Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Psalms 11:4
The LORD [is] in his holy temple, the LORD’s throne [is] in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men.
4. More exactly:
Jehovah in his holy temple, Jehovah, whose throne is in heaven,
His eyes behold &c.
The last clause is the predicate on which the emphasis falls. The temple is here heaven, as in Psa 18:6; Psa 29:9; Mic 1:2; Hab 2:20. There Jehovah sits enthroned in Majesty as King and Judge (Psa 9:4; Psa 9:7), surveying the course of human affairs. Cp. Psa 10:14; Psa 14:2; Psa 102:19 ff. The epithet ‘holy’ emphasises the contrast with earth. The confusions and mistakes and prejudices of earth cannot enter there.
behold ] The Heb. word suggests the idea of a discerning, penetrating gaze. The P.B.V., His eyes consider the poor, is derived through the Vulg. from the LXX [8] .
[8] ‘The consonants of the word for poor ( ) resemble those of the word for his eyes ( ), and this word appears to have been doubly read and translated by the LXX.
his eyelids try ] The eyelids are contracted when we wish to examine an object closely. ‘Try’ is a metaphor from refining. He distinguishes at a glance between dross and gold. Cp. Psa 7:9.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
4 6. David’s answer, justifying his rejection of his friends’ advice. They look to earth alone; he looks up to heaven. They judge by the appearance of the moment; his faith beholds the righteous Governor of the world exercising His sovereignty. On earth justice may be suspended or subverted; but the Eternal Judge has not quitted His throne in heaven.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
The Lord is in his holy temple – Hebrew, Jehovah is in the temple of his holiness. That is, he is in heaven, regarded as his temple or dwelling-place. This is the answer of the psalmist to the suggestions of his advisers that he should flee from danger. The answer is, in substance, that he had nothing to fear; that he had a protector in heaven; and that he might appeal to Him for defense. The idea is, that God, the protector of the righteous, is always in the heavens; that his throne is always accessible; and that to it the persecuted may come, and may always be safe.
The Lords throne is in heaven – God is a king, ruling the universe. As such, the seat of his power or dominion is represented as in heaven, where he administers his government. That throne is fixed, and the affairs of his universe will be administered with justice. The righteous, therefore, may hope in his protection, and need not flee when the wicked assail them. The idea here is that of unwavering confidence in God as sitting upon the throne of the universe, and administering its affairs with justice and truth. Compare Isa 66:1, heaven is my throne. See the notes on that verse.
His eyes behold – He sees everything in all parts of his vast empire, and therefore he knows all the purposes of the wicked, and all the wants of the righteous. The thought here, as one imparting a sense of safety, is, that God sees us. He is not ignorant of what our enemies are doing, and he is not ignorant of what we need. If he were, the case would be different. We might their despair of safety, and feel that our enemies could overcome and destroy us. It is much, in the trials of life, to have this assurance – this constant feeling – that God sees us. He knows our condition, our wants, our dangers; he knows all that our enemies are doing – all their machinations against us. Knowing all this, we may be assured that he will interpose when it is best that he should interpose, and that he will suffer nothing to come upon us which it is not best that he should permit. When evil befalls us, therefore, it does not come because God does not know it, or because he could not prevent it, but because, seeing it all, he judges that it is best that it should thus occur. Compare Gen 16:13.
His eyelids try – That is, they prove, penetrate into, as if by seeing through them. The eyelids here are synonymous with the eyes. The form of the language is varied in accordance with a custom common in Hebrew, and there is attributed here to the eyelids what properly belongs to the eyes – the power of seeing.
The children of men – All men, good and bad. He knows them all – all their purposes, their designs, their wishes, their dangers. He knows, therefore, what our enemies are doing; he knows what are our perils; and we may safely leave our cause with him. We should not, therefore, listen to the counsel which advises us to flee Psa 11:1, but should rather put our trust in him who dwells in the heavens.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Psa 11:4
The Lord is in His holy temple.
The earthly temple
How are we to be assured of the truth that the Lord is in His holy temple? We have no visible sign; but He reveals Himself in our hearts, and requires that we should know and feel His presence there. How, then, are we to meet Him in the temple?
