Like a slug that dissolves in its slime, like a woman's stillborn child, may they never see the sun. Like a slug that dissolves in its slimeThe imagery of a slug dissolving in its slime is a vivid metaphor for the ultimate futility and self-destruction of the wicked. In Hebrew, the word for "slug" (שַׁבְּלוּל, shabbelul) is rare and denotes a creature that leaves a trail of slime, symbolizing the transient and corrupt nature of evil. The slug's slow, creeping movement and eventual dissolution in its own secretion serve as a powerful illustration of how the wicked, despite their schemes, will ultimately face decay and insignificance. This metaphor emphasizes the natural consequences of living a life opposed to God's righteousness, where one's own actions lead to their downfall. like a woman's stillborn child
This phrase introduces a somber and poignant image, comparing the fate of the wicked to that of a stillborn child. In ancient Near Eastern culture, the birth of a child was a significant event, and a stillbirth was a profound tragedy. The Hebrew word for "stillborn" (נֵפֶל, nefel) conveys the idea of something that fails to reach its potential or purpose. This comparison underscores the notion that the wicked, despite their ambitions and plans, will not achieve their intended outcomes. Just as a stillborn child never sees the light of day, the wicked will not experience the fulfillment of their desires or the blessings of life under God's favor. may they never see the sun
The sun is often a symbol of life, light, and divine blessing in the Bible. To "see the sun" is to experience life and the goodness that comes from God. In this context, the psalmist's wish that the wicked "never see the sun" is a prayer for their plans to be thwarted and for them to be deprived of the joy and prosperity that come from living in accordance with God's will. This phrase reflects a desire for divine justice, where those who perpetuate evil are prevented from enjoying the fruits of their wrongdoing. It serves as a reminder of the ultimate triumph of righteousness and the assurance that God will uphold justice in His time. Persons / Places / Events 1. DavidTraditionally attributed as the author of Psalm 58, David is expressing a prayer for divine justice against the wicked. 2. The WickedThe psalm addresses the corrupt and unjust leaders or judges, calling for their downfall. 3. The SlugUsed metaphorically to describe the slow and inevitable demise of the wicked. 4. Stillborn ChildAnother metaphor illustrating the futility and abrupt end of the wicked's plans. 5. God's JusticeThe overarching theme of the psalm, emphasizing divine retribution against evil. Teaching Points The Inevitability of Divine JusticeGod's justice may seem delayed, but it is certain and thorough. The imagery of the slug and stillborn child underscores the ultimate futility of wickedness. The Transience of WickednessThe wicked may appear to prosper temporarily, but their end is as certain as a slug melting away. Believers are encouraged to trust in God's timing. The Power of Metaphor in ScriptureThe vivid imagery used in this verse serves to communicate deep spiritual truths about the nature of sin and divine justice. Reflect on how these metaphors can deepen your understanding of God's Word. The Call to Righteous LivingIn light of the eventual downfall of the wicked, believers are called to pursue righteousness and trust in God's justice rather than taking matters into their own hands. Hope in God's SovereigntyEven when faced with injustice, believers can find hope in the sovereignty of God, who will ultimately right all wrongs. Bible Study Questions 1. How does the imagery of a slug melting away help us understand the fate of the wicked in Psalm 58:8? 2. In what ways does Psalm 58:8 challenge us to trust in God's justice rather than seeking revenge? 3. How can the metaphor of a stillborn child in this verse deepen our understanding of the futility of wickedness? 4. What other biblical passages reinforce the message of Psalm 58:8 regarding the fate of the wicked, and how do they enhance our understanding? 5. How can we apply the lessons from Psalm 58:8 to situations of injustice we encounter in our own lives today? Connections to Other Scriptures Psalm 37This psalm also contrasts the fate of the wicked with the righteous, emphasizing that the wicked will ultimately perish. Proverbs 11:7Highlights the futility of the wicked's hopes and plans, similar to the imagery in Psalm 58:8. Job 24:24Describes the temporary success of the wicked, who are ultimately cut off, aligning with the imagery of melting away. Isaiah 40:24Speaks of the transience of the wicked, who are blown away like chaff. James 1:11Uses the imagery of withering to describe the fleeting nature of earthly pursuits, akin to the melting slug. People David, Psalmist, SaulPlaces JerusalemTopics After-birth, Along, Birth, Births, Child, Dissolves, Fruit, Gives, Goes, Melteth, Melting, Melts, Miscarriages, Moves, Pass, Passes, Passeth, Sees, Slime, Snail, Stillborn, UntimelyDictionary of Bible Themes Psalm 58:6 4666 lion
5189 teeth Library Of Internal Acts
Of Internal Acts Acts are distinguished into External and Internal. External acts are those which bear relation to some sensible object, and are either morally good or evil, merely according to the nature of the principle from which they proceed. I intend here to speak only of Internal acts, those energies of the soul, by which it turns internally to some objects, and averts from others. If during my application to God I should form a will to change the nature of my act, I thereby withdraw myself …
Madame Guyon—A Short and Easy Method of PrayerEpistle vi. To Januarius, Bishop of Caralis (Cagliari).
