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Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible

Psalms 5:8

‘Lead me, O YHWH, in your righteousness because of my enemies,

Make your way level before my face.'

He asks God, because He is righteous, to lead him, in view of those who lie in wait for him. He needs protection from those who are seeking to entrap him, and asks that God will show him the way ahead, and will keep his path level so that he will not stumble or fall on it.

For ‘in your righteousness' see Psalms 31:1; Psalms 71:2; Psalms 119:40; Psalms 143:1; Psalms 143:11, where it clearly means ‘because you are righteous'.

The psalmist claims no merit of his own. He can walk in righteousness because the righteous God leads him, and because he has been forgiven. But it is God Who must lead him forward and make the way before him a level plain.

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See also Psalms 5:8 in other biblical comments:

  • Adam Clarke Bible Commentary

    Verse Psalms 5:8. _LEAD ME, O LORD, IN THY RIGHTEOUSNESS_] When entered into the house, and prostrated before the _temple_, he knew that, unless God continued to _lead_ and direct, he was not likely t...

  • Albert Barnes' Bible Commentary

    :Title UPON NEHILOTH - The title of Psalms 4:1 is, “upon Neginoth.” As that refers to a musical instrument, so it is probable that this does, and that the idea here is that this psalm was intended par...

  • Albert Barnes' Bible Commentary

    LEAD ME, O LORD, IN THY RIGHTEOUSNESS - That is, conduct me safely in the manifestation of the principles of justice or righteousness which belong to thy nature. David felt assured that his was a righ...

  • Annotated Bible by A.C. Gaebelein

    Psalms 5 _ 1.The cry to God the King (Psalms 5:1)_ 2. Hating iniquity and trusting in mercy (Psalms 5:4) 3. Prayer for guidance and judgment (Psalms 5:8

  • Arthur Peake's Commentary on the Bible

    V. A HYMN FOR MORNING SACRIFICE IN THE TEMPLE. Psalms 5:1. Solemn invocation of Yahweh. The Psalmist sets in order (Psalms 5:3), not perhaps his prayer (RV), but his sacrifice, the victim and the kind...

  • Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes

    THY WAY: not mine....

  • Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible

    MAKE THY WAYS STRAIGHT, &C.— _Make thy way plain before me; i.e._ "That I may walk on it evenly and smoothly, without stumbling, which mine enemies would gladly take hold of." See Psalms 143:10....

  • College Press Bible Study Textbook Series

    PSALMS 5 DESCRIPTIVE TITLE A Morning Prayer for Deliverance from Conspirators. ANALYSIS Stanza I., Psalms 5:1-3, Petitions Pleaded to which an Answer is Awaited. Stanza II., Psalms 5:4-6, Jehovah's...

  • Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

    _LEAD ME, O LORD, IN THY RIGHTEOUSNESS BECAUSE OF MINE ENEMIES; MAKE THY WAY STRAIGHT BEFORE MY FACE._ The matter of Psalms 5:8 is parallel to that Psalms 5:3. A prayer; the plea whereon it rests; the...

  • Darby's translation notes (1890)

    5:8 plain (c-14) Lit. 'straight.'...

  • Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible

    This is a morning prayer before going to the sanctuary. The chief difficulty in ascribing it to David lies in the reference (Psalms 5:7) to 'thy holy temple.' The word means a 'palace,' and is not str...

  • Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible

    STRAIGHT] RV 'plain,' level, easy to walk in....

  • EasyEnglish Bible Commentaries

    Psalms 1:41 _GORDON CHURCHYARD_ Words in boxes are from the Bible. The notes explain some of the words with a *star by them. Tap the * before a word to show an explanation. The translated Bible tex...

  • Ellicott's Commentary On The Whole Bible

    ENEMIES. — Literally, _those watching for, or lying in wait._ Aquila and Jerome both give “those lying in ambush.” God’s guidance and protection would enable the good man to avoid their snares, and to...

  • ETCBC data on Hebrew bible

    _[Psalms 5:9]_ יְהוָ֤ה ׀ נְחֵ֬נִי בְ צִדְקָתֶ֗ךָ לְמַ֥עַן...

  • Expositor's Bible Commentary (Nicoll)

    Psalms 5:1 THE reference to the temple in Psalms 5:7 is not conclusive against the Davidic authorship of this psalm, since the same word is applied in 1 Samuel 1:9; 1

  • Frederick Brotherton Meyer's Commentary

    PROTECTION FROM THE WICKED Psalms 5:1 The _ordering_ of prayer is very necessary, Genesis 22:9. Our Lord's prayer should be our model. Often our _words_ need to be supplemented by our _meditations;_...

  • G. Campbell Morgan's Exposition on the Whole Bible

    This is another song of the morning. It opens with language which reveals the reason of the soul's assurance as it faces another day. First are petitions asking the attention of Jehovah. These are fol...

  • Geneva Study Bible Commentary

    Lead me, O LORD, in thy righteousness (f) because of mine enemies; make thy way straight before my face. (f) Because you are just, therefore lead me out of the dangers of my enemies....

  • George Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary

    _Mercy, not trusting in my own merit, (Haydock) but with the greatest awe. (Calmet) --- The just trust in mercy, not in man's power. --- Temple, the Church, and in God's presence. (Worthington) --- So...