1. We come as created beings to offer a tribute of gratitude. Are any so worn with trouble as to think the gift of existence not worth the expression of gratitude? Let such remember that here we are but preparing for a blessed immortality, and that our trials, well endured, will add to the measure of our bliss hereafter.
2. We are dependent creatures. Then we should offer our thanks for the past, and supplications for the future.
3. We are sinful creatures. Then we should make confession to our God, whom we have so often and deeply offended.
4. We are accountable creatures. Then we should come here to learn His holy will, and of our obedience to it exact account will be required.
5. We are social creatures. Then we should ask blessings, not for ourselves only, but also for others. The sinner, the penitent, the believer, the sorrowful, the sufferer–all are remembered in our prayers. Learn so to worship that you may ever feel that you have indeed been with the Lord in His holy temple. (Edward Rice, M. A.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 4. The Lord is in his holy temple] He is still to be sought and found in the place where he has registered his name. Though the priests be destroyed, the God in whose worship they were employed still lives, and is to be found in his temple by his upright worshippers. And he tries the heart and the reins of both sinners and saints. Nothing can pass without his notice. I may expect his presence in the temple; he has not promised to meet me in the mountain.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
The Lord, to whom I appeal from mens unjust tribunals,
is in his holy temple; either,
1. In his tabernacle, which is sometimes called his temple, as 1Sa 1:9; 3:3; Psa 18:6; 48:9; 68:29, where he resides to hear the prayers and appeals of all his people. Or,
2. In heaven, as it is explained in the next clause; which is also called Gods temple, Mic 1:2; Rev 7:15, and which seems to be most emphatical here; for Gods being in heaven is oft mentioned as an evidence of his glorious majesty, of his sovereign power and dominion over all men and things, and of his accurate inspection into all men and their actions here below, which from that high tower he can easily behold, as it here follows.
The Lords throne; where he sits to examine all causes, and to judge all men, and to give forth righteous sentences according to every mans works; which is my great comfort and joy.
His eyes behold, his eye-lids try, the children of men, i.e. he doth exactly and thoroughly discern all men, and all that is in men, their most inward and secret actions, Psa 7:9. And therefore he sees and will reward my innocency, notwithstanding all the reproaches and calumnies of mine enemies; and withal he sees all their secret, and subtle, and malicious designs against me through all their cunning pretences, and withal discover and defeat them.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
4. temple . . . heavenTheconnection seems to denote God’s heavenly residence; the term used istaken from the place of His visible earthly abode (Psa 2:6;Psa 3:4; Psa 5:7).Thence He inspects men with close scrutiny.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
The Lord [is] in his holy temple,…. Not in the temple at Jerusalem, which as yet was not built; nor in the temple of Christ’s human nature; but rather in the church, where he dwells, which is an holy temple to the Lord; and which is an argument for trust in him, and a reason against the fears of men in the worst of times; see
Ps 46:1. Though it may be best to understand it of heaven, the habitation of God’s holiness, and which is the true sanctuary; and which the holy places made with hands were only a figure of; since it follows,
the Lord’s throne [is] in heaven; yea, the heaven is his throne; here he sits on a throne of grace, and here he has prepared his throne for judgment; and both this and the preceding clause are expressive of his glory and majesty; and are said to command awe and reverence of the Divine Being, and to inject terror into the wicked; and to show that God is above the enemies of his people, and to encourage the saints’ trust and confidence in him; and are mentioned as a reason why David put his trust in him; and are, with what follows in Ps 11:5, opposed to the advice and reasonings of some of his friends in the preceding ones;
his eyes behold; all men, and all their actions; he sees what the wicked are doing in the dark, what preparations for mischief they are making, and beholds them when they shoot privily at the upright in heart; he can turn the arrow another way, and cause it to miss the mark: his eyes run to and fro throughout the earth, in favour of those whose hearts are perfect and sincere. God’s omniscience, which is denied by wicked men, who are therefore hardened in sin, and promise themselves impunity, is used by the saints as an argument to encourage their faith and trust in God, with respect to their preservation and deliverance. The Septuagint and Vulgate Latin, Arabic, and Ethiopic versions, read, “his eyes look unto the poor”; but this is an addition to the text not suitable to the context;
