TRV
Translation
King James Version
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.
Complete Jewish Bible
The arrogant hide snares for me; they spread nets by the side of the road, hoping to trap me there. (Selah)
Berean Standard Bible
The proud hide a snare for me; the cords of their net are spread along the path, and lures are set out for me. Selah
American Standard Version
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
World English Bible Messianic
The proud have hidden a snare for me, they have spread the cords of a net by the path. They have set traps for me. Selah.
Geneva Bible (1599)
The proude haue layde a snare for me, and spred a nette with cordes in my pathway, and set grennes for me. Selah.
Young's Literal Translation
The proud hid a snare for me--and cords, They spread a net by the side of the path, Snares they have set for me. Selah.
In the KJVVerse 16,269 of 31,102
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Commentary on Psalms 140 verses 1–7
1 ¶ To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. Deliver me, O LORD, from the evil man: preserve me from the violent man;
2 Which imagine mischiefs in their heart; continually are they gathered together for war.
3 They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; adders' poison is under their lips. Selah.
4 Keep me, O LORD, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from the violent man; who have purposed to overthrow my goings.
5 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.
6 I said unto the LORD, Thou art my God: hear the voice of my supplications, O LORD.
7 O GOD the Lord, the strength of my salvation, thou hast covered my head in the day of battle.
In this, as in other things, David was a type of Christ, that he suffered before he reigned, was humbled before he was exalted, and that as there were many who loved and valued him, and sought to do him honour, so there were many who hated and envied him, and sought to do him mischief, as appears by these verses, where,
I. He gives a character of his enemies, and paints them out in their own colours, as dangerous men, whom he had reason to be afraid of, but wicked men, whom he had no reason to think the righteous God would countenance. There was one that seems to have been the ring-leader of them, whom he calls the evil man and the man of violences (Psa 140:1, Psa 140:4), probably he means Saul. The Chaldee paraphrast (Psa 140:9) names both Doeg and Ahithophel; but between them there was a great distance of time. Violent men are evil men. But there were many besides this one who were confederate against David, who are here represented as the genuine offspring and seed of the serpent. For, 1. They are very subtle, crafty to do mischief; they have imagined it (Psa 140:2), have laid the scheme with all the art and cunning imaginable. They have purposed and plotted to overthrow the goings of a good man (Psa 140:4), to draw him into sin and trouble, to ruin him by blasting his reputation, crushing his interest, and taking away his life. For this purpose they have, like mighty hunters, hidden a snare, and spread a net, and set gins (Psa 140:5), that their designs against him, being kept undiscovered, might be the more likely to take effect, and he might fall into their hands ere he was aware. Great persecutors have often been great politicians, which has indeed made them the more formidable; but the Lord preserves the simple without all those arts. 2. They are very spiteful, as full of malice as Satan himself: They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent, that infuses his venom with his tongue; and there is so much malignity in all they say that one would think there was nothing under their lips but adders' poison, Psa 140:3. With their calumnies, and with their counsels, they aimed to destroy David, but secretly, as a man is stung with a serpent, or a snake in the grass. And they endeavoured likewise to infuse their malice into others, and to make them seven times more the children of hell than themselves. A malignant tongue makes men like the old serpent; and poison in the lips is a certain sign of poison in the heart. 3. They are confederate; they are many of them; but they are all gathered together against me for war, Psa 140:2. Those who can agree in nothing else can agree to persecute a good man. Herod and Pilate will unite in this, and in this they resemble Satan, who is not divided against himself, all the devils agreeing in Beelzebub. 4. They are proud (Psa 140:5), conceited of themselves and confident of their success; and herein also they resemble Satan, whose reigning ruining sin was pride. The pride of persecutors, though at present it be the terror, yet may be the encouragement, of the persecuted, for the more haughty they are the faster are they ripening for ruin. Pride goes before destruction.
II. He prays to God to keep him from them and from being swallowed up by them: "Lord, deliver me, preserve me, keep me (Psa 140:1, Psa 140:4); let them not prevail to take away my life, my reputation, my interest, my comfort, and to prevent my coming to the throne. Keep me from doing as they do, or as they would have me do, or as they promise themselves I shall do." Note, The more malice appears in our enemies against us the more earnest we should be in prayer to God to take us under his protection. In him believers may count upon a security, and may enjoy it and themselves with a holy serenity. Those are safe whom God preserves. If he be for us, who can be against us?
