For not a word they speak can be trusted; destruction lies within them. Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit. For there is no truth in their mouthsThis phrase highlights the deceitful nature of the wicked. The Hebrew word for "truth" here is "אֱמוּנָה" (emunah), which conveys a sense of faithfulness, reliability, and trustworthiness. In the context of the psalm, the absence of truth in their mouths indicates a fundamental lack of integrity and honesty. Historically, the psalmist, David, often faced adversaries who were deceitful, and this phrase underscores the spiritual and moral corruption that characterized his enemies. From a conservative Christian perspective, this serves as a reminder of the importance of truthfulness as a reflection of God's character, who is the ultimate embodiment of truth. their inmost being is destruction
The phrase "inmost being" translates from the Hebrew "קֶרֶב" (qereb), which refers to the inner parts or the heart. This suggests that the core of these individuals is filled with "destruction," or "הַוּוֹת" (havvot), which can mean ruin or calamity. This imagery paints a picture of people whose very essence is bent towards chaos and harm. In a biblical context, this reflects the fallen nature of humanity, where sin corrupts the heart. For believers, it is a call to examine one's own heart and seek transformation through Christ, who offers a new heart and spirit. their throat is an open grave
This vivid metaphor compares the throat of the wicked to an "open grave," suggesting that their words bring death and decay. The Hebrew word for "grave" is "קֶבֶר" (qeber), which signifies a place of burial. This imagery is powerful, evoking the stench and horror of death. In the ancient Near Eastern context, an open grave would be a source of impurity and defilement. For Christians, this serves as a warning about the power of words and the potential for speech to corrupt and destroy, contrasting with the life-giving words of Christ. they flatter with their tongues
The act of flattering is captured by the Hebrew word "חָלַק" (chalaq), which means to be smooth or slippery. This suggests insincerity and manipulation, as flattery is often used to deceive or gain favor. In the biblical narrative, flattery is frequently associated with false prophets and those who lead others astray. From a conservative Christian viewpoint, this phrase warns against the dangers of deceitful speech and the importance of speaking truth in love, as exemplified by Jesus. It encourages believers to be discerning and to value sincerity and honesty in their interactions. Persons / Places / Events 1. DavidThe author of Psalm 5, David is expressing his lament and seeking God's guidance and protection against deceitful and wicked people. 2. The WickedThe individuals described in this verse are characterized by their deceitful speech and destructive intentions. 3. GodThe ultimate judge and protector whom David seeks for guidance and deliverance from the wicked. Teaching Points The Power of WordsWords have the power to build up or destroy. As believers, we must be mindful of our speech, ensuring it aligns with truth and love. Guarding Against DeceitWe must be vigilant against deceit, both in others and within ourselves, seeking God's wisdom to discern truth from lies. Seeking God's ProtectionLike David, we should turn to God for protection and guidance when faced with deceit and wickedness in the world. The Heart's ConditionOur speech reflects the condition of our hearts. Regular self-examination and repentance are necessary to maintain a heart aligned with God. The Role of ScriptureScripture serves as a guide to help us recognize and avoid deceitful practices, encouraging us to live in truth. Bible Study Questions 1. How does David's description of the wicked in Psalm 5:9 challenge us to examine our own speech and intentions? 2. In what ways can we guard our hearts to ensure our words reflect truth and integrity? 3. How does the connection between Psalm 5:9 and Romans 3:13 deepen our understanding of human sinfulness and the need for redemption? 4. What practical steps can we take to seek God's protection and guidance when confronted with deceit in our daily lives? 5. How can we use Scripture to help us discern truth from deceit in the world around us? Connections to Other Scriptures Romans 3:13Paul references Psalm 5:9 when discussing the universal sinfulness of humanity, emphasizing the deceitful nature of human speech. Jeremiah 9:8This verse similarly describes the deceitful nature of the wicked, comparing their speech to a deadly arrow. Matthew 12:34Jesus speaks about how the mouth speaks what the heart is full of, connecting to the idea of deceitful speech stemming from a corrupt heart. People David, PsalmistPlaces JerusalemTopics Certainty, Dead, Deceit, Destruction, Evil, Faith, Faithfulness, Filled, Flatter, Grave, Gulf, Heart, Inner, Inward, Itself, Mischiefs, Mouth, Nothing, Open, Perversion, Reliable, Sepulcher, Sepulchre, Sincerity, Smooth, Speak, Stability, Throat, Tomb, Tongue, Tongues, Trusted, Truth, Wickedness, YawningDictionary of Bible Themes Psalm 5:9 5016 heart, fallen and redeemed
5038 mind, the human
5167 mouth
5193 tongue
5547 speech, power of
5550 speech, negative
5863 flattery
6023 sin, universality
6146 deceit, and God
8354 trustworthiness
8442 good works
8719 distrust Psalm 5:9-10 6632 conviction Library A Staircase of Three Steps
'All those that put their trust in Thee ... them also that love Thy name ... the righteous.'--PSALM v. 11, 12. I have ventured to isolate these three clauses from their context, because, if taken in their sequence, they are very significant of the true path by which men draw nigh to God and become righteous. They are all three designations of the same people, but regarded under different aspects and at different stages. There is a distinct order in them, and whether the Psalmist was fully conscious …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureMorning Hymn.
