Psalms 12 (ASV)

Chapter Text

12:1 Help, Jehovah; for the godly man ceaseth; For the faithful fail from among the children of men.

12:2 They speak falsehood every one with his neighbor: With flattering lip, and with a double heart, do they speak.

12:3 Jehovah will cut off all flattering lips, The tongue that speaketh great things;

12:4 Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail; Our lips are our own: who is lord over us?

12:5 Because of the oppression of the poor, because of the sighing of the needy, Now will I arise, saith Jehovah; I will set him in the safety he panteth for.

12:6 The words of Jehovah are pure words; As silver tried in a furnace on the earth, Purified seven times.

12:7 Thou wilt keep them, O Jehovah, Thou wilt preserve them from this generation for ever.

12:8 The wicked walk on every side, When vileness is exalted among the sons of men. Psalm 13 For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "faith", "help", "jehovah", "godly", "ceaseth", "faithful", "fail", and "children". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "faith" and "help", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The local ASV text gives this verse as the immediate unit, so "faith" and "help" carries the first interpretive weight. In The LORD as Shepherd, the local focus is trust, covenant mercy, guidance, and worship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "faith" and "help" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.