Psalm 52:4 - Printer Friendly

ESV: You love all words that devour, O deceitful tongue.

NIV: You love every harmful word, you deceitful tongue!

NASB: You love all words that devour, You deceitful tongue.

CSB: You love any words that destroy, you treacherous tongue!

NLT: You love to destroy others with your words, you liar!

KJV: Thou lovest all devouring words, O thou deceitful tongue.

NKJV: You love all devouring words, You deceitful tongue.

Prior verses condemned a man for false valor, violence, and deceit (Psalm 52:1–3). That man is Doeg, an Edomite who betrayed David's allies and murdered innocents on Saul's orders (1 Samuel 22:9–10, 17–19). This verse repeats criticism about Doeg's speech, which led directly to the deaths of priests and their families. Most likely, he chose to betray the priests to ingratiate himself with King Saul.

Evil, damaging words are not always direct attacks. Paul alerted Timothy, a pastor, to the emergence of deceitful false teachers. He writes in 1 Timothy 4:1–2: "Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared." Paul also alerted Titus, another pastor, to the presence of "many who are insubordinate, empty talkers and deceivers" (Titus 1:10). Jesus predicted the presence of false prophets in the end times, He said, "Many will come in my name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and they will lead many astray" (Matthew 24:5). Jesus performed signs to show that He was the Christ and to lead those who believed to the Father (John 14:6; 20:30–31). In the tribulation the False Prophet will perform signs to persuade unbelievers to worship the Antichrist (Revelation 13:13–14).

Psalm 52:1–4 depicts a "mighty man." The description is probably sarcastic: it refers to the herdsman Doeg (1 Samuel 22:9–10) who betrayed David and murdered priests (1 Samuel 22:17–19). David's song portrays Doeg as someone who brags about his own sin and whose words are maliciously dangerous. He practices evil despite God's unfailing, endless love. That love will lead to judgment for those who practice such evil (Psalm 52:5).

David addresses "mighty man," possibly with a touch of sarcasm. This person brags about his intentions, and his words destroy others. However, God will punish this wicked person by bringing about his death. The righteous will see this judgment and mock those who trusted in their resources instead of trusting in the Lord. By contrast, David trusts God's unfailing love forever, resulting in his continuous praise of the Lord. This song was written in response to the treachery of Doeg, who betrayed one of David's allies (1 Samuel 22:9–10) and killed many priests (1 Samuel 22:17–19).

This psalm describes the wicked character of someone addressed as "mighty man." This was Doeg, a herdsman who supported King Saul against David. Doeg slaughtered the household of Ahimelech because Ahimelech helped David by giving him provisions (1 Samuel 21:1–9; 22:6–23). While not as famous as others, this is one of the "imprecatory psalms" which call for God's judgment against evildoers (Psalm 35; 69; 109).

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.