"My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord."--Psalm 5:3. "Morgen glanz der Ewigkeit." [35]Knov. von Rosenroth. transl., Jane Borthwick, 1855 Jesus, Sun of righteousness, Brightest beam of Love Divine, With the early morning rays Do Thou on our darkness shine, And dispel with purest light All our night! As on drooping herb and flower Falls the soft refreshing dew, Let Thy Spirit's grace and power All our weary souls renew; Sbowers of blessing over all Softly fall! Like the sun's reviving …
Jane Borthwick—Hymns from the Land of Luther Morning Hymns
Morning Hymns. [2] My voice shalt Thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto Thee, and will look up. Psalm 5:3 …
Catherine Winkworth—Lyra Germanica: The Christian Year Moreover what is Written "Thou Wilt Destroy all that Speak Leasing...
35. Moreover what is written "Thou wilt destroy all that speak leasing:" [2360] one saith that no lie is here excepted, but all condemned. Another saith: Yea verily: but they who speak leasing from the heart, as we disputed above; for that man speaketh truth in his heart, who hateth the necessity of lying, which he understands as a penalty of the moral life. Another saith: All indeed will God destroy who speak leasing, but not all leasing: for there is some leasing which the Prophet was at that time …
St. Augustine—On Lying But if no Authority for Lying Can be Alleged...
9. But if no authority for lying can be alleged, neither from the ancient Books, be it because that is not a lie which is received to have been done or said in a figurative sense, or be it because good men are not challenged to imitate that which in bad men, beginning to amend, is praised in comparison with the worse; nor yet from the books of the New Testament, because Peter's correction rather than his simulation, even as his tears rather than his denial, is what we must imitate: then, as to those …
St. Augustine—On Lying A Great Deal for Me to Read Hast Thou Sent...
1. A great deal for me to read hast thou sent, my dearest brother Consentius: a great deal for me to read: to the which while I am preparing an answer, and am drawn off first by one, then by another, more urgent occupation, the year has measured out its course, and has thrust me into such straits, that I must answer in what sort I may, lest the time for sailing being now favorable, and the bearer desirous to return, I should too long detain him. Having therefore unrolled and read through all that …
St. Augustine—Against Lying On the Other Hand, those who Say that we must Never Lie...
6. On the other hand, those who say that we must never lie, plead much more strongly, using first the Divine authority, because in the very Decalogue it is written "Thou shall not bear false witness;" [2306] under which general term it comprises all lying: for whoso utters any thing bears witness to his own mind. But lest any should contend that not every lie is to be called false witness, what will he say to that which is written, "The mouth that lieth slayeth the soul:" [2307] and lest any should …
St. Augustine—On Lying What Then, if a Homicide Seek Refuge with a Christian...
22. What then, if a homicide seek refuge with a Christian, or if he see where the homicide have taken refuge, and be questioned of this matter by him who seeks, in order to bring to punishment a man, the slayer of man? Is he to tell a lie? For how does he not hide a sin by lying, when he for whom he lies has been guilty of a heinous sin? Or is it because he is not questioned concerning his sin, but about the place where he is concealed? So then to lie in order to hide a person's sin is evil; but …
St. Augustine—On Lying Since the Case is So, what is Man...
19. Since the case is so, what is man, while in this life he uses his own proper will, ere he choose and love God, but unrighteous and ungodly? "What," I say, "is man," a creature going astray from the Creator, unless his Creator "be mindful of him," [2683] and choose [2684] him freely, and love [2685] him freely? Because he is himself not able to choose or love, unless being first chosen and loved he be healed, because by choosing blindness he perceiveth not, and by loving laziness is soon wearied. …
St. Augustine—On Patience Second Sunday after Trinity Exhortation to Brotherly Love.
Text: 1 John 3, 13-18. 13 Marvel not, brethren, if the world hateth you. 14 We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not abideth in death. 15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. 16 Hereby know we love, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17 But whoso hath the world's goods, and beholdeth his brother in need, and shutteth …
Martin Luther—Epistle Sermons, Vol. III Question of the Division of Life into the Active and the Contemplative
I. May Life be fittingly divided into the Active and the Contemplative? S. Augustine, De Consensu Evangelistarum, I., iv. 8 " Tractatus, cxxiv. 5, in Joannem II. Is this division of Life into the Active and the Contemplative a sufficient one? S. Augustine, Of the Trinity, I., viii. 17 I May Life be fittingly divided into the Active and the Contemplative? S. Gregory the Great says[291]: "There are two kinds of lives in which Almighty God instructs us by His Sacred Word--namely, the active and …
St. Thomas Aquinas—On Prayer and The Contemplative Life Covenanting a Duty.
The exercise of Covenanting with God is enjoined by Him as the Supreme Moral Governor of all. That his Covenant should be acceded to, by men in every age and condition, is ordained as a law, sanctioned by his high authority,--recorded in his law of perpetual moral obligation on men, as a statute decreed by him, and in virtue of his underived sovereignty, promulgated by his command. "He hath commanded his covenant for ever."[171] The exercise is inculcated according to the will of God, as King and …
John Cunningham—The Ordinance of Covenanting Covenant Duties.
It is here proposed to show, that every incumbent duty ought, in suitable circumstances, to be engaged to in the exercise of Covenanting. The law and covenant of God are co-extensive; and what is enjoined in the one is confirmed in the other. The proposals of that Covenant include its promises and its duties. The former are made and fulfilled by its glorious Originator; the latter are enjoined and obligatory on man. The duties of that Covenant are God's law; and the demands of the law are all made …
John Cunningham—The Ordinance of Covenanting 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 5:9 NIVPsalm 5:9 NLTPsalm 5:9 ESVPsalm 5:9 NASBPsalm 5:9 KJV
Psalm 5:9 Commentaries
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