his eyelids try the children of men; he tries their reins, he searches into their very hearts, and into the inmost recesses of them, and takes cognizance of their thoughts, intentions, and designs; and confounds and disappoints them, so that they cannot perform their enterprises.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
The words of David’s counsellors who fear for him are now ended. And David justifies his confidence in God with which he began his song. Jahve sits enthroned above all that takes place on earth that disheartens those of little faith. At an infinite distance above the earth, and also above Jerusalem, now in rebellion, is a , Psa 18:7; Psa 29:9, and in this holy temple is Jahve, the Holy One. Above the earth are the heavens, and in heaven is the throne of Jahve, the King of kings. And this temple, this palace in the heavens, is the place whence issues the final decision of all earthly matters, Hab 2:20; Mic 1:2. For His throne above is also the super-terrestrial judgment-seat, Psa 9:8; Psa 103:19. Jahve who sits thereon is the all-seeing and omniscient One. prop. to split, cf. cernere, is used here according to its radical meaning, of a sharp piercing glance. prop. to try metals by fire, of a fixed and penetrating look that sees into a thing to the foundation of its inmost nature. The mention of the eyelids is intentional. When we observe a thing closely or ponder over it, we draw the eyelids together, in order that our vision may be more concentrated and direct, and become, as it were, one ray piercing through the object. Thus are men open to the all-seeing eyes, the all-searching looks of Jahve: the just and the unjust alike. He tries the righteous, i.e., He knows that in the depth of his soul there is an upright nature that will abide all testing (Psa 17:3; Job 23:10), so that He lovingly protects him, just as the righteous lovingly depends upon Him. And His soul hates (i.e., He hates him with all the energy of His perfectly and essentially holy nature) the evil-doer and him that delights in the violence of the strong towards the weak. And the more intense this hatred, the more fearful will be the judgments in which it bursts forth.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
4 The LORD is in his holy temple, the LORD‘s throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men. 5 The LORD trieth the righteous: but the wicked and him that loveth violence his soul hateth. 6 Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and a horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup. 7 For the righteous LORD loveth righteousness; his countenance doth behold the upright.
The shaking of a tree (they say) makes it take the deeper and faster root. The attempt of David’s enemies to discourage his confidence in God engages him to cleave so much the more closely to his first principles, and to review them, which he here does, abundantly to his own satisfaction and the silencing of all temptations to infidelity. That which was shocking to his faith, and has been so to the faith of many, was the prosperity of wicked people in their wicked ways, and the straits and distresses which the best men are sometimes reduced to: hence such an evil thought as this was apt to arise, Surely it is vain to serve God, and we may call the proud happy. But, in order to stifle and shame all such thoughts, we are here called to consider,
I. That there is a God in heaven: The Lord is in his holy temple above, where, though he is out of our sight, we are not out of his. Let not the enemies of the saints insult over them, as if they were at a loss and at their wits’ end: no, they have a God, and they know where to find him and how to direct their prayer unto him, as their Father in heaven. Or, He is in his holy temple, that is, in his church; he is a God in covenant and communion with his people, through a Mediator, of whom the temple was a type. We need not say, “Who shall go up to heaven, to fetch us thence a God to trust to?” No, the word is nigh us, and God in the word; his Spirit is in his saints, those living temples, and the Lord is that Spirit.
II. That this God governs the world. The Lord has not only his residence, but his throne, in heaven, and he has set the dominion thereof in the earth (Job xxxviii. 33); for, having prepared his throne in the heavens, his kingdom ruleth over all, Ps. ciii. 19. Hence the heavens are said to rule, Dan. iv. 26. Let us by faith see God on this throne, on his throne of glory, infinitely transcending the splendour and majesty of earthly princes–on his throne of government, giving law, giving motion, and giving aim, to all the creatures–on his throne of judgment, rendering to every man according to his works–and on his throne of grace, to which his people may come boldly for mercy and grace; we shall then see no reason to be discouraged by the pride and power of oppressors, or any of the afflictions that attend the righteous.
