Psalms 141:3

Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips. SET A WATCH, O LORD, BEFORE MY MOUTH ... INCLINE NOT MY HEART TO ANY EVIL THING, TO PRACTICE WICKED WORKS - (cf. .) God, in judicial retribution, gives up the froward to their evil inclinations. The heart is the fountain of evil. We need to pray God not to 'lead us into temptation,' by judicial reprobation (James 1:13; ). In he prays for preservation from sin of tongue; in , from sin of deed. Psalms 39:1 is a comme...

3._Set a watch, O Jehovah! upon my mouth_. As David was liable to be hurt at the unbridled and unprincipled rage of his enemies, so as to be tempted to act in a manner that might not be justifiable, he prays for divine direction, and not that he might be kept back from manual violence merely, but that his tongue might be restrained from venting reproach, or words of complaint. Even persons of the most self-possessed temper, if unwarrantably injured, will some — times proceed to make retaliation, through their resenting the unbecoming conduct of their enemies. David prays accordingly that his tongue might be restrained by the Lord from uttering any word which was out of joint. Next he seeks that his heart be kept back from every mischievous device that might issue in revenge. The words added — _that I may not eat of their delicacies_, are to be understood figuratively, as a petition that...

1-4 Make haste unto me. Those that know how to value God's gracious presence, will be the more fervent in their prayers. When presented through the sacrifice and intercession of the Saviour, they will be as acceptable to God as the daily sacrifices and burnings of incense were of old. Prayer is a spiritual sacrifice, it is the offering up the soul and its best affections. Good men know the evil of tongue sins. When enemies are provoking, we are in danger of speaking unadvisedly. While we live in an evil world, and have such evil hearts, we have need to pray that we may neither be drawn nor driven to do any thing sinful. Sinners pretend to find dainties in sin; but those that consider how soon sin will turn into bitterness, will dread such dainties, and pray to God to take them out of their sight, and by his grace to turn their hearts against them. Good men pray against the sweets of sin....

Verse Psalms 141:3. _SET A WATCH, O LORD, BEFORE MY MOUTH_] While there are so many spies on my actions and words, I have need to be doubly guarded, that my enemies may have no advantage against me. Some think the prayer is against _impatience_; but if he were now going to Gath, it is more natural to suppose that he was praying to be preserved from _dishonouring the truth_, and from making _sinful_ _concessions_ in a heathen land; and at a court where, from his circumstances, it was natural to suppose he might be _tempted to_ _apostasy_ by the heathen party. The following verse seems to support this opinion....

SET A WATCH, O LORD, BEFORE MY MOUTH - That I may not say anything rashly, unadvisedly, improperly. Compare Psalms 39:1. The prayer here is, that God would guard him from the temptation to say something wrong. To this he seems to have been prompted by the circumstances of the case, and by the advice of those who were with him. See introduction to the psalm. Compare the notes at Psalms 11:1. KEEP THE DOOR OF MY LIPS - That my lips or mouth may not open except when it is proper and right; when something good and true is to be said. Nothing can be more proper than “this” prayer; nothing more desirable than that God should keep us from saying what we ought not to say....

EXPOSITION ALMOST wholly a psalm of supplication. David is again in danger, and needs a prompt deliverance (Psalms 141:1). This time the danger seems to be that he may fall away, and be absorbed into the company of the wicked. He therefore prays: 1. That prayer may be with him a settled institution (Psalms 141:2). 2. That he may be saved from sins of the tongue (Psalms 141:3). 3. That he may be saved from sins of thought or act (Psalms 141:4). 4. That he may be given grace to welcome reproof ...

SET A WATCH, O LORD, BEFORE MY MOUTH,.... While praying, as Jarchi and Kimchi; that he might not utter any rash, unguarded, and unbecoming word; but take and use the words which God gives, even the taught words of the Holy Ghost; or lest, being under affliction and oppression, he should speak unadvisedly with his lips, and utter any impatient murmuring and repining word against God; or express any fretfulness at the prosperity of the wicked, or speak evil of them; especially of Saul, the Lord's anointed, for the ill usage of him; KEEP THE DOOR OF MY LIPS; which are as a door that opens and shuts: this he desires might be kept as with a bridle, especially while the wicked were before him; lest he should say anything they would use against him, and to the reproach of religion; and that no corrupt communication, or any foolish and filthy talk, or idle and unprofitable words, might proceed...

Psalms 141:1. _LORD, I cry unto thee: make haste unto me; give ear unto my voice, when I cry unto thee._ You see how a child of God prays when he is in trouble. David says, «I cry unto thee,» and then the second time, «I cry unto thee.» And he cried for God as well as to him: «Make haste unto me.» The very best thing you can do, when you cannot help yourself, is to cry unto God, for he will help you. Psalms 141:2. _Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice._ David was probably far away from the tabernacle, and he could not join in presenting the morning or the evening sacrifice there; but he prayed God to let his prayer be such a sacrifice: «Let it be sweet as the perfume of the smoking spices of the m

PSALM 140-142 These three Psalms are Psalms of David. The third one in this series, 142 is another Maschil, the last Maschil Psalm, being a prayer when David was in the cave. In these Psalms the distress of Israel, the godly remnant of Israel, is again remembered. In Psalms 140:1 we see prophetically the evil and violent man, that man of sin of the last days. And therefore have we one more imprecatory prayer for the destruction of the wicked (verse 10). The last verses look forward to the overthrow of the wicked and the exaltation of the righteous. In Psalms 141:1 the righteous are seen in separation from the wicked, and the prayer for preservation. Psalms 142:1 contains continued prayer for deliverance

CXLI. FOR LOYALTY TO GOD AND HIS SAINTS. Psalms 141:1 f. The Psalmist begs Yahweh to hear his prayer. He utters this prayer in his house, and in true prophetic spirit hopes that it will be as acceptable as the incense or the evening sacrifice offered by the priest in the Temple. For similar instances of the same spiritual view, see Psalms 40, 51, Psalms 69:31. Observe that the Decalogue prescribes no ritual observance except the rest on the Sabbath. PSALMS 141:3. A petition to be saved from rash words. He prefers to the dainties of the wicked the rebukes of the righteous. The words here condemned may refer to disloyal speech occasioned by the prosperity of the wicked, always a puzzle to pious Jews.