TRV
Translation
King James Version
Incline not my heart to any evil thing, to practise wicked works with men that work iniquity: and let me not eat of their dainties.
Complete Jewish Bible
Don't let my heart turn to anything evil or allow me to act wickedly with men who are evildoers; keep me from eating their delicacies.
Berean Standard Bible
Do not let my heart be drawn to any evil thing or take part in works of wickedness with men who do iniquity; let me not feast on their delicacies.
American Standard Version
Incline not my heart to any evil thing, To practise deeds of wickedness With men that work iniquity: And let me not eat of their dainties.
World English Bible Messianic
Don’t incline my heart to any evil thing, to practice deeds of wickedness with men who work iniquity. Don’t let me eat of their delicacies.
Geneva Bible (1599)
Incline not mine heart to euill, that I should commit wicked workes with men that worke iniquitie: and let me not eate of their delicates.
Young's Literal Translation
Incline not my heart to an evil thing, To do habitually actions in wickedness, With men working iniquity, Yea, I eat not of their pleasant things.
See also
In the KJVVerse 16,281 of 31,102
Study This Verse
Commentary on Psalms 141 verses 1–4
1 ¶ A Psalm of David. LORD, I cry unto thee: make haste unto me; give ear unto my voice, when I cry unto thee.
2 Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
3 Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips.
4 Incline not my heart to any evil thing, to practise wicked works with men that work iniquity: and let me not eat of their dainties.
Mercy to accept what we do well, and grace to keep us from doing ill, are the two things which we are here taught by David's example to pray to God for.
I. David loved prayer, and he begs of God that his prayers might be heard and answered, Psa 141:1, Psa 141:2. David cried unto God. His crying denotes fervency in prayer; he prayed as one in earnest. His crying to God denotes faith and fixedness in prayer. And what did he desire as the success of his prayer? 1. That God would take cognizance of it: "Give ear to my voice; let me have a gracious audience." Those that cry in prayer may hope to be heard in prayer, not for their loudness, but their liveliness. 2. That he would visit him upon it: Make haste unto me. Those that know how to value God's gracious presence will be importunate for it and humbly impatient of delays. He that believes does not make haste, but he that prays may be earnest with God to make haste. 3. That he would be well pleased with him in it, well pleased with his praying and the lifting up of his hands in prayer, which denotes both the elevation and enlargement of his desire and the out-goings of his hope and expectation, the lifting up of the hand signifying the lifting up of the heart, and being used instead of lifting up the sacrifices which were heaved and waved before the Lord. Prayer is a spiritual sacrifice; it is the offering up of the soul, and its best affections, to God. Now he prays that this may be set forth and directed before God as the incense which was daily burnt upon the golden altar, and as the evening sacrifice, which he mentions rather than the morning sacrifice, perhaps because this was an evening prayer, or with an eye to Christ, who, in the evening of the world and in the evening of the day, was to offer up himself a sacrifice of atonement, and establish the spiritual sacrifices of acknowledgement, having abolished all the carnal ordinances of the law. Those that pray in faith may expect it will please God better than an ox or bullock. David was now banished from God's court, and could not attend the sacrifice and incense, and therefore begs that his prayer might be instead of them. Note, Prayer is of a sweet-smelling savour to God, as incense, which yet has no savour without fire; nor has prayer without the fire of holy love and fervour.
II. David was in fear of sin, and he begs of God that he might be kept from sin, knowing that his prayers would not be accepted unless he took care to watch against sin. We must be as earnest for God's grace in us as for his favour towards us. 1. He prays that he might not be surprised into any sinful words (Psa 141:3): "Set a watch, O Lord! before my mouth, and, nature having made my lips to be a door to my words, let grace keep that door, that no word may be suffered to go out which may in any way tend to the dishonour of God or the hurt of others." Good men know the evil of tongue-sins, and how prone they are to them (when enemies are provoking we are in danger of carrying our resentment too far, and of speaking unadvisedly, as Moses did, though the meekest of men), and therefore they are earnest with God to prevent their speaking amiss, as knowing that no watchfulness or resolution of their own is sufficient for the governing of their tongues, much less of their hearts, without the special grace of God. We must keep our mouths as with a bridle; but that will not serve: we must pray to God to keep them. Nehemiah prayed to the Lord when he set a watch, and so must we, for without him the watchman walketh but in vain. 2. That he might not be inclined to any sinful practices (Psa 141:4): "Incline not my heart to any evil thing; whatever inclination there is in me to sin, let it be not only restrained, but mortified, by divine grace." The example of those about us, and the provocations of those against us, are apt to stir up and draw out corrupt inclinations. We are ready to do as others do, and to think that if we have received injuries we may return them; and therefore we have need to pray that we may never be left to ourselves to practise any wicked work, either in confederacy with or in opposition to the men that work iniquity. While we live in such an evil world, and carry about with us such evil hearts, we have need to pray that we may neither be drawn in by any allurement nor driven on by any provocation to do any sinful thing. 3. That he might not be ensnared by any sinful pleasures: "Let me not eat of their dainties. Let me not join with them in their feasts and sports, lest thereby I be inveigled into their sins." Better is a dinner of herbs, out of the way of temptation, than a stalled ox in it. Sinners pretend to find dainties in sin. Stolen waters are sweet; forbidden fruit is pleasant to the eye. But those that consider how soon the dainties of sin will turn into wormwood and gall, how certainly it will, at last, bite like a serpent and sting like an adder, will dread those dainties, and pray to God by his providence to take them out of their sight, and by his grace to turn them against them. Good men will pray even against the sweets of sin.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 1–4. Public domain.
