Psalms (TOTC) by Tremper Longman III

Author:Tremper Longman III [Longman, Tremper Iii]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781783592432
Publisher: Inter-Varsity Press
Published: 2014-09-18T16:00:00+00:00

As is typical of a lament, the psalmist opens with an invocation and appeal to God for help (v. 1). He feels that his life is threatened by enemies, who conspire to harm him. Their weapons are their tongues; their attack is at least initiated with words. Words can do great harm, as much harm as swords and arrows. The exact form of these words is never specified. Perhaps they are battle plans or, more likely, false charges in court. The latter can lead to the death penalty after all. As a sign of their malicious intent, the enemy do not announce their plans publicly, but they spring out of nowhere like an ambush. In Proverbs 1:8–19, the father warns his son not to participate in the activity of evil people who ambush the innocent for their own gain.

These attacks are not done by individuals, but by a group, who confer with each other before making their move. The emphasis is on secrecy both in their plotting and in the execution of their plans. They want to hide snares in the path of the psalmist in order to trip him up in the journey of life. The word ‘snare’ (môqēš) is a fowler’s term and signifies the kind of trap in which a bird is caught and harmed (Prov. 12:13; 13:14; 14:27). Their plots come from a cunning heart. The word ‘cunning’ (‘āmōq) is literally ‘deep’, and in other contexts has a positive meaning (see Prov. 18:4; 20:5).

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