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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "//www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="//www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1"><title>Psalm 53 Pulpit Commentary</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/5001.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="../spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 4800px), only screen and (max-device-width: 4800px)" href="/4801.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 1550px), only screen and (max-device-width: 1550px)" href="/1551.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 1250px), only screen and (max-device-width: 1250px)" href="/1251.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 1050px), only screen and (max-device-width: 1050px)" href="/1051.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 900px), only screen and (max-device-width: 900px)" href="/901.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 800px), only screen and (max-device-width: 800px)" href="/801.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 575px), only screen and (max-device-width: 575px)" href="/501.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-height: 450px), only screen and (max-device-height: 450px)" href="/h451.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/psalms/53.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="//biblehu.com/bmcom/psalms/53-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="//biblehub.com">Bible</a> > <a href="../">Pulpit Commentary</a> > Psalm 53</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../psalms/52.htm" title="Psalm 52">◄</a> Psalm 53 <a href="../psalms/54.htm" title="Psalm 54">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheading">Pulpit Commentary</div><div class="chap"><div class="versenum"><a href="/psalms/53-1.htm">Psalm 53:1</a></div><div class="verse"><<To the chief Musician upon Mahalath, Maschil, <i>A Psalm</i> of David.>> The fool hath said in his heart, <i>There is</i> no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: <i>there is</i> none that doeth good.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verses 1 and 2</span> are identical with the same verses of <a href="/psalms/14.htm">Psalm 14</a>, with the single exception that "Jehovah "is replaced by" Elohim," as the first word of ver. 2. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/psalms/53-2.htm">Psalm 53:2</a></div><div class="verse">God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were <i>any</i> that did understand, that did seek God.</div><div class="comm"></div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/psalms/53-3.htm">Psalm 53:3</a></div><div class="verse">Every one of them is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; <i>there is</i> none that doeth good, no, not one.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 3.</span> - For "they are all gone aside" (<span class="hebrew">הכּל סר</span>) in <a href="/psalms/14.htm">Psalm 14</a>, the present psalm has, "every one of them is gone back" (<span class="hebrew">לּכּו סג</span>) - a difference which may be due to corruption, and which is, at any rate, of no importance. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/psalms/53-4.htm">Psalm 53:4</a></div><div class="verse">Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge? who eat up my people <i>as</i> they eat bread: they have not called upon God.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 4.</span> - For "the workers of iniquity" in this verse, <a href="/psalms/14.htm">Psalm 14</a>. has "all the workers of iniquity " - a difference wholly unimportant. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/psalms/53-5.htm">Psalm 53:5</a></div><div class="verse">There were they in great fear, <i>where</i> no fear was: for God hath scattered the bones of him that encampeth <i>against</i> thee: thou hast put <i>them</i> to shame, because God hath despised them.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 5.</span> - <span class="cmt_word">There were they in great fear, where no fear was</span>. So long a phrase as "where no fear was" (<span class="hebrew">לא־היה כּחד</span>) can scarcely have "fallen out," and must have been added intentionally to mark that, on the occasion in connection with which the revision was made, there had been no ground at all for the panic. <span class="cmt_word">For God hath scattered the bones of him that encampeth against thee</span>. This clause takes the place of the following in <a href="/psalms/14.htm">Psalm 14</a>.: "For God is in the generation of the righteous" - a very considerable change, which must certainly have been intentional. On the second occasion whereto the psalm was made applicable, there must have been a very great catastrophe - some vast slaughter of an enemy who had been at open war with Israel. Sennacherib is suggested (Canon Cook). Thou hast put them to shams, because God hath despised them. The clause in <a href="/psalms/14.htm">Psalm 14</a>. which this replaces runs as follows: "Ye have shamed the counsel of the poor, because the Lord is his Refuge." Here again, both the phrases used, and the whole tenor of the thought in either case, are different. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/psalms/53-6.htm">Psalm 53:6</a></div><div class="verse">Oh that the salvation of Israel <i>were come</i> out of Zion! When God bringeth back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, <i>and</i> Israel shall be glad.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 6.</span> - This verse is identical with <a href="/psalms/14-7.htm">Psalm 14:7</a>, except in the substitution of "Elohim" for "Jehovah," and in the pointing of one word. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span> <span class="p"><br /><br /></span> </div></div></div><div id="botbox"><div class="padbot"><div align="center">The Pulpit Commentary, Electronic Database. 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