Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Psalms 94:21
They gather themselves together against the soul of the righteous, and condemn the innocent blood.
21. They gather themselves together ] So the Targ. and Jer., possibly reading ygr, as in Psa 56:6; Psa 59:3. The Mass. text however seems to mean they make raids upon the life of the righteous.
condemn the innocent blood ] I.e. condemn the innocent to death.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
They gather themselves together against the soul of the righteous – Against the life of the righteous; that is, to take their lives. The Hebrew word rendered gather together, means to press or crowd upon anyone; to rush in crowds or troops. It would refer particularly to a tumultuous gathering – a mob – intent on accomplishing its purpose.
And condemn the innocent blood – literally, make guilty; that is, they hold that blood to be guilty; or, they treat the innocent as if they were guilty.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 21. They gather themselves together] In every thing that is evil, they are in unity. The devil, his angels, and his children, all join and draw together when they have for their object the destruction of the works of the Lord. But this was particularly the case with respect to the poor Jews among the Babylonians: they were objects of their continual hatred, and they laboured for their destruction.
This and the following verses have been applied to our Lord, and the treatment he met with both from his own countrymen and from the Romans. They pretended to “judge him according to the law, and framed mischief against him;” they “assembled together against the life of the righteous one,” and “condemned innocent blood;” but God evidently interposed, and “brought upon them their own iniquity,” according to their horrible imprecation: “His blood be upon us and upon our children!” God “cut them off in their own iniquity.” All this had, in reference to him, a most literal fulfilment.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Against the soul; against the life, as the soul commonly signifies, and as the next clause explains it. They are not satisfied with the spoil of their estates, but do also thirst after their lives.
Condemn the innocent blood; they shed the blood of those innocent persons whom they have wickedly condemned. Innocent blood is here put for the blood or life of an innocent person, as it is also 1Sa 19:5; Mat 27:4.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
They gather themselves together,…. As “in troops” h, as the word signifies; in great armies; so the antichristian kings and states will, at the instigation of Popish emissaries; see
Re 16:17,
against the soul of the righteous; or “the life” of them; in order to take away their lives; to cut them off, root and branch, and destroy at once the whole interest of Christ; for it will be to make war with him, and them his followers, who are the righteous here meant, made so by his righteousness, that they will be gathered together in such great numbers:
and condemn the innocent blood; condemn innocent persons to death, shed their blood, and drink it, and to such a degree as to be drunk with it; for in them will be found the blood of the prophets and saints, and of all that are slain on earth, Re 17:6.
h “turmatim conveniunt”, Vatablus, Piscator.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
21. They will gather together against the soul of the righteous As the Hebrew word גדד , gadad, or גוד , gud, (39) signifies to collect forces or a band of men, the Psalmist evidently intimates that he had to do with leading persons of influence, and not with those merely in private station. The term implies too, that it was not merely one or two private individuals who persecuted him, and others of the Lord’s people, but a public convention. Melancholy and disgraceful must the state of matters have been, when the wicked thus ruled in lawful assembly, and those who formed the college of judges were no better than a band of robbers. The case becomes doubly vexatious, when the innocent victims of oppression are not only injured, but have a stigma fixed upon their character. And what more unseemly spectacle, than when the whole course of judicial administration is just a foul conspiracy against good and innocent men? (40) The instance here recorded should prepare us for a like emergency, if it chance to occur in our own day, when the wicked may be permitted, in the providence of God, to mount the seat of judgment, and launch destruction upon the upright and the righteous, under color of law. Intolerable as it might seem at first sight, that persons innocent of any crime should meet with cruel persecution, even from the hands of judges, so as to be loaded with ignominy, we see that God tried his children in other times by this double species of oppression, and that we must learn to bear submissively not only with unrighteous violence, but with charges most injurious to our character, and most undeserved. (41)
(39) “ יגודו, ( ja-ghod-du,) will collect in a troop Targ. ‘will heap together evils;’ LXX. ‘will hunt after.’ From גדד, ran by troops, invaded with an army. ” — Bythner
(40) “ Deinde quid minus consentaneum, quam ut tota forensis ratio nihil aliud sit quam scelesta conspiratio ad insontes damnandos ?” — Lat.
(41) “ Toutesfois pour autant que Dieu a jadis exerce ses serviteurs en l’une et l’autre sorte de tentation, apprenons non seulement de porter patiemment une violence injuste, mais aussi les calomnies indignes,” etc. — Fr.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(21) They gatheri.e., possibly, They crowd into the courts of law to take part in the unjust condemnation of the just, or more generally, They attack the life of the righteous. LXX., they hunt. (Comp. Psa. 35:15.)
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
Psa 94:21 They gather themselves together against the soul of the righteous, and condemn the innocent blood.
Ver. 21. They gather together ] Heb. run by troops, as thieves do.
Against the soul
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
the righteous = a righteous one (singular no Art.)
blood. Put by Figure of speech Synecdoche (of Part), App-6, for man.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
gather: Psa 2:1-3, Psa 22:16, Psa 59:3, Pro 1:11, Pro 1:16, Mat 27:1, Act 4:5-7, Act 4:27, Act 4:28
condemn: Exo 23:7, 1Ki 21:19, Pro 17:15, Jer 26:15, Eze 22:6, Eze 22:12, Eze 22:27, Mat 23:32-36, Act 7:52, Act 7:58-60, Jam 5:6, Rev 17:6
Reciprocal: Gen 37:18 – conspired Gen 49:6 – come Deu 19:10 – General Deu 24:17 – pervert Job 16:10 – gathered Psa 56:7 – escape Psa 140:8 – Grant not Ecc 3:16 – General Isa 5:23 – take Isa 10:1 – them Jer 22:3 – neither Eze 33:26 – and shall Dan 6:15 – Know Amo 6:12 – for Hab 1:4 – for Mat 12:7 – condemned Mat 26:3 – assembled Mat 26:59 – sought Joh 7:24 – General Joh 8:15 – judge Joh 19:13 – and sat Act 26:12 – with Eph 5:11 – no
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Psa 94:21-23. They gather themselves against the soul of the righteous Against the life, as the word here rendered soul commonly signifies, and as the next clause explains it. They are not satisfied with the spoils of the estates of the righteous, but do also thirst after their lives. And condemn the innocent blood They shed the blood of those innocent persons whom they have wickedly condemned. Innocent blood is here put for the blood of innocent persons. But the Lord is my defence Let them decree what they please, and be too hard for all laws; the Lord, who hates unrighteousness, will be my defence; he, who hath long been very gracious to me, will secure me from their violence. He is the rock of my refuge In the clefts of which I may take shelter, and on the top of which I may set my feet, and be out of the reach of danger. He shall bring upon them their own iniquity The fruit and punishment of their iniquity. He shall deal with them according to their desert; and that very mischief which they designed against Gods people shall be brought upon themselves. He shall cut them off in their own wickedness Either in the midst of their sins, or by their own wicked devices, the mischief whereof he will cause to fall upon their own heads. The Lord our God The God of Jacob, of whom they said, he did not see, nor regard them, shall cut them off And they shall find themselves mistaken in their false views and expectations of impunity, to their sorrow; he shall cut them off out of the land of the living; shall cut them off from any fellowship with himself, and so shall make them completely miserable; and their pomp and power shall stand them in no stead.