Psalms 64:1
לַמְנַצֵּ֗חַ מִזְמ֥וֹר לְדָוִֽד׃
For the director of music. A psalm of David.
KJV To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
- A standard superscription assigning authorship and liturgical direction.
Translator's Introduction
What This Chapter Is About
Psalm 64 is a prayer against enemies whose primary weapon is speech. The psalmist asks God to protect his life from the conspiracy of evildoers who sharpen their tongues like swords and aim bitter words like arrows at the blameless. They encourage each other in evil, lay secret traps, and say 'Who can see us?' The psalm pivots dramatically: God shoots his own arrow at them suddenly, and they stumble over their own tongues. All who see it take notice and declare what God has done. The righteous rejoice and take refuge in the LORD.
What Makes This Chapter Remarkable
The psalm operates on a precise reversal structure. The enemies sharpen their tongues; God shoots an arrow. The enemies attack suddenly (pit'om, verse 5); God strikes suddenly (pit'om, verse 8). The enemies aim at the blameless; God aims at the enemies. Their tongues were their weapon, and their tongues become their downfall. The question 'Who can see us?' assumes invisibility before God, and the answer comes not as an argument but as an act — God sees and strikes. The structural symmetry is itself the theological argument: what you do will be done to you.
Translation Friction
The superscription simply attributes this to David as 'a psalm' without a specific historical setting. The identity of the enemies is kept general — they are characterized entirely by their speech acts (plotting, sharpening tongues, aiming bitter words, encouraging each other in evil, hiding traps). This generality has made the psalm applicable to many situations of slander and conspiracy throughout Jewish and Christian history. The verb in verse 9 (va-yakkidu) has been translated 'they will make him stumble' or 'they wag [the head]' — the uncertainty affects whether the subject is God causing them to stumble or onlookers shaking their heads.
Connections
The image of the tongue as a sword appears throughout wisdom literature (Proverbs 12:18, 25:18) and in James 3:1-12. The sudden reversal of the wicked echoes Proverbs 26:27 ('Whoever digs a pit will fall into it'). The question 'Who can see us?' connects to Psalm 10:11 and 94:7, where the wicked assume God is absent or inattentive — a recurring challenge that the Psalms consistently refute.
Psalms 64:2
שְׁמַע־אֱלֹהִ֣ים קוֹלִ֣י בְשִׂיחִ֑י מִפַּ֥חַד א֝וֹיֵ֗ב תִּצֹּ֥ר חַיָּֽי׃
Hear my voice, God, in my complaint; preserve my life from the dread of the enemy.
KJV Hear my voice, O God, in my prayer: preserve my life from fear of the enemy.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
- The word siychi ('my complaint, my meditation, my concern') indicates troubled reflection — the psalmist is bringing his anxiety to God. The phrase mi-pachad oyev ('from the fear/dread of the enemy') asks for protection not only from the enemy but from the paralyzing fear that the enemy produces.
Psalms 64:3
תַּ֭סְתִּירֵנִי מִסּ֣וֹד מְרֵעִ֑ים מֵ֝רִגְשַׁ֗ת פֹּ֣עֲלֵי אָֽוֶן׃
Hide me from the conspiracy of those who do evil, from the noisy mob of wrongdoers.
KJV Hide me from the secret counsel of the wicked; from the insurrection of the workers of iniquity:
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
- The word sod ('secret counsel, conspiracy, intimate council') suggests coordinated plotting rather than random hostility. The word rigshah ('turmoil, noisy crowd, commotion') describes the agitated energy of a mob — evil is both secret in its planning and loud in its execution.
Psalms 64:4
אֲשֶׁ֤ר שָׁנְנ֣וּ כַחֶ֣רֶב לְשׁוֹנָ֑ם דָּרְכ֥וּ חִ֝צָּ֗ם דָּבָ֥ר מָֽר׃
They sharpen their tongues like swords; they aim their arrows — bitter words —
KJV Who whet their tongue like a sword, and bend their bows to shoot their arrows, even bitter words:
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
- The tongue-as-sword and word-as-arrow metaphors compress violence into speech. The verb shanenu ('they sharpen, they whet') is the same verb used for sharpening a blade. The verb darkhu ('they tread, they bend') refers to stepping on a bow to string it — preparing for attack. The 'arrow' is then identified: davar mar ('a bitter word').
Psalms 64:5
לִירוֹת֙ בַּמִּסְתָּרִ֣ים תָּ֑ם פִּתְאֹ֥ם יֹ֝רֻ֗הוּ וְלֹ֣א יִירָֽאוּ׃
to shoot from hiding at the blameless. Suddenly they shoot, and they do not fear.
