What does Psalms Chapter 20 say, and which statements belong to its speaker?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

The psalm recounts gifts to the king and promises further glory and gladness. It petitions against enemies and speaks of their future punishment. The separate heading and remnants annotation retain the edition’s interpretation.

Chapter breakdown

The Latin incipit is Domine, in virtute. The separate heading describes Christ's exaltation after His passion. The inscription is unto the end, for David. The king shall joy in the Lord's strength and greatly rejoice in salvation. God gave his heart's desire and did not withhold his lips' will, prevented him with blessings of sweetness and set a crown of precious stones on his head. He asked life and received length of days forever. His glory is great in salvation; God shall lay glory and beauty on him, give blessing forever and make him glad with His countenance. The king hopes in the Lord and through the Most High's mercy shall not be moved.

The psalm asks that God's hand be found by all enemies and His right hand find haters. It says He shall make them like an oven of fire in anger, trouble them in wrath and let fire devour them. He will destroy their fruit from earth and seed from mankind. They intended evils and devised counsels they could not establish. He shall turn their backs and prepare their remnants in His face. The separate note interprets remnants as punishments kept for a future time and gives Jerome's rendering of funes as cords or bowstrings readied as divine justice shooting arrows at their faces.

The closing request asks the Lord to be exalted in His strength and promises song and praise of His power. The king's future gladness and enemies' future punishment are not narrated as an already completed royal ceremony or military victory.

The story inside

Opening: The psalm recounts gifts to the king and promises further glory and gladness. Development: It petitions against enemies and speaks of their future punishment. Conclusion: The separate heading and remnants annotation retain the edition’s interpretation.

Lessons worth keeping

1
The psalm recounts gifts to the king and promises further glory and gladness.
2
It petitions against enemies and speaks of their future punishment.
3
The separate heading and remnants annotation retain the edition’s interpretation.

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 58824–58834
20:2. In thy strength, O Lord, the king shall joy; and in thy salvation he shall rejoice exceedingly. 20:3. Thou hast given him his heart’s desire: and hast not withholden from him the will of his lips. 20:4. For thou hast prevented him with blessings of sweetness: thou hast set on his head a crown of precious stones. 20:5. He asked life of thee: and thou hast given him length of days for ever and ever.
Lines 58842–58850
20:8. For the king hopeth in the Lord: and through the mercy of the most High he shall not be moved. 20:9. Let thy hand be found by all thy enemies: let thy right hand find out all them that hate thee. 20:10. Thou shalt make them as an oven of fire, in the time of thy anger: the Lord shall trouble them in his wrath, and fire shall devour them.
Lines 58861–58866
In thy remnants thou shalt prepare their face.... Or thou shalt set thy remnants against their faces. That is, thou shalt make them see what punishments remain for them hereafter from thy justice. Instead of remnants, St. Jerome renders it funes, that is, cords or strings, viz., of the bow of divine justice, from which God directs his arrows against the faces of his enemies.