III. That this God perfectly knows every man’s true character: His eyes behold, his eye-lids try, the children of men; he not only sees them, but he sees through them, not only knows all they say and do, but knows what they think, what they design, and how they really stand affected, whatever they pretend. We may know what men seem to be, but he knows what they are, as the refiner knows what the value of the gold is when he has tried it. God is said to try with his eyes, and his eye-lids, because he knows men, not as earthly princes know men, by report and representation, but by his own strict inspection, which cannot err nor be imposed upon. This may comfort us when we are deceived in men, even in men that we think we have tried, that God’s judgment of men, we are sure, is according to truth.
IV. That, if he afflict good people, it is for their trial and therefore for their good, v. 5. The Lord tries all the children of men that he may do them good in their latter end, Deut. viii. 16. Let not that therefore shake our foundations nor discourage our hope and trust in God.
V. That, however persecutors and oppressors may prosper and prevail awhile, they now lie under, and will for ever perish under, the wrath of God. 1. He is a holy God, and therefore hates them, and cannot endure to look upon them: The wicked, and him that loveth violence, his soul hateth; for nothing is more contrary to the rectitude and goodness of his nature. Their prosperity is so far from being an evidence of God’s love that their abuse of it does certainly make them the objects of his hatred. He that hates nothing that he has made, yet hates those who have thus ill-made themselves. Dr. Hammond offers another reading of this verse: The Lord trieth the righteous and the wicked (distinguishes infallibly between them, which is more than we can do), and he that loveth violence hateth his own soul, that is, persecutors bring certain ruin upon themselves (Prov. viii. 36), as follows here. 2. He is a righteous Judge, and therefore he will punish them, v. 6. Their punishment will be, (1.) Inevitable: Upon the wicked he shall rain snares. Here is a double metaphor, to denote the unavoidableness of the punishment of wicked men. It shall be rained upon them from heaven (Job xx. 23), against which there is no fence and from which there is no escape; see Jos 10:11; 1Sa 2:10. It shall surprise them as a sudden shower sometimes surprises the traveller in a summer’s day. It shall be as snares upon them, to hold them fast, and keep them prisoners, till the day of reckoning comes. (2.) Very terrible. It is fire, and brimstone, and a horrible tempest, which plainly alludes to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, and very fitly, for that destruction was intended for a figure of the vengeance of eternal fire, Jude 7. The fire of God’s wrath, fastening upon the brimstone of their own guilt, will burn certainly and furiously, will burn to the lowest hell and the utmost line of eternity. What a horrible tempest are the wicked hurried away in at death! What a lake of fire and brimstone must they make their bed in for ever, in the congregation of the dead and damned! It is this that is here meant; it is this that shall be the portion of their cup, the heritage appointed them by the Almighty and allotted to them, Job xx. 29. This is the cup of trembling which shall be put into their hands, which they must drink the dregs of, Ps. lxxv. 8. Every man has the portion of his cup assigned him. Those who choose the Lord for the portion of their cup shall have what they choose, and be for ever happy in their choice (Ps. xvi. 5); but those who reject his grace shall be made to drink the cup of his fury, Jer 25:15; Isa 51:17; Hab 2:16.
VI. That, though honest good people may be run down and trampled upon, yet God does and will own them, and favour them, and smile upon them, and that is the reason why God will severely reckon with persecutors and oppressors, because those whom they oppress and persecute are dear to him; so that whosoever toucheth them toucheth the apple of his eye, v. 7. 1. He loves them and the work of his own grace in them. He is himself a righteous God, and therefore loves righteousness wherever he finds it and pleads the cause of the righteous that are injured and oppressed; he delights to execute judgment for them, Ps. ciii. 6. We must herein be followers of God, must love righteousness as he does, that we may keep ourselves always in his love. He looks graciously upon them: His countenance doth behold the upright; he is not only at peace with them, and puts gladness into their hearts, by letting them know that he is so. He, like a tender father, looks upon them with pleasure, and they, like dutiful children, are pleased and abundantly satisfied with his smiles. They walk in the light of the Lord.
In singing this psalm we must encourage and engage ourselves to trust in God at all times, must depend upon him to protect our innocence and make us happy, must dread his frowns as worse than death and desire his favour as better than life.
