20 You will keep them safe in your house from the designs of man; in the secret of your tent will you keep them from angry tongues.
For in the time of trouble he will keep me safe in his tent: in the secret place of his tent he will keep me from men's eyes; high on a rock he will put me.
You are my safe and secret place; you will keep me from trouble; you will put songs of salvation on the lips of those who are round me. (Selah.)
Keep me safe from the secret purpose of wrongdoers; from the band of the workers of evil; Who make their tongues sharp like a sword, and whose arrows are pointed, even bitter words; So that in secret they may let loose their arrows at the upright, suddenly and unseen.
But he gives more grace. So that the Writings say, God is against the men of pride, but he gives grace to those who make themselves low before him.
But if you have bitter envy in your heart and the desire to get the better of others, have no pride in this, talking falsely against what is true. This wisdom is not from heaven, but is of the earth and the flesh and the Evil One. For where envy is, and the desire to get the better of others, there is no order, but every sort of evil-doing.
He has an over-high opinion of himself; being without knowledge, having only an unhealthy love of questionings and wars of words, from which come envy, fighting, cruel words, evil thoughts,
The men of pride have put secret cords for my feet; stretching nets in my way, so that they may take me with their tricks. (Selah.)
Happy is he whose resting-place is in the secret of the Lord, and under the shade of the wings of the Most High; Who says of the Lord, He is my safe place and my tower of strength: he is my God, in whom is my hope. He will take you out of the bird-net, and keep you safe from wasting disease. You will be covered by his feathers; under his wings you will be safe: his good faith will be your salvation.
O God, men of pride have come up against me, and the army of violent men would take my life; they have not put you before them.
Happy is the man who has faith in the Lord, and does not give honour to the men of pride or to those who are turned away to deceit.
The evil-doer in his pride is cruel to the poor; let him be taken by the tricks of his invention.
Now I am certain that the Lord is greater than all gods, for he has overcome them in their pride.
Even so the tongue is a small part of the body, but it takes credit for great things. How much wood may be lighted by a very little fire! And the tongue is a fire; it is the power of evil placed in our bodies, making all the body unclean, putting the wheel of life on fire, and getting its fire from hell.
With right behaviour as in the day; not in pleasure-making and drinking, not in bad company and unclean behaviour, not in fighting and envy.
Their tongues are sharp like the tongue of a snake; the poison of snakes is under their lips. (Selah.)
For I have a fear that, when I come, you may not be answering to my desire, and that I may not be answering to yours; that there may be fighting, hate, angry feeling, divisions, evil talk about others, secrets, thoughts of pride, outbursts against authority;
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Psalms 31
Commentary on Psalms 31 Matthew Henry Commentary
Psalm 31
It is probable that David penned this psalm when he was persecuted by Saul; some passages in it agree particularly to the narrow escapes he had, at Keilah (1 Sa. 23:13), then in the wilderness of Maon, when Saul marched on one side of the hill and he on the other, and, soon after, in the cave in the wilderness of En-gedi; but that it was penned upon any of those occasions we are not told. It is a mixture of prayers, and praises, and professions of confidence in God, all which do well together and are helpful to one another.
To the chief musician. A psalm of David.
Psa 31:1-8
Faith and prayer must go together. He that believes, let his pray-I believe, therefore I have spoken: and he that prays, let him believe, for the prayer of faith is the prevailing prayer. We have both here.
Psa 31:9-18
In the foregoing verses David had appealed to God's righteousness, and pleaded his relation to him and dependence on him; here he appeals to his mercy, and pleads the greatness of his own misery, which made his case the proper object of that mercy. Observe,
Psa 31:19-24
We have three things in these verses:-
In singing this we should animate ourselves and one another to proceed and persevere in our Christian course, whatever threatens us, and whoever frowns upon us.