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JeromeAD 420
LETTER 125.19
When a person is advanced in years, you must not be too ready to believe evil of him; his past life is itself a defense, and so also is his rank as an elder. Still, since we are but human and sometimes in spite of the ripeness of our years fall into the sins of youth, if I do wrong and you wish to correct me, accuse me openly of my fault: do not backbite me secretly. “Let the righteous smite me, it shall be a kindness, and let him reprove me; but let not the oil of the sinner enrich my head.” For what does the apostle say? “Whom the Lord loves, he chastens, and scourges every son whom he receives.” By the mouth of Isaiah the Lord speaks thus: “O my people, they who call you happy cause you to err and destroy the way of your paths.” How do you help me by telling my misdeeds to others? You may, without my knowing of it, wound some one else by the narration of my sins or rather of those which you slanderously attribute to me; and while you are eager to spread the news in all quarters, you may pretend to confide in each individual as though you had spoken to no one else. Such a course has for its object not my correction but the indulgence of your own failing. The Lord commands that those who sin against us are to be arraigned privately or else in the presence of a witness and that if they refuse to hear reason the matter is to be laid before the church, and those who persist in their wickedness are to be regarded as heathens and publicans.
JeromeAD 420
HOMILIES ON THE PSALMS 51
“Let not my heart incline to evil words, to make excuses in sins.” O unhappy race of human beings! We seek excuse for sin by saying, “Nature got the better of me,” and all the while it has been in our power to sin or not to sin. We are always justifying ourselves and saying, I did not want to sin, but lust overwhelmed me; that woman came to me; she made the advances; she touched me; she said this or that to me; she called me; and while we ought to be doing penance and crying, “Lord, I have sinned,” we excuse ourselves instead, and yoke sins to sin. We all have the same kind of body, but with our own particular difficulties. “God is not a respecter of persons.” Would you know that we have the same bodies as the saints? Paul the apostle says, “I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind and making me prisoner to the law of sin that is in my members”;23 and again, “But I chastise my body and bring it into subjection, lest perhaps after preaching to others I myself should be rejected.” Later, he says, “Unhappy man that I am! Who will deliver me from the body of this death?” We all have our own struggles, therefore, and it is in proportion to his struggles that each one receives his reward.
Augustine of HippoAD 430
Exposition on Psalm 141
..."Set, O Lord, a watch before my mouth, and a door of restraint around my lips" [Psalm 141:3]. He said not a barrier of restraint, but "a door of restraint." A door is opened as well as shut. If then it be a "door," let it be both opened and shut; opened, to confession of sin; closed, to excusing sin. So will it be a "door of restraint," not of ruin. For what does this "door of restraint" profit us? What does Christ pray in the name of His Body? "That Thou turn not aside My heart to wicked words" [Psalm 141:4]. What is, "My heart"? The heart of My Church; the heart, that is, of My Body....
Augustine of HippoAD 430
SERMON 29:3
But of course it is also true that the confession of sins is equally salutary. That is why we heard in the psalm that was read first, “Set a guard, Lord, on my mouth, and a door of restraint around my lips, and do not incline my heart to words of malice, to excusing my sins with excuses.” He asks God to put a guard on his mouth. And he goes on to explain what it is a guard against. There are people, you see, and plenty of them, who as soon as they are blamed for anything rush to make excuses. Now to make excuses is to look for reasons and to adduce pretexts why a sin should not be regarded as belonging to you. One says, “The devil did it for me”; another says, “My luck did it for me”; another, “I was forced to it by fate”; no one blames himself.
