Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Psalms 10:9
He lieth in wait secretly as a lion in his den: he lieth in wait to catch the poor: he doth catch the poor, when he draweth him into his net.
9. Render:
He lieth in ambush in the secret place as a lion in his lair;
He lieth in ambush to catch the poor:
He catcheth the poor, dragging him off with his net.
The wicked man is now described as a lion, lurking in his lair in the forest till his prey comes near. In the third clause the figure is changed for that of a hunter: probably the victim is dragged off to be sold for a slave.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
He lieth in wait secretly – Margin, in the secret places. See the note at Psa 10:8. The object here is merely to illustrate the thought in the previous verse, by an allusion to a lion and a hunter.
As a lion in his den – As a lion crouches down in his den, ready to spring upon his prey. That is, the lion is concealed, but is on the look out, and when his prey passes near his den, he suddenly springs upon it and secures it. So it is with the wicked man. He carefully lays his plans. He conceals his purposes. He is himself hidden, or his plans are all hidden. Suddenly he springs upon his victim, who is taken by surprise and has no power of defense or escape. The purpose here is not so much to describe the wicked man as a literal robber, as to compare the conduct of the wicked with that of a robber – one who, like a lion or a hunter, lies concealed until his victim is seen. This will describe the conduct of a large class of people – men who secretly lay plans of seduction, villany, and fraud, and who spring suddenly upon their victims when there is no hope of escape.
He lieth in wait to catch the poor – The helpless and defenseless.
He doth catch the poor, when he draweth him into his net – As a hunter does the wild beast. Here the same thought is presented under a new image – that of a hunter. He lays his snare, gin, or pit-fall, and when the animal is allured into it, he springs the net suddenly on him, or the animal sinks into the pit, and is secured. See the note at Psa 7:15; the note at Psa 9:15.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
As a lion in his den, where he lurks and waits for prey.
He doth catch, or snatch, or seize upon, to wit, with violence, and to devour or destroy him.
When he draweth him; or, by drawing him; or, after he hath drawn him. He layeth snares for him, and when he takes him, tears him in pieces.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
7-10. The malignity and deceit(Ps 140:3) of such arefollowed by acts combining cunning, fraud, and violence (comparePro 1:11; Pro 1:18),aptly illustrated by the habits of the lion, and of hunters takingtheir prey. “Poor,” in Psa 10:8;Psa 10:10; Psa 10:14,represents a word peculiar to this Psalm, meaning the sad orsorrowful; in Ps 10:9, asusual, it means the pious or meek sufferer.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
He lieth in wait secretly as a lion,…. The first beast in
Re 13:2; is said to have a mouth like a lion, and the second beast in
Ps 10:11; spake like a dragon; and both design one and the same, antichrist, in his twofold capacity, civil and ecclesiastical; this metaphor of the lion lying in wait secretly for his prey denotes the insidious methods used by antichrist to destroy the faithful witnesses of Christ; who lies like a lion
in his den, in the temple of God, now become a den of thieves;
he lieth in wait to catch the poor: to snatch and carry them away captive as his prey; see Re 13:10;
he doth catch the poor when he draweth him into his net; this metaphor is taken from fowlers, who spread nets, into which they allure and draw the birds and catch them. The allurements, snares, and nets, which antichrist lays to catch the poor saints and people of God in, are the riches and honours of this world, great pretensions to holiness, devotion; and religion, and many lying signs and wonders.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
The picture of the , who is become as it were a beast of prey, is now worked out further. The lustrum of the lion is called Jer 25:38, or Job 38:40: a thicket, from , which means both to interweave and to plait over = to cover (without any connection with a thorn, Arab. shok , a thistle). The figure of the lion is reversed in the second line, the himself being compared to the beast of prey and the to a hunter who drives him into the pit-fall and when he has fallen in hastens to drag him away ( , as in Psa 28:3; Job 24:22) in, or by means of (Hos 11:4, Job 41:1), his net, in which he has become entangled.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
In the next verse, he sets forth their cruelty in a light still more aggravated, by another comparison, saying, that they thirst for their prey like lions in their dens Now, it is a step higher in wickedness to equal in cruelty wild beasts than to make havoc after the manner of robbers. It is worthy of remark, that he always joins deceits and snares with violence, in order the better to show how miserable the children of God would be, unless they were succoured by help from heaven. There is also added another similitude, which expresses more clearly how craft in catching victims is mingled with cruelty. They catch them, says he but it is by drawing them into their net By these words he means, that they not only rush upon them with open force and violence, but that, at the same time also, they spread their nets in order to deceive.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(9) Lieth in wait.A confusion of metaphor. The wicked is first, the lion watching for his prey, and then the hunter snaring animals. Poor, herebetter, afflicted (see Psa. 9:12). Translate, in his hiding-place he lurks, as a lion in his lair, lurks to seize a sufferer, seizes a sufferer, drawing him into his net.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
9. Secretly as a lion The figure is now borrowed from the habits of beasts of prey, the most perfect for secrecy, wariness, deceit, and cruelty.
In his den Rather, in his covert, or covered place, where he watches for prey.
Draweth him into his net The figure changes to the method of the hunter in catching wild animals.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Psa 10:9. He lieth in wait He lurketh in ambush, as a lion in his den; he lurketh to catch the poor: he doth catch the poor, by drawing him into his net.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Psa 10:9 He lieth in wait secretly as a lion in his den: he lieth in wait to catch the poor: he doth catch the poor, when he draweth him into his net.
Ver. 9. He lieth in wait secretly as a lion in his den ] See Job 38:40 , See Trapp on “ Job 38:40 “
When he draweth him into his net
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
He lieth: Psa 17:12, Psa 59:3, Mic 7:2, Act 23:21
secretly: Heb. in the secret places, Lam 3:10, Amo 3:4, Nah 2:11, Nah 2:12, Zec 11:3
to catch: Jer 5:26, Eze 19:3-6, Hab 1:15, Joh 10:12
when: Psa 12:5, Psa 35:10, Psa 37:14, Psa 109:31, Job 5:15, Job 5:16, Pro 14:31, Pro 22:16, Pro 28:15, Isa 3:15, Isa 32:7, Eze 22:29, Amo 2:6, Amo 2:7, Amo 5:11, Amo 5:12, Hab 3:14
Reciprocal: 2Sa 15:5 – took him Psa 7:2 – like Psa 11:2 – that Psa 38:12 – lay snares Psa 57:4 – among Psa 64:4 – shoot Psa 71:10 – and they Psa 83:3 – They Pro 12:12 – desireth Pro 30:14 – to devour Ecc 4:1 – and considered Eze 38:11 – go up Dan 6:7 – he shall Dan 6:11 – assembled Hos 7:6 – they Mat 2:7 – General Eph 4:14 – lie