To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. This psalm was written by David, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, concerning Judas the betrayer of Christ, as is certain from Acts 1:16 hence it is used to be called by the ancients the Iscariotic psalm.

Hold not thy peace Or be not as a deaf or dumb man, or like one that turns a deaf ear and will give no answer; so the Lord seems to his people when he does not give an immediate answer to their prayers, and does not arise to help them; he seems to have forsaken them, and to stand at a distance from…

For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me Or “of deceit” [[22]] itself; most wicked and very deceitful men, who sometimes flattered and pretended friendship, as the Jews did to Christ, when they designed ill against him; though at other times their mouths were…

They compassed me about also with words of hatred They surrounded him as he hung on the cross, and expressed their malice and hatred against him; then was he enclosed with these spiteful snarling dogs, and encompassed by them as with so many bees, who everyone left their sting in him, .

For my love they are my adversaries For the love that Christ showed to the Jews; to their bodies, in going about and healing all manner of diseases among them; to their souls, in preaching, the Gospel to them in each of their cities; and for the love he showed to mankind in coming into the world to…

And they have rewarded me evil for good For the good words and sound doctrine he delivered to them; for the good works and miracles he wrought among them, to the healing of them; see .

Set thou a wicked man over him Or “them”, as the Syriac version; over everyone of his adversaries, and all of them: and which may be interpreted, as it is by Cocceius, of tyrannical princes and governors, set over the Jews, as Tiberius, Caius, Claudius, Nero and their deputies, Pilate, Felix,…

When he shall be judged, let him be condemned When he shall be arraigned at the bar of his own conscience, and be charged with the sin of which he is guilty, let conscience, which is as a thousand witnesses, rise up against him, and condemn him; so it did Judas, (Matt. 26:1, Matt. 26:3, Matt.

Let his days be few The days of men in common are but few at most: length of days, either beyond or according to the usual term of life, is reckoned a blessing; and to be cut off in the midst of a man’s days a curse; when this is by the immediate hand of God, as a visible token of his displeasure;…

Let his children be fatherless, and his wife a widow. ] This sometimes is the case of good men, who leave widows and fatherless children, whom the Lord shows mercy to; being the Father of the fatherless, and the Judge of the widow, , but sometimes it is threatened and comes as a judgment, when the…

Let his children be continually vagabonds, and beg Wander from place to place, begging their bread: this is denied of the children of good men in David’s time, yet was threatened to the children of Eli, and was very likely literally true of the children of Judas; and was certainly the case of…

Let the extortioner catch all that he hath Or, “lay a snare for all” [[2]]; as the Romans did, by bringing in their army, invading the land of Judea, and besieging the city of Jerusalem; who are “the extortioner or exacter that demanded tribute of them”; which they refused to pay, and therefore…

Let there be none to extend mercy unto him No pity is ever expressed at hearing or reading the sad case of Judas; and though the Jews were pitied of those that carried them captive to Babylon, , yet, in their last destruction by the Romans, no mercy was shown them; the wrath of God and man came…

Let his posterity be cut off As the seed of the wicked are said to be, , or cut down, as a tree to the very root; as the Jewish nation was by the axe of God’s judgment, which, John says, was laid to the root of the tree, and the blow just going to be given, as it was in a few years after, or, as…

Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered with the Lord, &c.] Not of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; who, though they had their failings, they were not remembered, and much less punished in their posterity, but were forgiven: rather of the Amorites and Hittites; the one being said to be the father,…

Let them be before the Lord continually And not cast behind his back, or into the depths of the sea, never to be seen more, as sins are when forgiven; but be always in sight, as loathsome and abominable, and causing those that committed them to be abhorred for them; and be before him, as a Judge,…

Because that he remembered not to show mercy As Judas did not; neither to the poor, whom he cared not for, nor to Christ, whom he betrayed with a kiss to his enemies: nor had these words of Christ any effect upon him, to move his pity and compassion, “Friend, wherefore art thou come?” (Matt.

As he loved cursing, so let it come unto him Judas loved that which brought a curse upon him, sin; and so he may be said to love the curse; just as sinners are said to love death, .

As he clothed himself with cursing like as with his garment, &c.] He was full of it; his mouth was full of cursing and bitterness; it was visible in him, easy to be discerned; he took pride as well as pleasure in it, it was in his esteem an ornament to him, as his clothes were.

Let it be unto him as the garment which covereth him Let him be surrounded on all sides with the wrath of God; and let it be visible to all, as a man’s garment on him is: see .

Let this be the reward of mine adversaries from the Lord Who were so many Satans, as the word used signifies; and Judas particularly is called a devil; and of the same malevolent and diabolical disposition were the Jews in general, and what is before imprecated upon them is the just recompence of…

But do thou for me, O God the Lord, for thy name’s sake The sense of the petition is, and which is a prayer of Christ as man, that the Lord God would take his part, be on his side, be present with him, work with him, help and assist him, and that for his own honour and glory, for his truth and…

For I am poor and needy As he was in human nature, being born of poor parents, brought up in a mean manner, had not where to lay his head, and was ministered to by others; though he was Lord of all, and immensely rich in the perfections of his nature, and in his vast empire and dominion, and the…

I am gone like the shadow when it declineth When the sun is setting, and the shadow is going off; man’s life is often compared to a shadow, because fleeting, momentary, and soon gone, and death is expressed by going the way of all flesh; and by going to the grave, the house for all living, a man’s…

My knees are weak through fasting . Either voluntary or forced, through want of food or refreshment; this was verified in Christ, when he kneeled and prayed, and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling to the ground; see .

I became also a reproach unto them Or they reproached him; not only in life, traducing his conversation, blaspheming his miracles, calling him a Samaritan, saying he had a devil, and charging him with sedition; but at the time of his death they reviled him, and treated him in the most opprobrious…

Help me, O Lord my God Jehovah the Father is here addressed, who is the God of Christ, as Christ is man; who formed him, supported him, and glorified him; and whom Christ loved, believed in, obeyed and prayed unto; nor did he pray to a God that could not hear, but to one that was able to save him…

That they may know that this is thy hand Which inflicted vengeance, and executed judgments on Judas and the Jews, as before imprecated: so the Targum, “that they may know that this is thy stroke;” or which was concerned in all the sorrows and sufferings of the Messiah, which could never have come…

Let them curse, but bless thou Let them curse me, as Shimei did David, the type of Christ; let them curse themselves, as they did; or my people: or “let them be cursed”, as the Syriac version; cursed in life and at death, and to all eternity: but “bless thou me”, the Messiah; as he did, when he…

Let mine adversaries be clothed with shame This is only explanative of what is said before, And let them cover themselves with their own confusion as with a mantle: the Arabic version is, “as with a breastplate.” Some understand it as a petition of Christ, that they might be brought to repentance…

I will greatly praise the Lord with my mouth Vocally, and in the highest strains. Yea, I will praise him among the multitude: of converted persons, both Jews and Gentiles, and by them: or, “among the mighty” [[10]]; or great ones; the great congregation, as in among the innumerable and mighty…

For he shall stand at the right hand of the poor Of the Messiah, as in at whose right hand the Lord was, to guide and direct, help and assist, protect and defend, , or of his people, who are poor in every sense; but the Lord is on their side, and is a present help in time of trouble, (Ps. 46:1, Ps.