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Psalms 36

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The Depravity of the Wicked 1–4

1
The transgression of the wicked saith within my heart, There is no fear of God before his eyes. ​
2
For he flattereth himself in his own eyes, That his iniquity will not be found out and be hated. ​
3
The words of his mouth are iniquity and deceit: He hath ceased to be wise and to do good.
4
He deviseth iniquity upon his bed; He setteth himself in a way that is not good; He abhorreth not evil. ​

The Immensity of God's Attributes 5–9

5
Thy lovingkindness, O Jehovah, is in the heavens; Thy faithfulness reacheth unto the skies. ​
6
Thy righteousness is like the mountains of God; Thy judgments are a great deep: O Jehovah, thou preservest man and beast. ​
7
How precious is thy lovingkindness, O God! And the children of men take refuge under the shadow of thy wings. ​
8
They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of thy house; And thou wilt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures. ​
9
For with thee is the fountain of life: In thy light shall we see light. ​

Prayer for Protection and Assurance of Judgment 10–12

10
Oh continue thy lovingkindness unto them that know thee, And thy righteousness to the upright in heart. ​
11
Let not the foot of pride come against me, And let not the hand of the wicked drive me away.
12
There are the workers of iniquity fallen: They are thrust down, and shall not be able to rise. ​

Bible text: American Standard Version (1901) · Public domain

Study Notes for Psalms 36

Verse 1

no fear of God before his eyes — Neum, 'saith', is the word of 'saith the LORD', so the wicked man's transgression speaks like an oracle in the heart. 'Fear' is pachad, dread. Paul closes his chain of quotations on universal sin with this line, 'There is no fear of God before their eyes' (Rom 3:18).

Verse 2

he flattereth himself — Chalaq is to make smooth, the verb of Ps 5:9, 'they flatter with their tongue'. Here the one flattered is the wicked man himself, in his own eyes, because he has no fear of God (v.1). Deut 29:19 shows the same self-assurance: he 'bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace'.

Verse 4

He deviseth mischief upon his bed — Aven, mischief or iniquity, devised in the night, as in Mic 2:1, 'Woe to them that devise iniquity, and work evil upon their beds!' 'He setteth himself' (yatsav) is to take a stand in a way 'not good'. 'Abhorreth' (ma'as) is to reject, and so he does the opposite of Rom 12:9, 'Abhor that which is evil'.

Verse 5

Thy mercy, O LORD, is in the heavens — Chesed, the covenant love of vv.5, 7 and 10, and emunah, faithfulness. The two are the same pair as in Ps 57:10, 'thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds', and Ps 103:11, 'as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy'.

Verse 6

the great mountains — 'Great' is el, the word for God or the mighty, so the line can be read 'mountains of God'. The 'great deep' is tehom, the deep of Gen 1:2 and the one whose fountains were broken up in Gen 7:11. Paul takes up the thought of his judgments in Rom 11:33, 'how unsearchable are his judgments'.

Verse 7

the shadow of thy wings — 'Excellent' is yaqar, precious or costly. 'Put their trust' is chasah, to flee for protection. Boaz says to Ruth, 'under whose wings thou art come to trust' (Ruth 2:12), and Ps 91:4 has 'under his wings shalt thou trust'.

Verse 8

the river of thy pleasures — 'Abundantly satisfied' is ravah, to drink one's fill, and the 'fatness' is the rich food of the LORD's house. 'Pleasures' is eden, delight, spelled like the name Eden, out of which 'a river went out' to water the garden (Gen 2:10). Ps 16:11 has 'pleasures for evermore' at his right hand.

Verse 9

the fountain of life — Maqor, a spring, as in Jer 2:13, 'they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters'. Christ speaks of 'a well of water springing up into everlasting life' (John 4:14) and says 'I am the light of the world… the light of life' (John 8:12). The line pairs the spring with light: 'in thy light shall we see light'.

Verse 10

O continue thy lovingkindness — Mashak is to draw out, to prolong. 'Them that know thee' are set beside 'the upright in heart', and Christ says 'this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God' (John 17:3). 'Upright in heart' is also the close of Ps 32:11.

Verse 12

There are the workers of iniquity fallen — 'Iniquity' is aven, the word of 'mischief' in v.4, so the one who devised it on his bed is now cast down. 'Cast down' is dachah, the verb of Ps 35:5, 'let the angel of the LORD chase them'. Ps 1:5 says the same of the ungodly: they 'shall not stand in the judgment'.