Psalms 12:1

Help Render save, as in Psalms 3:7; Psalms 6:4; Psalms 7:1, and elsewhere; and note the connexion with in safety, Psalms 12:5.

for the godly man ceaseth&c. Godly, or kindly, men are no more: the faithful fail (or as R.V. marg., faithfulness faileth) from among the sons of men. Mercy and truth, lovingkindness and trustworthiness, seem to have become extinct. Similar complaints are common in the prophets. See Hosea 4:1; Micah 7:2; Isaiah 57:1; Isaiah 59:14 ff.; Jeremiah 5:1 ff; Jeremiah 7:28; Jeremiah 9:2 ff. For the meaning of godlysee note on Psalms 4:3 and Appendix, Note I. Here it means -one who practises lovingkindness towards his fellow-men as a religious duty."