What does Psalms Chapter 140 say, and which statements belong to its speaker?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

Incense and evening sacrifice are prayer comparisons. Merciful correction and sinner’s oil have an attributed gloss. Judges, scattered bones and alone-until-passing retain separate notes.

Chapter breakdown

Domine, clamavi is the incipit with a heading against sinful words and deceitful flatterers, and a psalm of David inscription. The speaker cried and asks hearing, prayer directed as incense and lifted hands as evening sacrifice. No kneeling scene or actual evening rite is supplied. He asks mouth watch, lip door and heart not inclined to evil words or sin excuses with iniquity workers, promising not to communicate with their choicest. Delicacies and a banquet are not silently inserted.

The just man shall correct mercifully and reprove; he asks sinner’s oil not fatten head and says prayer shall remain against their pleasures. The separate note interprets oil as flattery/deceitful praise and prayer against the evil things pleasing them, without a medicinal or anesthetic mechanism.

Judges falling on rock have been swallowed; they shall hear words because prevailed. The note explains chiefs perishing like dashed ships, with words powerful and prevailing or sweet as in Hebrew. Those alternatives stay attributed. Broken earth’s thickness is compared with bones scattered beside hell, not a newly identified plowed grave.

Eyes are toward the Lord in trust, asking soul not taken and preservation from snares and stumblingblocks. Wicked shall fall in his net and the speaker is alone until he passes. The separate note interprets singular protection until passing nets and snares. A completed unhurt escape is not reported.

The story inside

Opening: Incense and evening sacrifice are prayer comparisons. Development: Merciful correction and sinner’s oil have an attributed gloss. Conclusion: Judges, scattered bones and alone-until-passing retain separate notes.

Lessons worth keeping

1
Incense and evening sacrifice are prayer comparisons.
2
Merciful correction and sinner’s oil have an attributed gloss.
3
Judges, scattered bones and alone-until-passing retain separate notes.

Test your recall

Which images and requests does the speaker use, and what does the chapter leave unresolved?

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 66743–66748
140:3. Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth: and a door round about my lips. 140:4. Incline not my heart to evil words; to make excuses in sins. With men that work iniquity: and I will not communicate with the choicest of them.
Lines 66750–66758
140:5. The just man shall correct me in mercy, and shall reprove me: but let not the oil of the sinner fatten my head. For my prayer shall still be against the things with which they are well pleased: Let not the oil of the sinner, etc.... That is, the flattery, or deceitful praise.—Ibid. For my prayer, etc.... So far from coveting their praises, who are never well pleased but with things that are evil; I shall continually pray to be preserved from such things as they are delighted with.
Lines 66774–66780
140:9. Keep me from the snare, which they have laid for me, and from the stumblingblocks of them that work iniquity. 140:10. The wicked shall fall in his net: I am alone until I pass. I am alone, etc.... Singularly protected by the Almighty, until I pass all their nets and snares.