Psalm 120:4 NIV

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Psalms 120:2-4

Psalms 120:2-4. Deliver my soul from lying lips From the unjust censures and malicious slanders of mine enemies; and from a deceitful tongue Which covers mischievous designs under pretences of kindness. What shall be given unto thee By the righteous Judge of heaven and earth; thou false tongue O thou false accuser, or slanderer, or whosoever thou art, that art guilty of any such like practices? Sharp arrows of the mighty The wrath and vengeance of the almighty God, which in... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Psalms 120:1-7

Psalms 120-124 To Jerusalem for worshipEach of the fifteen Psalms 120:0 to 134 is entitled ‘A Song of Ascents’ (RSV; NIV). These psalms were apparently sung by worshippers from the country areas as they made the journey up to Jerusalem for the various annual festivals.Whether or not the psalms were written for this purpose, they have been arranged in a sequence that reflects the feelings of the travellers. They provide expressions of worship for the travellers as they set out from distant... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Psalms 120:4

mighty = Mighty [One]. read more

Thomas Coke

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Psalms 120:4

Psalms 120:4. Sharp arrows of the mighty— Sharp arrows of the mighty [shot] from coals of juniper. Hiller. Hierophut. 255. Hamm. "All the reward thou shalt meet with shall be a swift vengeance from the Almighty." This is metaphorically represented by sharp arrows, and burning coals of juniper; the wood of which tree is supposed to burn more intensely than any other. read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Psalms 120:4

4. Sharp arrows of the mighty—destructive inflictions. coals of juniper—which retain heat long. This verse may be read as a description of the wicked, but better as their punishment, in reply to the question of Psalms 120:3. read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Psalms 120:1-7

Psalms 120Psalms 120-134 are all "songs of ascent." This group, in turn, constitutes the major part of the Great Hallel psalms (Psalms 120-136). The psalms of ascent received this title because the pilgrim Israelites sang them as they traveled from their homes all over the land and ascended Mt. Zion for the annual feasts. David composed at least four of these 15 psalms (Psalms 122, 124, 131, , 133). Solomon wrote one (Psalms 127), and the remaining 10 are anonymous. They may not have been... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Psalms 120:3-4

2. God’s destruction of liars 120:3-4The writer asked the liar what would befall him and then answered his own question. God would destroy him as a warrior who shot arrows at an enemy or as a fire devoured a dry broom tree. read more

John Dummelow

John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 120:1-7

A cry for help to Jehovah in the midst of sore distress, evidently by an exile under foreign oppression.4. ’Sharp arrows of a mighty man, with glowing coals of broom,’ i.e. burning charcoal made of broom. Both expressions are figures for divine judgments: cp. Psalms 140:10.5. Mesech] i.e. the Moschi, a tribe dwelling near the Euxine Sea: cp. Genesis 10:2, also Herodotus 3.94. Kedar] tribes of N. Arabia famous for their black tents: cp. Song of Solomon 1:5. Here the two names are probably taken... read more

Charles John Ellicott

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers - Psalms 120:4

(4) Sharp.—Better, sharpened, whetted, as if for a purpose.Juniper.—Properly, broom. Hebrew, rothem, a plant identical with the Arabian retem and Algerian retama. (See 1 Kings 19:4-5.) Doctor Tristram mentions the employment of this bush for fuel. “It is ruthlessly uprooted by the Arabs, wherever it is tolerably abundant, for the manufacture of charcoal, which is considered of the finest quality, and fetches a higher price at Cairo than any other kind. Several travellers have mentioned their... read more

William Nicoll

Expositor's Bible Commentary - Psalms 120:1-7

Psalms 120:1-7THE collection of pilgrim songs is appropriately introduced by one expressive of the unrest arising from compulsory association with uncongenial and hostile neighbours. The psalmist laments that his sensitive "soul" has been so long obliged to be a "sojourner" where he has heard nothing but lying and strife. Weary of these, his soul stretches her wings towards a land of rest. His feeling ill at ease amidst present surroundings stings him to take the pilgrim’s staff. "In" this... read more