Augustine of HippoAD 430
SERMON 20:2
Of course, what we have to set our minds on first and foremost is not to sin, in case we get on fairly familiar and friendly terms with sin, as a serpent. In fact, of course, it slays the sinner with its poisonous fangs and is not at all the sort of thing to make friends with. But if it should happen to catch you in its coils when you are weak, or creep up on you when you are getting careless, or grab you when you have lost your way or trick you into losing it again, then you must not let it irk you to confess and to accuse yourself instead of looking for excuses. That is what he prayed about in some psalm or other when he said, “Lord, set a guard on my mouth and a door of self-restraint around my lips, and do not turn aside my thoughts to ill-natured words, to excuse on excuse for sins.”
Augustine of HippoAD 430
On Continence 1:2-2:3
Unless one thinks that God requires only self-restraint in terms of the desires of the inferior parts of one’s flesh, the following is also sung in the psalm: “Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth and a door of continence round about my lips.” Now, in this testimony of divine eloquence if we understand “mouth” as we ought to understand it, the watch placed there is continence, inasmuch as we understand it as a gift of God. Surely, it is a slight matter to restrain the mouth of the body lest something that is not expedient come forth from it through the sound of the voice. Within is the mouth of the heart where he who said those words and directed us to say them desired that a guard and gate of continence be set for him by God. There are many things that we do not speak from the mouth of the body but shout from the heart. Yet, no word of any thing proceeds from the mouth of that body in whose heart there is silence. Thus, whatever does not emanate from there does not sound outside, but what does emanate from there, if it is evil—even though it does not move the tongue—defiles the soul. Continence, therefore, must be placed there where the conscience, even of those who are outwardly silent, speaks.And so that he might more clearly indicate the interior mouth that he signified by those words when he said, “Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth, and a door of continence round about my lips,” he immediately added, “Incline not my heart to evil words.” This inclination of the heart, what is it if not consent? For, he has not yet spoken who has not yet consented by an inclination of the heart to the onrushing suggestions in his heart of any act whatsoever. If, however, he consented, he has already spoken in his heart even though he has not made a sound with his mouth. Even though he has not done the deed with his hand or any other part of his body, he has committed it because he has determined in his mind to do it, and he is guilty of the act, by the laws of God even though it remains concealed from the sight of people—the word being spoken in the heart though no act be committed in the body.
Valerian of CimiezAD 460
HOMILY 5:2
But the blow inflicted by the tongue is incurable. The tongue strikes lightly, but it always stirs up deep sighs in the chest through the sorrow it causes. The prophet no doubt knew how great was the evil of the tongue when he cried out, “Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth, and a door about my lips, that my heart may not turn to evil words.” Therefore, if anyone is wise, let him set a guard before his mouth, and let him put the bond of silence on his lips.
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
Psalms 141:4 is a fervent and profound prayer offered by David, seeking God's divine intervention to preserve him from both internal moral corruption and external spiritual contamination. He implores the Lord to prevent his innermost being, his heart, from inclining towards any form of evil desire or intention. Furthermore, David prays for protection from actively engaging in wicked practices alongside those who habitually commit iniquity, and crucially, from succumbing to the subtle allurements and perceived benefits—metaphorically termed "dainties"—that a sinful lifestyle or association with the ungodly might deceptively offer. This verse encapsulates a deep awareness of the human heart's inherent susceptibility to sin and the pervasive corrupting influence of unrighteous company.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
The verse employs several powerful literary devices to convey its profound spiritual message with vivid imagery and emotional depth. The most prominent is Metaphor, specifically in the phrase "eat of their dainties." This vivid image portrays the seductive nature of sin and worldly allurements, presenting them as desirable and palatable, much like a delicious meal, rather than overtly destructive. This highlights the insidious way temptation often operates, promising pleasure or gain while concealing its true, damaging consequences. Additionally, there is a subtle use of Personification as David prays for God to "incline not my heart," treating the heart as if it possesses its own will or propensity to turn, thereby emphasizing the need for divine intervention over this core faculty of his being. The verse also exhibits a clear form of Parallelism, where the internal desire ("incline not my heart") is intrinsically linked to external actions ("practise wicked works") and their associated temptations ("eat of their dainties"). This tripartite structure underscores the comprehensive nature of David's prayer for holistic moral integrity, encompassing the deepest thoughts, outward conduct, and the crucial choice of associations.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
David's prayer in Psalms 141:4 reflects a profound biblical understanding of the origin of sin and the path to righteousness, aligning with consistent scriptural teaching. It emphasizes that sin fundamentally begins in the heart, the seat of desires and intentions, before manifesting in outward actions, a truth Jesus himself powerfully taught when He declared that "out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies" (Matthew 15:19). The plea to avoid "practising wicked works with men that work iniquity" underscores the pervasive biblical warning against corrupting influences and the imperative for believers to pursue holiness and separation from the world's ungodly systems. This is a recurring theme from the Old Testament wisdom literature to the New Testament epistles, consistently emphasizing that "bad company corrupts good morals" (1 Corinthians 15:33). Furthermore, the imagery of "dainties" speaks to the deceptive nature of sin, which often promises pleasure, gain, or fulfillment but ultimately delivers spiritual emptiness and destruction, echoing the call to not conform to the patterns of this world but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds (Romans 12:2).
