Psalms 119:21 (WEB)

Passage

You have rebuked the proud who are cursed, who wander from your commandments.

Nearby Context

Psalms 119:19 I am a stranger on the earth. Don’t hide your commandments from me.

Psalms 119:20 My soul is consumed with longing for your ordinances at all times.

Psalms 119:21 You have rebuked the proud who are cursed, who wander from your commandments.

Psalms 119:22 Take reproach and contempt away from me, for I have kept your statutes.

Psalms 119:23 Though princes sit and slander me, your servant will meditate on your statutes.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "rebuked", "proud", "cursed", "wander", and "commandments". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "rebuked" and "proud", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 20's "My soul is consumed with longing for..." into verse 22's "Take reproach and contempt away from me...", so "rebuked" and "proud" 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 "rebuked" and "proud" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.