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary
4. Jehovah is in the palace of his holiness. In what follows, the Psalmist glories in the assurance of the favor of God, of which I have spoken. Being destitute of human aid, he betakes himself to the providence of God. It is a signal proof of faith, as I have observed elsewhere, to take and to borrow, so to speak, (245) light from heaven to guide us to the hope of salvation, when we are surrounded in this world with darkness on every side. All men acknowledge that the world is governed by the providence of God; but when there comes some sad confusion of things, which disturbs their ease, and involves them in difficulty, there are few who retain in their minds the firm persuasion of this truth. But from the example of David, we ought to make such account of the providence of God as to hope for a remedy from his judgment, even when matters are in the most desperate condition. There is in the words an implied contrast between heaven and earth; for if David’s attention had been fixed on the state of things in this world, as they appeared to the eye of sense and reason, he would have seen no prospect of deliverance from his present perilous circumstances. But this was not David’s exercise; on the contrary, when in the world all justice lies trodden under foot, and faithfulness has perished, he reflects that God sits in heaven perfect and unchanged, from whom it became him to look for the restoration of order from this state of miserable confusion. He does not simply say that God dwells in heaven; but that he reigns there, as it were, in a royal palace, and has his throne of judgment there. Nor do we indeed render to him the honor which is his due, unless we are fully persuaded that his judgment-seat is a sacred sanctuary for all who are in affliction and unrighteously oppressed. When, therefore, deceit, craft, treachery, cruelty, violence, and extortion, reign in the world; in short, when all things are thrown into disorder and darkness by injustice and wickedness, let faith serve as a lamp to enable us to behold God’s heavenly throne, and let that sight suffice to make us wait in patience for the restoration of things to a better state. The temple of his holiness, or his holy temple, which is commonly taken for Sion, doubtless here signifies heaven; and that it does so is clearly shown by the repetition in the next clause, Jehovah has his throne in Heaven; for it is certain David expresses the same thing twice.
His eyes behold. Here he infers, from the preceding sentence, that nothing is hidden from God, and that, therefore, men will be obliged to render up to him an account of all that they have done. If God reigns in heaven, and if his throne is erected there, it follows that he must necessarily attend to the affairs of men, in order one day to sit in judgment upon them. Epicurus, and such like him as would persuade themselves that God is idle, and indulges in repose in heaven, may be said rather to spread for him a couch on which to sleep than to erect for him a throne of judgment. But it is the glory of our faith that God, the Creator of the world, does not disregard or abandon the order which he himself at first established. And when he suspends his judgments for a time, it becomes us to lean upon this one truth that he beholds from heaven; just as we now see David contenting himself with this consolatory consideration alone, that God rules over mankind, and observes whatever is transacted in the world, although his knowledge, and the exercise of his jurisdiction, are not at first sight apparent. This truth is still more clearly explained in what is immediately added in the fifth verse, that God distinguishes between the righteous and the unrighteous, and in such a way as shows that he is not an idle spectator; for he is said to approve the righteous, and to hate the wicked The Hebrew word בחן, bachan, which we have rendered to approve, often signifies to examine or try. But in this passage I explain it as simply meaning, that God so inquires into the cause of every man as to distinguish the righteous from the wicked. It is farther declared, that God hates those who are set upon the infliction of injuries, and upon doing mischief. As he has ordained mutual intercourse between men, so he would have us to maintain it inviolable. In order, therefore, to preserve this his own sacred and appointed order, he must be the enemy of the wicked, who wrong and are troublesome to others. There is also here contrasted God’s hatred of the wicked, and wicked men’s love of iniquity, to teach us that those who please and flatter themselves in their mischievous practices gain nothing by such flatteries, and only deceive themselves.
(245) “ De prendre et par maniere de dire, emprunter lumiere du ciel.” — Fr.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(4) Temple.Here, plainly from the parallelism, not any earthly building, but the heavenly palace of the Divine King. One thought of Gods supreme righteousness, high above earths anarchy and sin, is enough to reassure the psalmist and make him strong. Gods in His heaven; alls right with the world.Browning, Pippa Passes.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
4. The Lord is in his holy temple His earthly temple, or tabernacle called temple, 1Sa 1:9 ; 1Sa 3:3; and, by implication, is there for purposes of grace and protection to his covenant people.