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Psalms 141:4 serves as a timeless and profoundly relevant prayer for every believer navigating the complexities and temptations of a fallen world. In an era saturated with diverse influences, constant digital connectivity, and myriad forms of entertainment and aspiration, David's plea reminds us that spiritual vigilance must primarily begin internally. It is not enough to merely avoid overt sinful actions; we must actively and fervently pray for God to guard our hearts from the very inclination, desire, or subtle leaning towards evil. This requires a conscious and discerning approach to our associations, the media we consume, the values we embrace, and the ambitions we pursue. The "dainties" of the wicked can manifest in countless modern forms: the allure of quick wealth gained through unethical means, social popularity achieved by compromising moral standards, fleeting pleasures that lead to spiritual deadness, or even intellectual trends that subtly undermine biblical truth and moral foundations. This verse calls us to a radical reliance on God's grace, acknowledging our own inherent weakness and susceptibility to temptation, and seeking divine intervention to resist the subtle, attractive temptations that promise temporary satisfaction but inevitably lead to spiritual decay. True spiritual protection and flourishing involve both an internal turning away from evil desires and an external separation from corrupting influences, fostering a life of unwavering devotion to God.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Why does David pray "Incline not my heart" instead of simply resolving not to sin?
Answer: David's prayer reflects a profound understanding of human spiritual weakness and the pervasive nature of sin, a recognition deeply embedded throughout biblical theology. While personal resolve and discipline are indeed important aspects of Christian living, David acknowledges that the human heart is inherently prone to wander and be swayed by temptation, as articulated in Jeremiah 17:9, which states, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" His plea for divine intervention acknowledges that true spiritual purity and steadfastness come not merely from self-effort but from God's preserving grace and sovereign work within the believer. It's a humble recognition that only God, by His Spirit, can truly guard the innermost desires and inclinations of the heart, preventing them from bending towards evil. This prayer perfectly aligns with the New Testament teaching that God actively works in us "both to will and to work for his good pleasure" (Philippians 2:13), demonstrating a necessary reliance on divine enablement for righteous living.
What are the "dainties" of the wicked in a modern context?
Answer: In a modern context, the "dainties" of the wicked can symbolize any seemingly attractive or beneficial aspect of a sinful or worldly lifestyle that subtly compromises one's spiritual integrity and devotion to God. This might include the allure of quick wealth gained unethically or through exploitative means, social popularity achieved through moral compromise or abandoning biblical convictions, fleeting sensual pleasures that lead to addiction or spiritual deadness, or even intellectual pursuits and cultural trends that subtly undermine faith without offering true wisdom or lasting fulfillment. It also encompasses the subtle temptations to adopt the values, ethics, or entertainment of a culture that stands opposed to biblical principles, often presented as sophisticated, liberating, or harmless. The key characteristic of these "dainties" is that they are presented as desirable, masking their ultimate destructive spiritual consequences, much like the forbidden fruit in Genesis 3:6, which appeared "good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise." They are the seemingly sweet temptations that lead to bitter spiritual outcomes.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Psalms 141:4 finds its ultimate and perfect fulfillment in the person and redemptive work of Jesus Christ. David's fervent prayer for a pure heart and protection from evil associations highlights the universal human struggle against sin and temptation, a struggle perfectly and victoriously overcome by Christ. Jesus, the sinless Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, never allowed His heart to incline to any evil thing; His desires were always perfectly aligned with the Father's will, even unto death. He perfectly resisted the "dainties" of the world, famously rejecting Satan's temptations in the wilderness that offered worldly power and glory (Matthew 4:1-11), demonstrating complete obedience, purity of heart, and unwavering devotion to God alone. Furthermore, through His atoning sacrifice on the cross, Christ not only cleanses us from the guilt and penalty of sin but also empowers us by His indwelling Holy Spirit to live lives of purity and righteousness. The New Covenant promise of a new heart and a new spirit (Ezekiel 36:26-27) is realized in Christ, enabling believers to genuinely pray David's prayer with the expectation of divine help and transformation. As believers, we are called to imitate Christ's separation from the world's corrupting influences and its "dainties" (1 John 2:15-17) and to pursue holiness, empowered by the One who overcame all temptation and offers us victory over the allure of sin through His life-giving presence within us (Galatians 2:20). He is our ultimate protection and the source of our ability to walk in righteousness.