Psalm 17:10-14

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 17:14

From men of the world, which have - מחלד ממתים mimethim mecheled , from mortal men of time; temporizers; men who shift with the times, who have no fixed principle but one, that of securing their own secular interest: and this agrees with what follows - which have their portion in this life; who never seek after any thing spiritual; who have bartered heaven for earth, and have got the portion they desired; for thou fillest their belly with thy hid treasure. Their belly - their sensual... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 17:10

Verse 10 10.They have inclosed themselves in their own fat If the translation which is given by others is considered preferable, They have inclosed their own fat, the meaning will be quite the same. Some Jewish interpreters explain the words thus: that being stuffed with fat, and their throat being, as it were, choked with it, they were unable to speak freely; but this is a very meagre and unsatisfactory exposition. By the word fat, I think, is denoted the pride with which they were filled and... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 17:11

Verse 11 11.They have now compassed me round about in our steps. The Psalmist confirms what he has said before concerning the furious passion for doing mischief with which his enemies were inflamed. He says they were so cruelly bent on accomplishing his destruction, that in whatever way he directed or altered his course, they ceased not to follow close upon him. When he says our steps, he doubtless comprehends his own companions, although he immediately after returns to speak of himself alone;... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 17:13

Verse 13 13.Arise, O Jehovah. The more furiously David was persecuted by his enemies, he beseeches God the more earnestly to afford him immediate aid; for he uses the word face to denote the swift impetuosity of his adversary, to repress which there was need of the greatest haste. By these words, the Holy Spirit teaches us, that when death shows itself to be just at hand, God is provided with remedies perfectly prepared, by which he can effect our deliverance in a moment. The Psalmist not only... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 17:14

Verse 14 14.From men by thy hand, O Jehovah, from men who are from an age. I connect these words thus: O Lord, deliver me by thy hand, or by thy heavenly aid, from men; I say from men whose tyranny has prevailed too long, and whom thou hast suffered to wallow too long in the filth and draft of their prosperity. This repetition is very emphatic; David’s voice being stifled, as it were, with the indignation which he felt at seeing such villany continuing for so long a period, he stops all at once... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 17:1-15

The metrical arrangement is somewhat doubtful. Perhaps the best division is that of Dr. Kay, who makes the poem one of four stanzas—the first of five verses ( Psalms 17:1-5 ); the second of four ( Psalms 17:6-9 ); the third of three ( Psalms 17:10-12 ); and the fourth also of three ( Psalms 17:13-15 ). read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 17:1-15

The saint's appeal from the wrongs of earth to the Righteous One on the throne. The title of our homily on this psalm is in some respects similar to that on the seventh psalm. There, however, the psalm is an appeal to the great Vindicator of one unjustly accused; here, it is the appeal of one beset with persecutors to the great Judge of all. Whenever or by whomsoever the words of this psalm were penned, it may not be easy to say. The probability is that it is one of David's. £ If so,... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 17:1-15

The righteousness of God's dealing. It is a common saying that "the pillow is a good counsellor;" and there is much truth in this. In the quietness and retirement of night we are able to collect our thoughts and to commune with our own hearts, as to the past, the present, and the future. And if we do this in the spirit of the psalmist, realizing God's presence and relying upon him for counsel and guidance, it will be well. Whether this psalm was written at night or not, we cannot tell; but... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 17:6-15

Confidence in God. From the first to the fifth verse the prayer bases his confidence in God on four pleas. 1 . He prays for the righteous cause. 2 . In a righteous spirit. 3 . On the ground of a righteous character. 4 . On the ground of righteous conduct. Now we come to other grounds upon which he urges God to save him. I. THE COMPASSION OF GOD for THOSE WHO URGENTLY CRY TO HIM . ( Psalms 17:6 , Psalms 17:7 .) He calls, because God... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Psalms 17:10

They are enclosed in their own fat (comp. Deuteronomy 32:15 ; Job 15:27 ; Psalms 119:70 ). Self-indulgence has hardened their feelings and dulled their souls. An organ enclosed in fat cannot work freely. So their feelings cannot work as nature intended through the coarseness and hardness in which they are, as it were, embedded. With their mouth they speak proudly (comp. Psalms 12:3 , Psalms 12:4 ; Psalms 86:14 ). read more

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