To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. This psalm is applied by R. Obadiah to Haman and Mordecai. The enemy is Haman, the perfect man shot at is Mordecai; about whom Haman communed with his friends to lay snares for him, and searched diligently for occasions against him and his people, which…

Hear my voice, O God, in my prayer The prayer of the psalmist was vocal and expressed in a mournful manner, with groans and cries, as the word [[24]] used signifies, and with great ardour and fervency; his condition, by reason of his enemies, being very distressing, and therefore he is very eager…

Hide me from the secret counsel of the wicked The word used denotes both the place where wicked men meet together for consultation; see ; and the counsel itself they there take; from the bad effects of which the psalmist desired to be hid and preserved.

Who whet their tongue like a sword Use cutting, wounding, killing, and devouring words; on which they set an edge, and make them keener and keener to hurt and ruin the characters and reputations of good men, and grieve and distress their minds; and bend their bows to shoot their arrows, even bitter…

That they may shoot in secret at the perfect Meaning himself, who though not without sin, and far from perfection in himself, in the sight of God and with respect to his righteous law, which was exceeding broad; and therefore he saw an end of all perfection, and desired that God would not enter…

They encourage themselves in an evil matter Or “strengthen him” [[2]]; that is, Saul, by making use of arguments and reasonings to induce him to go on in his wicked persecution of David; or they strengthened and hardened themselves in their wickedness, as Saul’s courtiers and the enemies of Christ…

They search out iniquities The Targum adds, “to destroy the just.” Either occasions against them, by charging them with sin and hiring false witnesses against them, as did the enemies both of David and Christ; they sought for proper time and opportunity of committing the iniquities they were bent…

But God shall shoot at them with an arrow With one or other of his four judgments; famine, pestilence, sword, and wild beasts, ; which he brings upon wicked men; and may be compared to arrows, as they are, (Ezek. 5:16, Ezek. 5:17) (Ps. 91:5, Ps. 91:6) (Deut. 32:41, Deut.

So shall they make their own tongue to fall upon themselves, &c.] The evil things they have wished for, threatened unto, and imprecated on others, shall come upon themselves; the curses they have cursed others with shall come upon themselves; the pit they have dug for others, they fall into.

And all men shall fear Either God himself, or his judgments: they shall be frightened at them, learn righteousness by them, worship God, and give glory to him; they shall fear him as King of saints, his judgments being made manifest; not with a slavish fear, but with reverence and godly fear; see ;…

The righteous shall be glad in the Lord They rejoice at the vengeance executed on the wicked; but then their joy centres in the Lord: it is not at the ruin of the wicked, simply considered, but because of the glory of God’s justice displayed therein, and of his grace and mercy to them.