Psalms / Chapter 140

Psalms 140

14 verses • Westminster Leningrad Codex

Translator's Introduction

What This Chapter Is About

A psalm of David. A prayer for deliverance from violent and scheming enemies whose tongues are sharp as serpents and whose lips conceal venom. The psalmist calls on the LORD as his stronghold, asks God to frustrate the plans of the wicked, and invokes judgment upon them — fire, flooding pits, and the collapse of their own violence back upon their heads. The psalm closes with a confession of faith: the LORD defends the cause of the afflicted and the poor, and the upright will dwell in His presence.

What Makes This Chapter Remarkable

Psalm 140 is dense with body imagery — tongues sharpened like serpents, venom under lips, hands that plan violence, feet that set traps, heads surrounded by their own mischief. The enemies are described almost entirely through their body parts, each one weaponized: the tongue attacks, the lips poison, the hands scheme, the feet trap. Against this anatomy of evil, the psalmist has only one defense: the LORD as his shield and stronghold. The psalm is also notable for its serpent imagery — the tongue sharpened like a snake (shananu leshonam kemo nachash) and the venom of asps (chamat akhshuv) under the lips. The connection to Genesis 3 is implicit: the enemies are serpent-like, their weapon is speech, and their venom is concealed.

Translation Friction

The imprecations in verses 9-11 are harsh: burning coals falling on enemies, being thrown into fire, cast into floods, and hunted by violence. These are not metaphorical wishes but liturgical curses — the psalmist formally invokes divine violence against human enemies. As with Psalm 137:9, the inclusion of such language in scripture raises questions about whether these prayers are models to imitate or voices to hear. The psalm itself offers a framework: the violence of the imprecation matches the violence of the enemies' schemes. The psalmist prays that what the wicked planned for others would happen to the wicked themselves — the lex talionis applied to divine judgment.

Connections

The serpent imagery connects to Genesis 3:1-5 (the serpent's deceptive speech) and Romans 3:13 (Paul quotes Psalm 140:3 as evidence of universal human corruption: 'the venom of asps is under their lips'). The 'snare' and 'net' imagery appears frequently in the Psalms (Psalm 141:9-10, 142:3). The closing affirmation that the LORD secures justice for the poor echoes Psalm 9:18, 12:5, and 72:4. The transition from Psalm 139 (God's total knowledge) to Psalm 140 (a cry against enemies) creates a logical sequence: the psalmist who invited God's searching now presents the wicked for God's scrutiny.

Psalms 140:1

לַמְנַצֵּ֗חַ מִזְמ֥וֹר לְדָוִֽד׃

For the music director. A psalm of David.

KJV To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The superscription assigns the psalm to David and directs it to the lamnatseach ('music director, choirmaster'), indicating liturgical performance. The Davidic attribution places the psalm in the tradition of David's many experiences of being hunted by enemies — whether Saul, Absalom, or unnamed adversaries.
Psalms 140:2

חַלְּצֵ֣נִי יְ֭הוָה מֵאָדָ֣ם רָ֑ע מֵאִ֖ישׁ חֲמָסִ֣ים תִּנְצְרֵֽנִי׃

Rescue me, LORD, from the evil person; protect me from the violent one.

KJV Deliver me, O LORD, from the evil man: preserve me from the violent man;

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

חָמָס chamas
"violence" — violence, wrongdoing, cruelty, injustice, oppression; wrong done to others by force or fraud

One of the Hebrew Bible's primary words for social evil. It encompasses both physical violence and structural injustice — force and fraud alike. In Genesis 6:11, chamas is the reason God sends the flood. The word diagnoses evil as relational injury: chamas is always done to someone.

Translator Notes

  1. The verb chalats ('to rescue, to strip off, to pull out') carries the image of extracting someone from a tight place — like pulling a foot from a trap or a person from a pit. The psalmist feels caught and needs to be physically removed from danger. The plural chamasim ('violences') is an intensifying plural — not one act of violence but a pattern, a character defined by violence.
Psalms 140:3

אֲשֶׁ֣ר חָשְׁב֣וּ רָע֣וֹת בְּלֵ֑ב כׇּל־י֝֗וֹם יָג֥וּרוּ מִלְחָמֽוֹת׃

They scheme evil in their hearts; all day long they stir up conflict.

