spitefulness of Doeg, prophesies his destruction
6. The righteous shall rejoice at it
8. David, upon his confidence in God's mercy, gives thanks














Your tongue
The Hebrew word for "tongue" is "לָשׁוֹן" (lashon), which often symbolizes speech or language. In the biblical context, the tongue is frequently associated with the power of words, both for good and evil. James 3:5-6 in the New Testament echoes this sentiment, describing the tongue as a small part of the body that can cause great harm. The tongue's ability to devise destruction highlights the moral responsibility of speech, urging believers to use their words to build up rather than tear down.

devises destruction
The phrase "devises destruction" comes from the Hebrew "חָדַשׁ" (chadash), meaning to plan or plot, and "הַוּוֹת" (havvot), meaning ruin or calamity. This suggests a deliberate and calculated use of words to cause harm. In the historical context, this could refer to slander or false accusations, which were serious offenses in ancient Israelite society. The psalmist warns against the intentional misuse of speech, reminding believers of the destructive potential of deceitful words.

like a sharpened razor
The imagery of a "sharpened razor" (Hebrew: "תַּעַר מְלֻטָּשׁ" - ta'ar melutash) conveys the idea of precision and danger. A razor is a tool that, when sharpened, can cut swiftly and deeply. This metaphor emphasizes the sharpness and potential harm of deceitful speech. In the ancient world, a razor was a common tool, and its use here underscores the everyday nature of the threat posed by malicious words. The psalmist uses this vivid imagery to caution against the careless or intentional use of speech that can wound others.

O worker of deceit
The term "worker of deceit" (Hebrew: "פֹּעֵל רְמִיָּה" - po'el remiyyah) identifies the speaker as someone who actively engages in deception. The word "פֹּעֵל" (po'el) implies action and effort, while "רְמִיָּה" (remiyyah) denotes treachery or fraud. This phrase serves as a moral indictment, highlighting the character of those who use their words to mislead or harm others. In the broader scriptural context, deceit is consistently condemned, as seen in Proverbs 12:22, which states, "Lying lips are detestable to the LORD, but those who deal faithfully are His delight." The psalmist's rebuke serves as a call to integrity and truthfulness in all communication.

(2) Working deceitfully.--Better, working guile. (For the metaphor, see Psalm 55:21; Psalm 57:4, &c)

Verse 2. - Thy tongue deviseth mischiefs; or, malignities - evils of the worst kind. It was Doeg's "tongue" that brought about the entire ghastly massacre (see 1 Samuel 22:9, 10). Like a sharp razor, working deceitfully. Doeg had "worked deceitfully," since he had not told Saul the circumstances that made Ahimelech's giving aid to David no disloyalty to the king (1 Samuel 21:2, 8). The suppressio veri is a suggestio falsi.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Your tongue
לְשׁוֹנֶ֑ךָ (lə·šō·w·ne·ḵā)
Noun - common singular construct | second person masculine singular
Strong's 3956: The tongue

devises
תַּחְשֹׁ֣ב (taḥ·šōḇ)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person feminine singular
Strong's 2803: To think, account

destruction
הַ֭וּוֹת (haw·wō·wṯ)
Noun - feminine plural
Strong's 1942: Desire, chasm, destruction

like a sharpened
מְ֝לֻטָּ֗שׁ (mə·luṭ·ṭāš)
Verb - Pual - Participle - masculine singular
Strong's 3913: To hammer out, to sharpen

razor,
כְּתַ֥עַר (kə·ṯa·‘ar)
Preposition-k | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 8593: A knife, razor, a scabbard

O worker
עֹשֵׂ֥ה (‘ō·śêh)
Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular construct
Strong's 6213: To do, make

of deceit.
רְמִיָּֽה׃ (rə·mî·yāh)
Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 7423: Remissness, treachery


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OT Poetry: Psalm 52:2 Your tongue plots destruction like a sharp (Psalm Ps Psa.)
Psalm 52:1
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