Throne in heaven As the universal ruler and judge. So that on this twofold ground David rests his cause in confidence.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘YHWH is in his holy temple,
YHWH, his throne is in heaven,
His eyes behold, his eyelids try,
The children of men.
The psalmist now turns from the challenge that has been put to him and the reply he has given, to the God in Whom he trusts, the God Who is his refuge. He knows that he does not need to defend himself in this case for YHWH is over all. He is on His heavenly throne (Psa 9:4; Psa 9:7), and from His heavenly Temple He watches over His people (compare 1Ki 8:26 onwards) and over him. Indeed His eyes behold all men, and His eyelids test them out, so that the wicked are under His eye too. He knows all that they do. The idea behind the eyelids is that when we are carefully peering at something we tend to contract the eyelids. So God peers at the behaviour of men carefully and constantly. The word for testing out is used of the refining of metals. At a glance YHWH can distinguish what is true from what is base, for YHWH has an all-seeing eye.
For His Temple as signifying Heaven see also Psa 18:6; Psa 29:9; Mic 1:2; Hab 2:20 compare also Psa 9:7 with 11. This is a reminder that the earthly Temple was always seen as but a shadow of the heavenly, a kind of way by which His people could approach the heavenly Temple through the earthly (1Ki 8:26 onwards). This was what was in Ezekiel’s mind when he spoke of the heavenly Temple descending on an anonymous high mountain, a pure and heavenly Temple accessible through the earthly altar in the physical Temple, the altar which men were commanded to build (they were not commanded in Ezekiel to build a Temple, only the altar).
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Psa 11:4. The Lord is in his holy temple As much as to say, “Though all human hope and assistance should fail me, yet I have the strongest confidence in the interposition and protection of that Almighty, who, though his throne is heaven, yet beholds and protects with providential care those who trust in him.”
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Reader, it is very true that Jehovah, in his threefold character of person, Father, Son and Holy Ghost, seeth, and knoweth all the concerns of his redeemed, and his eyes are upon them for good. But is there not here a special reference to the eyes of the Mediator? Is it not Jesus as the God-man, who is here spoken of as beholding his people? For here, with a double sweetness of consolation, the people of God may find encouragement in the blessed thought, that the eyes of Jesus, as God in our nature, are always beholding and taking part in all the interests of his redeemed.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Psa 11:4 The LORD [is] in his holy temple, the LORD’S throne [is] in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men.
Ver. 4. The Lord is in his holy temple ] i.e. In heaven, and there hence he both can and will do much for the relief of his poor oppressed, though the righteous can do little for themselves, Ubi deficit auxilium humanum incipit divinum (Philo). He also knows, and will clear their innocence; for he sits between the cherubims, whence he is wont to send help, Psa 20:3 , and hath his throne in heaven, whence he is wont to strike terror into the enemies, Psa 18:8 , &c.
The Lord’s throne is in heaven] This is the same with the former, serving to set forth God’s sufficiency, as the following words do his efficiency, those props of David’s faith, answerable to Jachin and Boaz, those two brazen pillars in Solomon’s temple, Dei solium est nostrum asylum.
His eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Psa 11:4-7
4The Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord’s throne is in heaven;
His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men.
5The Lord tests the righteous and the wicked,
And the one who loves violence His soul hates.
6Upon the wicked He will rain snares;
Fire and brimstone and burning wind will be the portion of their cup.
7For the Lord is righteous, He loves righteousness;
The upright will behold His face.
Psa 11:4-7 This strophe answers the implied question of the wicked in Psa 11:3. As it happens, the foundations of Psa 11:3 are not destroyed!
Psa 11:4 YHWH dwells in heaven (see Special Topic: Heaven ), but He manifests Himself (i.e., makes Himself available) between the wings of the Cherubim over the ark of the covenant (cf. Isa 66:1). Heaven and earth meet in the Holy of Holies in the temple in Jerusalem.
