Psalms 55:21 (WEB)

Passage

His mouth was smooth as butter, but his heart was war. His words were softer than oil, yet they were drawn swords.

Nearby Context

Psalms 55:19 God, who is enthroned forever, will hear, and answer them. Selah. They never change, who don’t fear God.

Psalms 55:20 He raises his hands against his friends. He has violated his covenant.

Psalms 55:21 His mouth was smooth as butter, but his heart was war. His words were softer than oil, yet they were drawn swords.

Psalms 55:22 Cast your burden on Yahweh, and he will sustain you. He will never allow the righteous to be moved.

Psalms 55:23 But you, God, will bring them down into the pit of destruction. Bloodthirsty and deceitful men shall not live out half their days, but I will trust in you.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "mouth", "smooth", "butter", "heart", "words", "softer", "than", and "drawn". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "mouth" and "smooth", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 20's "He raises his hands against his friends..." into verse 22's "Cast your burden on Yahweh and he...", so "mouth" and "smooth" 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 "mouth" and "smooth" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.