KJV Which imagine mischiefs in their heart; continually are they gathered together for war.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The verb chashvu ('they scheme, they devise, they calculate') describes deliberate planning — these are not impulsive enemies but strategic ones. The phrase kol yom ('all day, every day') emphasizes the relentless, sustained nature of their hostility. The verb yaguru ('they stir up, they gather, they muster') with milchamot ('wars, conflicts') presents the enemies as perpetual instigators of strife.
Psalms 140:4

שָֽׁנְנ֣וּ לְשׁוֹנָ֣ם כְּמוֹ־נָחָ֑שׁ חֲמַ֥ת עַ֝כְשׁ֗וּב תַּ֣חַת שְׂפָתֵ֬ימוֹ סֶֽלָה׃

They sharpen their tongues like a serpent; the venom of a viper is under their lips. Selah.

KJV They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; adders' poison is under their lips. Selah.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The word akhshuv is a type of venomous snake — possibly the horned viper or the cobra. The exact species is uncertain, but the point is clear: a deadly snake whose venom is concealed and delivered through a bite. The analogy is perfect for slanderous speech: the poison is hidden until the lips open.
  2. The word selah appears here, a liturgical marker of uncertain meaning — possibly a musical interlude, a signal to pause, or an instruction to the musicians. It provides a breathing space after the intense serpent imagery.
Psalms 140:5

שׇׁמְרֵ֤נִי יְהוָ֨ה ׀ מִ֘ידֵ֤י רָשָׁ֗ע מֵאִ֣ישׁ חֲמָסִ֣ים תִּנְצְרֵ֑נִי אֲשֶׁ֥ר חָ֝שְׁב֗וּ לִדְח֥וֹת פְּעָמָֽי׃

Guard me, LORD, from the hands of the wicked; protect me from the violent one who plans to trip my steps.

KJV Keep me, O LORD, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from the violent man; who have purposed to overthrow my goings.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The verb lidchot ('to push, to overthrow, to trip') describes the enemy's goal: to knock the psalmist off his feet, to destabilize his path. The word pe'amai ('my steps, my footfalls') represents the psalmist's life-course. The violent person schemes not merely to harm but to derail — to knock the psalmist from the path God has set.
Psalms 140:6

טָֽמְנוּ־גֵאִ֨ים ׀ פַּ֥ח לִי֮ וַחֲבָ֫לִ֥ים פָּ֣רְשׂוּ רֶ֭שֶׁת לְיַד־מַעְגָּ֑ל מֹקְשִׁ֖ים שָׁ֣תוּ לִ֬י סֶֽלָה׃

The arrogant have hidden a trap for me and ropes; they have spread a net beside the path; they have set snares for me. Selah.

KJV The proud have hid a snare for me, and cords; they have spread a net by the wayside; they have set gins for me. Selah.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The four trap-words (pach, chavalim, reshet, moqshim) create an image of a path surrounded by hidden dangers. The psalmist cannot see them; only God can. This is why the prayer is necessary — the traps are hidden from human perception but visible to the all-seeing God of Psalm 139.
Psalms 140:7

אָמַ֣רְתִּי לַ֭יהוָה אֵ֣לִי אָ֑תָּה הַאֲזִ֥ינָה יְ֝הוָ֗ה ק֣וֹל תַּחֲנוּנָֽי׃

I say to the LORD, "You are my God." Hear, LORD, the voice of my pleas for mercy.

KJV I said unto the LORD, Thou art my God: hear, O LORD, the voice of my supplications.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The confession Eli attah ('You are my God') is personal and possessive — not 'a God' but 'my God.' The word tachanunai ('my pleas for mercy, my supplications') from the root chanan ('to be gracious, to show mercy') acknowledges that the psalmist has no leverage; he can only appeal to God's grace.
Psalms 140:8

יְהוִ֤ה אֲדֹנָ֗י עֹ֣ז יְ֭שׁוּעָתִי סַכֹּ֥תָה לְ֝רֹאשִׁ֗י בְּי֣וֹם נָֽשֶׁק׃

LORD God, the strength of my salvation, You have shielded my head on the day of battle.

KJV O GOD the Lord, the strength of my salvation, thou hast covered my head in the day of battle.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The connection between sakakh here (shielding the head in battle) and sakakh in Psalm 139:13 (weaving in the womb) creates a thematic link: the God who wove the psalmist's body also shields it in combat. The one who made the head protects it.
Psalms 140:9

אַל־תִּתֵּ֣ן יְ֭הוָה מַאֲוַיֵּ֣י רָשָׁ֑ע זְמָמ֥וֹ אַל־תָּ֝פֵ֗ק יָר֥וּמוּ סֶֽלָה׃

Do not grant the desires of the wicked, LORD. Do not let their schemes succeed — they would rise in triumph. Selah.