III. He triumphs in God, and thereby, in effect, he triumphs over his persecutors, Psa 140:6, Psa 140:7. When his enemies sharpened their tongues against him, did he sharpen his against them? No; adders' poison was under their lips, but grace was poured into his lips, witness what he here said unto the Lord, for to him he looked, to him he directed himself, when he saw himself in so much danger, through the malice of his enemies: and it is well for us that we have a God to go to. He comforted himself, 1. In his interest in God: "I said, Thou art my God; and, if my God, then my shield and mighty protector." In troublous dangerous times it is good to claim relation to God, and by faith to keep hold of him. 2. In his access to God. This comforted him, that he was not only taken into covenant with God, but into communion with him, that he had leave to speak to him, and might expect an answer of peace from him, and could say, with a humble confidence, Hear the voice of my supplications, O Lord! 3. In the assurance he had of help from God and happiness in him: "O God the Lord - Jehovah Adonai! as Jehovah thou art self-existent and self-sufficient, an infinitely perfect being; as Adonai thou art my stay and support, my ruler and governor, and therefore the strength of my salvation, my strong Saviour; nay, not only my Saviour, but my salvation itself, from whom, in whom, my salvation is; not only a strong Saviour, but the very strength of my salvation, on whom the stress of my hope is laid; all in all, to make me happy, and to preserve me to my happiness." 4. In the experience he had had formerly of God's care of him: Thou hast covered my head in the day of battle. As he pleaded with Saul, that, for the service of his country, he many a time jeoparded his life in the high places of the field, so he pleads with God that, in those services, he had wonderfully protected him, and provided him a better helmet for the securing of his head than Goliath's was: "Lord, thou hast kept me in the day of battle with the Philistines, suffer me not to fall by the treacherous intrigues of false-hearted Israelites." God is as able to preserve his people from secret fraud as from open force; and the experience we have had of his power and care, in dangers of one kind, may encourage us to trust in him and depend upon him in dangers of another nature; for nothing can shorten the Lord's right hand.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 1–7. Public domain.
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Athanasius of AlexandriaAD 373
Life of St. Anthony 23:1-6
Now these demons, if they see all Christians—and especially monks—joyfully laboring and making progress, first attack by attempting to place stumbling blocks in their way. Their “stumbling blocks” are filthy thoughts. But there is no need for us to fear the things they throw at us; through prayer and fasting and faith in the Lord the demons immediately fall. Having fallen, however, they do not stop but advance once more with deceit and cunning. Since they have been unable to deceive the heart openly through filthy pleasure, they renew their attacks on it by other means. From this point on, fabricating apparitions, they pretend to frighten us by changing their shapes and taking on the appearance of women, wild beasts, reptiles and huge bodies and legions of soldiers.Nevertheless, we need have no fear at all of their apparitions, for they are nothing, and they disappear in a hurry, especially if each person protects himself with faith and the sign of the cross. But they are brazen and completely shameless, for even if they are defeated by these means they attack again by some other method. They act like soothsayers, saying they can predict the future, and they make themselves as tall as the roof and as wide as a house so that by illusions of this sort they can carry away those whom they have been unable to deceive by thoughts. But if they find that the soul has been secured with faith and hopeful resolve, then they bring in their leader. LIFE OF ST.
Augustine of HippoAD 430
SERMON 142:1
So let us walk serenely along this highway without a care in the world, but let us have a healthy fear of the traps set beside the road. The enemy does not dare lay his traps on the highway, because Christ is the way; but next to the road, on the wayside, he certainly never stops doing so. That is why it says in the psalm, “They set trip wires for me next to the path.” Another text of Scripture also says, “Remember that you are treading in the midst of snares.” These snares we are treading among are not on the highway, but they are by the wayside. Why be in dread, why feel frightened, if you are walking along the way? If you abandon the way, that is the time to be afraid. I mean, the reason the enemy is even permitted to set his snares beside the way is to make sure that in a mood of happy-go-lucky carelessness you do not abandon the way and fall into his traps.
Augustine of HippoAD 430
Exposition on Psalm 140
"The proud have hidden a trap for me" [Psalm 140:5]. He has briefly described the whole body of the devil, when he says, "the proud." Hence is it that for the most part they call themselves righteous when they are unrighteous. Hence is it that nothing is so grievous to them as to confess their sins. They are men who, being falsely righteous, must needs envy the truly righteous. For none envies another in that which he wishes not either to be or to seem....Hence come all allurings and trippings up of others. This the devil first wished, when falling himself he envied man who stood....
Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
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SUMMARY
Psalm 140:5 powerfully depicts the psalmist's adversaries as insidious and relentless hunters, meticulously employing a variety of hidden traps to ensnare their unsuspecting victim. This verse, deeply embedded within a fervent prayer for divine deliverance, vividly underscores the treacherous and deceptive nature of "the proud" who operate with malicious intent, actively seeking the downfall of the righteous. It highlights the psalmist's acute awareness of the pervasive, unseen dangers surrounding him, thereby emphasizing the desperate and urgent need for God's sovereign intervention against such cunning and destructive schemes.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Psalm 140:5 is exceptionally rich in Metaphor and vivid Imagery, primarily drawing from the specialized domain of hunting. The psalmist's enemies are not literally hunters, nor is he an animal, but their actions are powerfully depicted as such to convey their predatory intent, their relentless pursuit, and the insidious nature of their plots. The repeated use of terms like "snare," "cords," "net," and "gins" constitutes potent Repetition and Accumulation, creating a cumulative effect that emphasizes the sheer volume, variety, and pervasive nature of the hidden dangers. This Hyperbole of multiple, diverse traps underscores the overwhelming sense of being surrounded, targeted, and trapped. The phrase "by the wayside" employs Synecdoche, where a part (the path or track) represents the whole of the psalmist's daily life and movements, implying that danger lurks everywhere he goes, permeating his existence. Furthermore, the Personification of "the proud" as active, cunning agents of malice, rather than an abstract quality of pride, contributes significantly to the vividness and immediacy of the perceived threat, making the enemies seem more tangible and menacing.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Psalm 140:5 profoundly illustrates the enduring biblical theme of spiritual warfare and the very real presence of unseen opposition in the world. The "proud" are not merely human adversaries; they often embody a spirit of rebellion against God and His righteous ways, serving as instruments of deeper spiritual malevolence. Their methods—hidden snares and cunning traps—mirror the deceptive and insidious tactics of evil forces that relentlessly seek to trip up, entangle, and ultimately destroy believers. The psalmist's vulnerability in the face of such calculated malice highlights humanity's inherent need for divine protection against these malevolent schemes. This verse underscores the crucial truth that while evil may operate in secret and through hidden means, God sees all, knows all, and is the ultimate, omniscient deliverer from every hidden danger. It serves as a powerful encouragement for believers to cultivate spiritual vigilance, recognizing that not all threats are overt, and to rely completely and unreservedly on God's sovereign and omnipotent protection.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Psalm 140:5 offers a timeless and profound reflection on the pervasive reality of hidden spiritual and relational dangers in our lives. In a world where overt conflict is frequently preceded or accompanied by subtle manipulation, deceptive narratives, and character assassination, the psalmist's desperate cry resonates deeply with the contemporary human experience. Believers are called to cultivate profound spiritual discernment, recognizing that not all adversaries announce themselves openly or engage in direct confrontation. Just as David faced cunning and concealed enemies, we too face the "schemes of the devil" that are often hidden, meticulously designed to exploit our weaknesses, sow discord, or subtly lead us astray without our immediate awareness. This verse serves as a powerful and urgent reminder that our vigilance must be inextricably coupled with an absolute and unwavering reliance on God, who alone possesses the power and wisdom to expose, dismantle, and deliver us from these unseen traps. It encourages a posture of constant prayer for divine protection, spiritual discernment, and the wisdom to navigate the complex paths of life where hidden dangers may lie. Our ultimate security is not found in our own limited ability to detect every plot or avoid every pitfall, but in the unfailing faithfulness and omnipotent protection of our divine Protector.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
What does "Selah" mean at the end of the verse?
Answer: "Selah" (H5542, çelâh) is a Hebrew word found frequently in the Psalms and Habakkuk, believed to be a musical or liturgical instruction. While its exact meaning is debated among scholars, it is generally understood to signify a pause for reflection, contemplation, or a musical interlude. In the specific context of Psalm 140:5, "Selah" serves to underscore the profound gravity of the psalmist's description of the hidden traps and the cunning of his enemies. It invites the reader or listener to pause and deeply consider the dire nature of the danger and the desperate plea for divine deliverance, marking a moment for solemn meditation on the weighty words that precede it, emphasizing their significance and impact.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Psalm 140:5, with its vivid imagery of hidden snares and cunning adversaries, finds its ultimate and most profound fulfillment in the person and redemptive work of Jesus Christ. David's experience of being relentlessly pursued by "the proud" and ensnared by their treacherous traps powerfully foreshadows the constant and insidious opposition Christ faced from those blinded by spiritual pride and darkness. The religious leaders of Jesus' day, driven by their own arrogance and self-righteousness, consistently laid "snares" for Him, meticulously seeking to catch Him in His words or actions, as seen when they attempted to trap Him with questions about paying taxes to Caesar in Matthew 22:15-22. Yet, unlike David, who cried out for deliverance from the trap, Jesus, the perfect Lamb of God, willingly entered the ultimate trap of the cross, not as a helpless victim, but as a triumphant victor. He allowed Himself to be "ensnared" by death and the grave, only to break free through His glorious resurrection, thereby demonstrating His absolute power and authority over all spiritual adversaries and their schemes, as celebrated in Colossians 2:15. Through His resurrection, Christ decisively disarmed the principalities and powers, rendering their "nets" and "gins" utterly powerless for all who are united with Him by faith. Therefore, believers in Christ are no longer vulnerable to the ultimate trap of sin and and death, for Christ Himself has become our eternal refuge and deliverer from every hidden danger and every spiritual attack, perfectly fulfilling the psalmist's longing for divine protection. He is the one who truly delivers us from the "fowler's snare" (Psalm 91:3) and the "wiles of the devil" (Ephesians 6:11), having definitively overcome the world and its evil one (John 16:33).