  • Hawker's Poor man's commentary

    The Spirit was given without measure to Jesus, and it is our happiness that from him and in him, the holy unction, poured out on the head of our glorious High Priest, our Aaron, runs down to the skirt...

  • John Calvin's Bible Commentary

    8._O Jehovah, lead me forth, etc. _Some explain these words thus: Show me what is right, and make me wholly devoted to the practice of that righteousness which adorns thy character; and do this becaus...

  • John Darby's Synopsis

    In Psalms 5 the cry of the godly is presented, and the character of God, as necessarily responding to that of the godly, is appealed to as necessitating His hearing him and judging the wicked. If the...

  • John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

    LEAD ME, O LORD, IN THY RIGHTEOUSNESS,.... Not in mine, but thine; in the righteousness of God, which is revealed in the Gospel, from faith to faith, and is imputed by God, and received by faith; in t...

  • John Trapp Complete Commentary

    Lead me, O LORD, in thy righteousness because of mine enemies; make thy way straight before my face. Ver. 8. _Lead me, O Lord, in thy righteousness_] That is, in thy faithfulness, and according to th...

  • Joseph Benson’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

    _Lead me, O Lord_ Direct my heart, and counsels, and affairs, and all the course and actions of my life; _in thy righteousness_ In thy righteous laws, or, _for_, or, _because of_, or, _according to, t...

  • Kretzmann's Popular Commentary of the Bible

    MORNING PRAYER BEFORE WORSHIP. To the chief musician, for use in the liturgical service, upon Nehiloth, flutes or wind instruments of the Temple-orchestra, a psalm of David. David was at this time in...

  • Kretzmann's Popular Commentary of the Bible

    Lead me, O Lord, in Thy righteousness, in the virtue of true piety, which is a gift of God, BECAUSE OF MINE ENEMIES, the adversaries who were carefully watching, who would have been more than pleased...

  • Marginal Notes in the King James Version (1611)

    MINE ENEMIES: _ Heb._ those which observe me...

  • Matthew Henry Commentary on the Whole Bible

    7-12 David prayed often alone, yet was very constant in attendance on public worship. The mercy of God should ever be the foundation both of our hope and of our joy, in every thing wherein we have to...

  • Matthew Poole's Concise Commentary On The Bible

    LEAD ME; direct my heart, and counsels, and affairs, and all the course and actions of my life. IN THY RIGHTEOUSNESS; in thy righteous laws; which sometimes are called righteousness, as PSALMS 119:172...

  • Patchworkid's Personal Study Bible Notes

    Psalms 5:8 Lead H5148 (H8798) LORD H3068 righteousness H6666 enemies H8324 (H8802) way H1870 straight H3474 ...

  • Sermon Bible Commentary

    Psalms 5 This Psalm is peculiar in setting forth the characteristics of prayer in general. I. In the first and second verses we have a suggestion of the variety of prayer. (1) "Give ear to my _words...

  • Spurgeon's Bible Commentary

    Psalms 5:1. _Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my meditation._ Sometimes we pray right off, as David did when he cried to the Lord, «Hear me when I call.» At other times, we sit down to meditate...

  • Summarized Bible Commentary

    CONTENTS: David's prayer in which he extols God's holiness and asks judgment upon the wicked. CHARACTERS: God, David. CONCLUSION: Prayer should be both the key of the morning and the bolt of the eve...

  • Sutcliffe's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

    Psalms 5:6. _Leasing;_ a Gothic and primitive word equivalent to falsehood. They professed loyalty to the king, but were traitors in heart, as in Psalms 5:9. Psalms 5:9. _Their throat is an open sepu...

  • The Biblical Illustrator

    _Lead me, O Lord, in Thy righteousness._ A RESOLVE AND A PRAYER God is addressed as a friend. Three things in David’s prayer. 1. What is the rule according to which he looks for this Divine guidanc...

  • The Biblical Illustrator

    _Give ear to my words, O Lord._ THE INWARD AND OUTWARD SIDES OF THE DIVINE LIFE The Psalm falls into two main parts-- Psalms 5:1, and Psalms 5:8. The inward comes first; for communion with God in the...

  • The ESV Global Study Bible's Study Notes

    PSALM PSALM—NOTE ON PSALMS 5:1. This individual lament from David is the first psalm that prays for the downfall of one’s enemies. Such Psalms relate to situations where one is faced with bloodthirsty...

  • The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary

    INTRODUCTION “A morning prayer of David, appealing to God as his king, against whose sovereignty his own enemies were really in rebellion.”—_Kay_. “This psalm must have been composed at Jerusalem, sin...

  • The Pulpit Commentaries

    EXPOSITION THIS psalm is assigned by some to the time of Manasseh, but contains nothing that is really opposed to the superscription—"A Psalm of David"—since, before the temple was built, the tabernac...

  • Through The Bible C2000 Serie by Chuck Smith

    Psa 5:1-12 is a prayer of the morning. Psalms 4:1-8 was the prayer of the evening, and now for the morning. Give ear unto my words, O LORD; consider my meditation. Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my...

  • Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

    2 Samuel 12:14; Hebrews 12:13; Matthew 3:3; Proverbs 3:5; Proverbs 3:6

  • Wesley's Explanatory Notes

    Righteousness — In thy righteous laws. Because — That I may give them no occasion of slandering me, or religion for my sake. The way — The way wherein thou wouldst have to one walk. Plain — That I may...

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