Psalms 34:21 (DRB)

Passage

And they opened their mouth wide against me; they said: Well done, well done, our eyes have seen it.

Nearby Context

Psalms 34:19 Let not them that are my enemies wrongfully rejoice over me: who have hated me without cause, and wink with the eyes.

Psalms 34:20 For they spoke indeed peaceably to me; and speaking in the anger of the earth they devised guile.

Psalms 34:21 And they opened their mouth wide against me; they said: Well done, well done, our eyes have seen it.

Psalms 34:22 Thou hast seen, O Lord, be not thou silent: O Lord, depart not from me.

Psalms 34:23 Arise, and be attentive to my judgment: to my cause, my God, and my Lord.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "opened", "mouth", "wide", "against", "said", "well", and "done". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "opened" and "mouth", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 20's "For they spoke indeed peaceably to me..." into verse 22's "Thou hast seen O Lord be not...", so "opened" and "mouth" belong inside that flow. In Psalms context, the local focus is worship, trust, the LORD's kingship, and covenant mercy.

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