The Eastern Cross/Bible/Psalms/Psalm 93
The Book of Psalms · the Psalter
Psalm 94 in the KJV and most English Bibles
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A Psalm of David for the fourth day of the week. The Lord is a God of vengeance; The God of vengeance has declared himself.
Ψαλμὸς τῷ Δαυὶδ τετράδι σαββάτου. Θεὸς ἐκδικήσεων Κύριος, ὁ Θεὸς ἐκδικήσεων ἐπαῤῥησιάσατο.
Let us now attend to the Psalm. "The Lord is the God of vengeance; the God of vengeance hath dealt confidently" (ver. 1). Dost thou think that He doth not punish? "The God of vengeance" punisheth. What is, "The God of vengeance"? The God of punishments. Thou murmurest surely because the bad are not punished: yet do…
Be thou exalted, thou that judgest the earth: Render a reward to the proud.
Ὑψώθητι ὁ κρίνων τὴν γῆν, ἀπόδος ἀνταπόδοσιν τοῖς ὑπερηφάνοις.
And what followed, because He dealt confidently? "Be exalted, Thou Judge of the world" (ver. 2). Because they imprisoned Him when humble, thinkest thou they will imprison Him when exalted? Because they judged Him when mortal, will they not be judged by Him when immortal? What then saith He? "Be exalted," Thou, who…
How long shall sinners, O Lord, How long shall sinners boast?
Ἕως πότε ἁμαρτωλοὶ, Κύριε, ἕως πότε ἁμαρτωλοὶ καυχήσονται;
"Lord, how long shall the ungodly, how long shall the ungodly triumph?". "They answer, and will speak wickedness, they all will speak that work unrighteousness". What is their saying, but against God, when they say: What profits it us that we live thus? What will you reply? Does God truly regard our deeds? For because…
They will utter and speak unrighteousness; All the workers of iniquity will speak so.
Φθέγξονται καὶ λαλήσουσιν ἀδικίαν, λαλήσουσι πάντες οἱ ἐργαζόμενοι τὴν ἀνομίαν.
They have afflicted thy people, O Lord, And hurt thy heritage.
Τὸν λαόν σου, Κύριε, ἐταπείνωσαν, καὶ τὴν κληρονομίαν σου ἐκάκωσαν.
"The Lord knows the thoughts of man, that they are but vain". For although you know not the thoughts of God, that they are righteous; "He knows the thoughts of man, that they are but vain." Even men have known the thoughts of God: but those to whom He has become a friend, it is to them He shows His counsel. Do not,…
"Blessed is the man whom You chasten, O Lord: and teachest him from Your law". Behold, you have the counsel of God, wherefore He spares the wicked: the pit is being dug for the sinner. You wish to bury him at once: the pit is as yet being dug for him: do not be in haste to bury him. What mean the words, "until the pit…
"That You may give him patience in days of malice: until the pit be dug up for the ungodly". Have patience therefore every one, if you are a Christian, in time of malice. Days of malice are those in which the ungodly appear to flourish, and the righteous to suffer; but the suffering of the righteous is the rod of the…
...Do thou rejoice beneath the scourge: because the heritage is kept for thee, "for the Lord will not cast off His people" (ver. 14). He chasteneth for a season, He condemneth not for ever: the others He spareth for a season, and will condemn them for evermore. Make thy choice: dost thou wish temporary suffering, or…
"Until righteousness," he saith, "turn again unto judgment, and all they that have it are right in heart" (ver. 15). Listen now, and gain righteousness: for judgment thou canst not yet have. Thou shouldest gain righteousness first; but that very righteousness of thine shall turn unto judgment. The Apostles had…
"Who will rise up for me against the wicked? or who will take my part against the evil doers?" (ver. 16). Many persuade us to divers evils: the serpent ceaseth not to whisper to thee to work iniquity: whichever way thou shalt turn, if perchance thou hast done well, thou seekest to live well with some one, and thou…
"If the Lord," he saith, "had not helped me: within a little my soul had dwelt in hell" (ver. 17). I had almost plunged into that pit which is preparing for sinners: that is, my soul had dwelt in hell. Because he already began to waver, and nearly to consent, he looked back unto the Lord. Suppose, for example's sake,…
"If I said, My foot has slipt; Your mercy, O Lord, held me up". See how God loves confession. Your foot has slipt, and you say not, my foot has slipt; but you say you are firm, when you are slipping. The moment you begin to slip or waver, confess thou that slip, that you may not bewail your total fall; that He may…
"Wilt Thou have anything to do with the stool of iniquity, who makest sorrow in learning?" (ver. 20). He hath said this, No wicked man sitteth with Thee, nor shall Thou have anything to do with the stool of iniquity. And he giveth an account whereof he understandeth this, "For Thou makest sorrow in learning." For from…
For what follows? "They will be captious against the soul of the righteous". Why will they be captious? Because they can find no true ground of accusation. For how were they captious against our Lord? They made up false accusations, [Matthew 26:59] because they could not find true ones. "And will condemn the innocent…
"And the Lord has become my refuge", he says. You would not seek such a refuge, if you were not in danger: but you have therefore been in danger, that you might seek for it: for He teaches us by sorrow. He causes me tribulation from the malice of the wicked: pricked with that tribulation, I begin to seek a refuge…
"And the Lord shall recompense them according to their works, and after their own malice; the Lord our God shall destroy them" (ver. 23). The words, "after their own malice," are not said without meaning. I am benefited through them: and yet it is said to be their malice, and not their benefits. For assuredly He…
..."They have humbled Thy people, O Lord; and have troubled Thine heritage" (ver. 5). "They have murdered the widow, and the fatherless: and slain the proselyte" (ver. 6); that is, the traveller, the pilgrim: the comer from far, as the Psalmist calleth himself. Each of these expressions is too clear in meaning to make…
"And they have said, The Lord shall not see" (ver. 7): He observeth not, regardeth not these things: He careth for other matters, He understandeth not. These are the two assertions of the wicked: one which I have just quoted, "These things hast thou done, and I held my tongue, and thou thoughtest unrighteousness, that…
"He that planted the ear, shall He not hear? Or He that made the eye, does He not consider?" "or He that instructs the nations, shall He not reprove?". This is what God is at present doing: He is instructing the nations: for this reason he sent His word to man throughout the world: He sent it by Angels, by Patriarchs,…
Every note is a real passage, quoted word for word from a published English translation, with its source. Nothing here is summarised or written by us. Some verses have many notes and some have none, because the Fathers wrote more on some passages than others.
All of these translations are in the public domain. The passages were matched to their verses by the Historical Christian Commentaries project, which also hosts the full texts we link to. The Fathers are a treasury of the Church's mind, and they are best read alongside the life of the Church: if a passage raises a question, bring it to your priest.