SPECIAL TOPIC: ARK OF THE COVENANT
Psa 11:4-5 a YHWH knows (imperfects which denote characteristic actions)
1. what happens on earth
2. the motives of the human heart
He tests (BDB 103, KB 119, Qal imperfect, cf. Job 7:18; Psa 7:9; Psa 26:2; Psa 139:1; Psa 139:23) the sins of men (ben Adam), both the righteous and the wicked. The NT records the event in Mat 12:36-37; Mat 16:27; Mat 25:31-46; Act 10:42; Rom 2:16; Rom 14:10; Rom 14:12; 1Pe 4:5; and Rev 20:11-15. God’s testing is both in time (temporal) and beyond time (eschatological). Often we do reap in this life what we sow, but if not, a day is coming!
SPECIAL TOPIC: GOD TESTS HIS PEOPLE
SPECIAL TOPIC: THAT DAY
Psa 11:5 His soul hates This is anthropomorphic language. See Special Topic: God Described as Human . See Exo 15:9; Isa 1:14; Jer 5:9; Jer 5:29; Jer 6:8; Jer 9:9; Jer 32:41; Eze 23:18 for the same use of nephesh (BDB 659, see note at Psa 3:2 and Gen 35:18).
It is possible that this verse deals with only the wicked and that the righteous is a title for God (cf. Psa 11:3 b). If so, YHWH and the Just One are in apposition (cf. Psa 11:3 b, 7a).
The OT lists several things YHWH hates.
1. idolatry Deu 12:31; Deu 16:22; Jer 44:4; Hos 9:15
2. all who do iniquity Psa 5:5
3. one who loves violence Psa 11:5
4-10. see lists in Pro 6:16-19 (also note Zec 8:16-17)
11. the false, sham worship of Israel Isa 1:14; Amo 5:21; Amo 6:8
1. divorce Mal 2:16
Psa 11:6
NASB, NKJV,
NRSV, NJB,
LXXHe will rain
NET BibleMay the Lord rain down
The verb (BDB 565, KB 574) is a jussive which the NET Bible and the Anchor Bible translate accurately, but the other translations assume it is jussive in form but not in meaning.
NASB, MT,
LXXsnares
NASB margincoals of fire
NKJV, NRSV,
TEV, NJB,
JPSOAcoals
The context seems to demand an emendation from snares, (BDB 809) to coals, (BDB 809). The UBS Text Project gives snares a B rating.
Psa 11:6 b Does this refer to
1. hyperbolic poetic imagery about the circumstances of this life
2. the reality of judgment in the afterlife (cf. Deu 32:22)
See SPECIAL TOPIC: Where Are the Dead? .
fire This is a recurrent metaphor of judgment and cleansing.
SPECIAL TOPIC: FIRE
NASB, NKJVburning wind
NRSV, TEV,
NJB, JPSOA,
NRSV, REBscorching wind
LXXa wind of a tempest
NETwhirlwind
This rare term (BDB 273) basically means heat. It is used in
1. Psa 11:6 describing a wind
2. Psa 119:53 as burning indignation
3. Lamentation Psa 5:10 as burning famine
The interpretive question is, Does this term continue the series of nouns (BDB 809, 77, 172, cf. Job 1:16) or start a new metaphor?
1. destructive whirlwind (cf. Psa 58:9; Pro 1:27; Hos 8:7; Amo 1:14; Nah 1:3)
2. hot desert wind (cf. Psa 90:5-6; Psa 103:15-16)
their cup This is a Hebrew idiom for a person’s destiny, usually negative (cf. Psa 75:8, but occasionally positive, cf. Psa 16:5). It is associated with drunkenness (cf. Isa 51:17; Jer 25:15).
This same idiom was used by Jesus in
1. Mat 20:22; Mar 10:38-39
2. Mat 26:39; Mat 26:42; Mar 14:36; Luk 22:42
3. Joh 18:11
Psa 11:7 YHWH is characterized as righteous (see Special Topic: Righteousness , cf. Exo 9:27; Ezr 9:15; Neh 9:8; Psa 119:137; Jer 12:1; Lam 1:18; Joh 17:25; Rev 16:5; Rev 16:7).