KJV That they may shoot in secret at the perfect: suddenly do they shoot at him, and fear not.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
- The blameless person (tam) is ambushed from concealment (ba-mistarim). The word pit'om ('suddenly') will reappear in verse 8 when God returns the sudden strike. The phrase ve-lo yira'u ('and they do not fear') indicates the attackers feel no accountability — they believe they act unseen.
Psalms 64:6
יְחַזְּקוּ־לָ֨מוֹ ׀ דָּ֘בָ֤ר רָ֗ע יְֽסַפְּר֗וּ לִטְמ֥וֹן מוֹקְשִׁ֑ים אָ֝מְר֗וּ מִ֣י יִרְאֶה־לָּֽמוֹ׃
They strengthen each other in an evil plan; they talk about hiding their traps. They say, "Who can see us?"
KJV They encourage themselves in an evil matter: they commune of laying snares privily; they say, Who shall see them?
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
- The question mi yireh lamo is the theological heart of the enemies' error. They assume their secrecy is absolute. The psalm will demonstrate that God's vision penetrates every hiding place.
Psalms 64:7
יַחְפְּשׂוּ֮ עוֹלֹ֪ת תַּ֫מְנ֥וּ חֵ֣פֶשׂ מְחֻפָּ֑שׂ וְקֶ֥רֶב אִ֝֗ישׁ וְלֵ֣ב עָמֹֽק׃
They devise injustice after injustice; they complete their carefully searched-out scheme. The inner mind and heart of a person run deep.
KJV They search out iniquities; they accomplish a diligent search: both the inward thought of every one of them, and the heart, is deep.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
- The verse is textually difficult. The verb yachpesu ('they search out, they devise') and the noun chefes ('search, scheme') emphasize the thoroughness of the conspiracy — this is not impulsive evil but researched, deliberate plotting. The closing line (ve-qerev ish ve-lev amoq, 'and the inner part of a person and the heart is deep') may be the psalmist's observation that human scheming is unfathomable — but not to God.
Psalms 64:8
וַיֹּרֵ֣ם אֱ֭לֹהִים חֵ֣ץ פִּתְא֑וֹם הָ֝י֗וּ מַכּוֹתָֽם׃
But God shoots an arrow at them — suddenly their wounds appear.
KJV But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; suddenly shall they be wounded.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
- The repetition of pit'om ('suddenly') in both verse 5 and verse 8 creates the psalm's structural hinge. What the wicked did to others, God does to them, using the same speed and the same element of surprise.
Psalms 64:9
וַיַּכְשִׁ֘יל֤וּהוּ עָלֵ֣ימוֹ לְשׁוֹנָ֑ם יִ֝תְנֹדְד֗וּ כׇּל־רֹ֥אֵה בָֽם׃
Their own tongue is turned against them; all who see them shake their heads.
KJV So they shall make their own tongue to fall upon themselves: all that see them shall flee away.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
- The tongue (lashon), which was the enemies' primary weapon (verse 4), now becomes the instrument of their downfall. The verb yitnodedu ('they shake, they wag, they flee') describes the reaction of onlookers — either shaking their heads in amazement or recoiling from the spectacle of divine judgment.
Psalms 64:10
וַיִּֽירְא֗וּ כׇּל־אָ֭דָם וַיַּגִּ֣ידוּ פֹּ֣עַל אֱלֹהִ֑ים וּ֝מַעֲשֵׂ֗הוּ הִשְׂכִּֽילוּ׃
Then all people stand in awe and declare what God has done; they understand his work.
KJV And all men shall fear, and shall declare the work of God; for they shall wisely consider of his doing.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
- The verb va-yir'u ('they fear, they stand in awe') answers the enemies' claim 'Who can see us?' (verse 6). The answer: everyone sees, and everyone understands. The verb hiskilu ('they understand, they act with insight') indicates this is not mere observation but comprehension — the witnesses grasp the meaning of what God has done.
Psalms 64:11
יִשְׂמַ֬ח צַדִּ֣יק בַּ֭יהוָה וְחָ֣סָה ב֑וֹ וְ֝יִתְהַלְל֗וּ כׇּל־יִשְׁרֵי־לֵֽב׃
The righteous one rejoices in the LORD and takes refuge in him; all the upright in heart celebrate.
KJV The righteous shall be glad in the LORD, and shall trust in him; and all the upright in heart shall glory.
Notes & Key Terms
Translator Notes
- The psalm closes with three responses: joy (yismach), refuge (chasah), and celebration (yithallelu). The phrase yishrey lev ('upright of heart') describes those whose inner orientation is straight — the opposite of the 'deep heart' of the schemers in verse 7. Integrity of heart leads to joy; depth of scheming leads to ruin.