KJV Grant not, O LORD, the desires of the wicked: further not his wicked device; lest they exalt themselves. Selah.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The verb tafeq ('to bring forth, to promote, to advance') is rare. The psalmist asks God to block the execution of the wicked's plans. The phrase yarumu ('they would rise, they would be exalted') warns of the consequence: if God does not intervene, the wicked will be elevated — the moral order will be inverted.
Psalms 140:10

רֹ֥אשׁ מְסִבָּ֑י עֲמַ֖ל שְׂפָתֵ֣ימוֹ יְכַסֵּֽמוֹ (יְכַסֵּֽיְמוֹ)׃

As for the heads of those who surround me — let the trouble their own lips cause cover them.

KJV As for the head of those that compass me about, let the mischief of their own lips cover them.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The word amal ('trouble, toil, mischief') describes the harmful effect of the enemies' speech. The prayer that it 'cover them' reverses the direction of harm — what was aimed outward falls back on the speaker. This is a standard pattern in imprecatory psalms: the psalmist prays not for arbitrary punishment but for the reversal of the enemy's own schemes.
Psalms 140:11

ימיטו (יִמּ֥וֹטוּ) עֲלֵיהֶם֮ גֶּֽחָלִ֢ים בָּ֭אֵשׁ יַפִּלֵ֑ם בְּ֝מַהֲמֹר֗וֹת בַּל־יָקֽוּמוּ׃

Let burning coals rain down on them; let them be thrown into fire, into flooding pits from which they cannot rise.

KJV Let burning coals fall upon them: let them be cast into the fire; into deep pits, that they rise not up again.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The images escalate: gechalim ('burning coals') falling from above, esh ('fire') consuming, and mahamorot ('deep pits, flooded trenches') trapping below. The three-fold judgment attacks from every direction — above, around, and below. The phrase bal yaqumu ('let them not rise') seals the judgment as final. The burning coals echo the judgment of Sodom (Genesis 19:24) and the theophany language of Psalm 18:12-13.
Psalms 140:12

אִ֥ישׁ לָשׁ֗וֹן בַּל־יִ֭כּוֹן בָּאָ֑רֶץ אִ֥ישׁ חָמָ֥ס רָ֗֝ע יְצוּדֶ֥נּוּ לְמַדְחֵפֹֽת׃

Let the slanderer find no footing in the land. Let evil hunt the violent one, blow after blow.

KJV Let not an evil speaker be established in the earth: evil shall hunt the violent man to overthrow him.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The image of evil itself hunting the violent person is one of the most striking in the Psalms. Evil is personified as a predator that turns on its master. The violent person who hunted others with traps (v. 6) is now the prey. The lex talionis is cosmic: the universe itself enforces the return of violence to its source.
Psalms 140:13

יָ֭דַעְתִּי (יָדַ֗עְתִּי) כִּי־יַעֲשֶׂ֣ה יְ֭הוָה דִּ֣ין עָנִ֑י מִ֝שְׁפַּ֗ט אֶבְיֹנִֽים׃

I know that the LORD will take up the cause of the afflicted and the justice of the poor.

KJV I know that the LORD will maintain the cause of the afflicted, and the right of the poor.

Notes & Key Terms 1 term

Key Terms

דִּין עָנִי din ani
"cause of the afflicted" — judgment, legal case, cause; of the afflicted, humble, poor, oppressed

Din is a legal term — a case brought before a judge. When applied to the ani ('afflicted'), it means God takes up the legal case of those who have no other advocate. The Hebrew Bible consistently presents God as the defender of the powerless in the divine court.

Translator Notes

  1. The pairing of ani ('afflicted, humble, poor') and evyon ('destitute, needy') represents the most vulnerable members of society — those with no advocate, no power, no legal standing. The LORD serves as their advocate, their judge, and their defender. This is the consistent claim of the Psalms: God's court favors those whom human courts ignore.
Psalms 140:14

אַ֣ךְ צַ֭דִּיקִים יוֹד֣וּ לִשְׁמֶ֑ךָ יֵשְׁב֥וּ יְ֝שָׁרִ֗ים אֶת־פָּנֶֽיךָ׃

Surely the righteous will give thanks to Your name; the upright will dwell in Your presence.

KJV Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto thy name: the upright shall dwell in thy presence.

Notes & Key Terms

Translator Notes

  1. The movement from the psalm's opening cry ('Rescue me!') to its closing vision ('the upright will dwell in Your presence') maps the arc of the entire psalm: from danger to safety, from enemies to God, from the trap-lined path to the divine dwelling place. The verb yeshvu ('will dwell') is the same root as the 'sitting' of Psalm 137:1 ('there we sat') — but now the sitting is in God's presence, not by Babylon's rivers.
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