Some of the actions of the righteous God are:
1. He tests the hearts of men Ps. 7:9; 11:5; Jer 20:12
2. He judges in righteousness Psa 7:11
3. He loves righteousness Psa 11:7; Psa 33:5; Psa 146:8
4. He is gracious and righteous Psa 116:5
5. He cuts the cords of the wicked Psa 129:4
6. He is righteous in all His ways Psa 145:7; Dan 9:14
Psa 11:7 b The upright will behold His face One wonders if this is the source of Jesus’ words in Mat 5:8. God is holy (Lev 19:2; Mat 5:48). No one can see God and live (i.e., Exo 33:11; Exo 33:17-23), yet those who are pronounced righteous in Him/Jesus will have intimate fellowship with Deity (cf. Job 19:25-27; Psa 17:15; Mat 5:8; 1Jn 3:2)!
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
This is a study guide commentary, which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.
These discussion questions are provided to help you think through the major issues of this section of the book. They are meant to be thought-provoking, not definitive.
1. What does take refuge mean?
2. Explain Psa 11:3 in your own words.
3. From Psa 11:4, where is YHWH, heaven or the temple?
4. Does YHWH test humans (Psa 11:5)?
How and why?
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
eyes . . . eyelids. Figure of speech Anthropopatheia. App-6.
children = sons.
men. Hebrew. ‘adam. App-14.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
The Lord: Psa 9:11, Psa 18:6, Exo 40:34, Exo 40:35, 1Ch 17:5, Hab 2:20, Zec 2:13, 2Th 2:4
the Lord’s: Psa 2:4, Psa 103:19, Isa 66:1, Mat 5:34, Mat 23:21, Act 7:49, Rev 4:2
his eyes: Psa 33:13, Psa 44:21, Psa 66:7, 2Ch 16:9, Pro 15:3, Jer 17:10, Jer 23:24, Heb 4:13
Reciprocal: Gen 11:5 – General Gen 18:19 – For I Gen 18:23 – Wilt Jos 4:3 – twelve stones 1Ki 8:39 – for thou 2Ch 6:30 – thou only Job 24:23 – yet his eyes Job 33:27 – I have sinned Psa 7:8 – The Lord Psa 53:2 – looked Psa 78:59 – God Psa 94:9 – hear Psa 113:6 – humbleth Psa 123:1 – O thou Psa 139:1 – thou hast Pro 5:21 – General Isa 26:7 – most Jer 5:3 – are not thine Jer 25:30 – his holy Amo 9:8 – the eyes Jon 2:7 – holy Mic 1:2 – the Lord from Hab 1:13 – of Mat 23:22 – by the Luk 11:2 – which 1Pe 3:12 – the eyes
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Psa 11:4. The Lord is in his holy temple The psalmist, having, in the first verse, declared that his trust was in Jehovah, and having mentioned the advice of his friends, is supposed to be now proceeding to show the fitness and propriety of his trust, notwithstanding the seeming desperate situation of affairs. His words, considered as being spoken in reply to his friends, may be interpreted as follows: My answer to you is, that the world is not governed by chance, nor can men carry things just as they please; but the Lord, into whose holy palace no unjust counsels can possibly enter, who observes every thing from his temple in the heavens, and whose throne is infinitely above that of the greatest king on earth: He, I say, is the supreme and most righteous ruler of all affairs; and no mischief can be so secretly contrived, no wicked design so artfully dissembled, but it lies open before his eyes, and he sees through it. Nor need he take any pains to discover it, for at the first glance, as we speak, he perfectly discerns how all men are inclined, and looks to the very bottom of their hearts.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
11:4 The LORD [is] in his holy temple, the LORD’S throne [is] in heaven: his eyes {d} behold, his eyelids try, the children of men.
(d) Though all things in earth are out of order, yet God will execute judgment from heaven.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
2. Confidence in God 11:4-7
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
David’s perspective included God’s throne in heaven, the symbol of His royal rule and authority to judge. There he visualized Yahweh sitting in perfect control over the nation He had created and promised to maintain (cf. Hab 2:20). The pagans thought their gods dwelt in heavenly temples, but Yahweh really did. The anthropomorphic description of God’s eyes and eyelids (parallelism) portrays His close scrutiny and precise awareness of all that was going on in Israel. He was not unaware of His people’s plight.