Psalms 51 (DRB)

Chapter Text

51:1 Unto the end, understanding for David,

51:2 When Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul: David went to the house of Achimelech.

51:3 Why dost thou glory in malice, thou that art mighty in iniquity?

51:4 All the day long thy tongue hath devised injustice: as a sharp razor, thou hast wrought deceit.

51:5 Thou hast loved malice more than goodness: and iniquity rather than to speak righteousness.

51:6 Thou hast loved all the words of ruin, O deceitful tongue.

51:7 Therefore will God destroy thee for ever: he will pluck thee out, and remove thee from thy dwelling place: and thy root out of the land of the living.

51:8 The just shall see and fear, and shall laugh at him, and say:

51:9 Behold the man that made not God his helper: But trusted in the abundance of his riches: and prevailed in his vanity.

51:10 But I, as a fruitful olive tree in the house of God, have hoped in the mercy of God for ever, yea for ever and ever.

51:11 I will praise thee for ever, because thou hast done it: and I will wait on thy name, for it is good in the sight of thy saints.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "mercy", "understanding", "david", "doeg", "edomite", "came", "told", and "saul". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "mercy" and "understanding", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The local DRB text gives this verse as the immediate unit, so "mercy" and "understanding" carries the first interpretive weight. 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 "mercy" and "understanding" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.