Psalm 34:16 - Printer Friendly

ESV: The face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.

NIV: but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to blot out their name from the earth.

NASB: The face of the Lord is against evildoers, To eliminate the memory of them from the earth.

CSB: The face of the Lord is set against those who do what is evil, to remove all memory of them from the earth.

NLT: But the Lord turns his face against those who do evil; he will erase their memory from the earth.

KJV: The face of the Lord is against them that do evil, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.

NKJV: The face of the Lord is against those who do evil, To cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.

Just as the Lord watches the righteous (Psalm 34:15), He also watches the wicked (Hebrews 4:13), but for a different purpose. God observes the righteous to deliver them (John 3:16–17), but He watches the wicked in preparation for judgment (John 3:36). David claims God will destroy them so thoroughly that even memories of them will be erased. In a similar statement, Solomon warned the name of those who defy God's law would "rot:" either by being forgotten or becoming repugnant (Proverbs 10:7). This verse describes God's rejection of the wicked, in contrast to the prior statement (Psalm 34:15) of God's love for the righteous.

Matthew 2 relates how, after Jesus was born, His life and those of Mary and Joseph were in jeopardy. King Herod had ordered the death of all males around Bethlehem who were two years old or under. However, God was watching. He sent an angel to Joseph to tell him to take the infant Jesus and Mary to Egypt and wait there for further word. There, we see His eyes "toward" those who love Him (Psalm 34:15). Just as God was watching over the lives of Jesus, Joseph, and Mary, He was also watching Herod, but with His face against him. Herod died while Jesus' family was in Egypt.

Acts 12 also illustrates how God watches over the righteous to deliver them but watches the wicked to destroy them. He delivered the apostle Peter but destroyed a wicked king—who happened to be the grandson of the Herod who persecuted Jesus.

Psalm 34:15–22 contrasts what the Lord does for those who fear Him against what happens to the wicked. God watches over the righteous and answers their cry for help. He delivers the righteous from their troubles and draws near to them. He protects the righteous and redeems them. On the other hand, He opposes the wicked and condemns them. While David certainly experienced victories in his life, he also understood that God's love and provision have an eternal perspective (Romans 8:28–30). Verse 20 includes a reference which the Gospel of John ties to Jesus' role as Messiah.

David praises the Lord for delivering him from the Philistines, and he invites others to join him in singing joyfully to the Lord. He extols the virtue of fearing the Lord and remembering His goodness. He encourages the Lord's people to respect God and offers wisdom leading to a long and blessed life. At the end of this psalm David emphasizes the distinction the Lord draws between the wicked and the righteous. He cares for the righteous and will not condemn them, but He condemns the wicked.

David composed this psalm after he escaped from the Philistines at Gath. He accomplished this by feigning insanity and later sheltered in the cave of Adullum. This experience is recorded in 1 Samuel 21:10—22:1. Like Psalm 25, this is an acrostic psalm. Every verse except the final one begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. First Peter 2:3 alludes to the psalm's eighth verse, and 1 Peter 3:10–12 quotes verses 12–16 of Psalm 34. John 19:36 refers to Psalm 34:20.

The book of Psalms is composed of individual songs, hymns, or poems, each of which is a ''Psalm'' in and of itself. These works contain a wide variety of themes. Some Psalms focus on praising and worshipping God. Others cry out in anguish over the pain of life. Still other Psalms look forward to the coming of the Messiah. While some Psalms are related, each has its own historical and biblical context.