To Januarius, Bishop of Caralis (Cagliari). Gregory to Januarius, &c. The Jews who have come hither from your city have complained to us that Peter, who has been brought by the will of God from their superstition to the worship of Christian faith, having taken with him certain disorderly persons, on the day after his baptism, that is on the Lord's day of the very Paschal festival, with grave scandal and without your consent, had taken possession of their synagogue in Caralis, and placed there the …
Saint Gregory the Great—the Epistles of Saint Gregory the Great Peaceable Principles and True: Or, a Brief Answer to Mr. D'Anver's and Mr. Paul's Books against My Confession of Faith, and Differences in Judgment About Baptism no Bar to Communion.
WHEREIN THEIR SCRIPTURELESS NOTIONS ARE OVERTHROWN, AND MY PEACEABLE PRINCIPLES STILL MAINTAINED. 'Do ye indeed speak righteousness, O congregation? do ye judge uprightly, O ye sons of men?'--Psalm 58:1 SIR, I have received and considered your short reply to my differences in judgment about water baptism no bar to communion; and observe, that you touch not the argument at all: but rather labour what you can, and beyond what you ought, to throw odiums upon your brother for reproving you for your error, …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 Faith the Sole Saving Act.
JOHN vi. 28, 29.--"Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent." In asking their question, the Jews intended to inquire of Christ what particular things they must do, before all others, in order to please God. The "works of God," as they denominate them, were not any and every duty, but those more special and important acts, by which the creature might secure …
William G.T. Shedd—Sermons to the Natural Man Augustin's Part in the Controversy.
Both by nature and by grace, Augustin was formed to be the champion of truth in this controversy. Of a naturally philosophical temperament, he saw into the springs of life with a vividness of mental perception to which most men are strangers; and his own experiences in his long life of resistance to, and then of yielding to, the drawings of God's grace, gave him a clear apprehension of the great evangelic principle that God seeks men, not men God, such as no sophistry could cloud. However much his …
St. Augustine—Anti-Pelagian Writings Moral Depravity.
VIII. Let us consider the proper method of accounting for the universal and total moral depravity of the unregenerate moral agents of our race. In the discussion of this subject, I will-- 1. Endeavor to show how it is not to be accounted for. In examining this part of the subject, it is necessary to have distinctly in view that which constitutes moral depravity. All the error that has existed upon this subject, has been founded in false assumptions in regard to the nature or essence of moral depravity. …
Charles Grandison Finney—Systematic Theology An Address to the Regenerate, Founded on the Preceding Discourses.
James I. 18. James I. 18. Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures. I INTEND the words which I have now been reading, only as an introduction to that address to the sons and daughters of the Lord Almighty, with which I am now to conclude these lectures; and therefore shall not enter into any critical discussion, either of them, or of the context. I hope God has made the series of these discourses, in some measure, useful to those …
Philip Doddridge—Practical Discourses on Regeneration The Necessity of Actual Grace
In treating of the necessity of actual grace we must avoid two extremes. The first is that mere nature is absolutely incapable of doing any thing good. This error was held by the early Protestants and the followers of Baius and Jansenius. The second is that nature is able to perform supernatural acts by its own power. This was taught by the Pelagians and Semipelagians. Between these two extremes Catholic theology keeps the golden mean. It defends the capacity of human nature against Protestants and …
Joseph Pohle—Grace, Actual and Habitual The Mystery
Of the Woman dwelling in the Wilderness. The woman delivered of a child, when the dragon was overcome, from thenceforth dwelt in the wilderness, by which is figured the state of the Church, liberated from Pagan tyranny, to the time of the seventh trumpet, and the second Advent of Christ, by the type, not of a latent, invisible, but, as it were, an intermediate condition, like that of the lsraelitish Church journeying in the wilderness, from its departure from Egypt, to its entrance into the land …
Joseph Mede—A Key to the Apocalypse The Justice of God
The next attribute is God's justice. All God's attributes are identical, and are the same with his essence. Though he has several attributes whereby he is made known to us, yet he has but one essence. A cedar tree may have several branches, yet it is but one cedar. So there are several attributes of God whereby we conceive of him, but only one entire essence. Well, then, concerning God's justice. Deut 32:4. Just and right is he.' Job 37:23. Touching the Almighty, we cannot find him out: he is excellent …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity The Wrath of God
What does every sin deserve? God's wrath and curse, both in this life, and in that which is to come. Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire.' Matt 25: 41. Man having sinned, is like a favourite turned out of the king's favour, and deserves the wrath and curse of God. He deserves God's curse. Gal 3: 10. As when Christ cursed the fig-tree, it withered; so, when God curses any, he withers in his soul. Matt 21: 19. God's curse blasts wherever it comes. He deserves also God's wrath, which is …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments Psalms
The piety of the Old Testament Church is reflected with more clearness and variety in the Psalter than in any other book of the Old Testament. It constitutes the response of the Church to the divine demands of prophecy, and, in a less degree, of law; or, rather, it expresses those emotions and aspirations of the universal heart which lie deeper than any formal demand. It is the speech of the soul face to face with God. Its words are as simple and unaffected as human words can be, for it is the genius …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Psalm 58:8 NIVPsalm 58:8 NLTPsalm 58:8 ESVPsalm 58:8 NASBPsalm 58:8 KJV
Psalm 58:8 Commentaries
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