Psalms 35:12
in Psalms 35They repay me evil for good, to the bereavement of my soul.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
They reward me evil for good, To the bereaving of my soul.
KJV
They rewarded me evil for good to the spoiling of my soul.
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This verse in Psalms 35
Commentary
11 notes on this verse"They rewarded me evil for good." This is devilish; but men have learned the lesson well of the old Destroyer, and practise it most perfectly. "To the spoiling of my soul." They robbed him of comfort, and even would have taken his life had it not been for special rescues from the hand of God. The wicked would strip the righteous naked to their very soul: they know no pity. There are only such limits to human malice as God himself may see fit to place.
This site's exposition
Hostile witnesses come forward
on Psalms 35:11-16
The charges are ones he knows nothing about, and the return for his good is evil. He had worn sackcloth for these men when they were ill, fasted, and mourned as a man mourns a brother or his mother. When he stumbled, they gathered in glee and gnashed their teeth.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
Let then our Head say, "False witnesses did rise up, they laid to My charge things that I knew not" [Psalm 35:11]. But let us say to our Head, Lord, what knew Thou not? Did Thou indeed know not anything? Did You not know the hearts of them that charged You? Did You not foresee their deceits? Did You not give Yourself into their hands knowingly? Had You not come that You might suffer by them? What then knew Thou not? He knew not sin, and thereby He knew not sin, not by not judging, but by not committing. There are phrases of this kind also in daily use, as when you say of any one, He knows not to stand, that is, he does not stand; and, He knows not to do good, because he does not good; and, He knows not to do ill, because he does not ill....What knew not Christ so much, as to blaspheme? Thereof was He called in question by His persecutors, and because He spoke truth, He was judged to have spoken blasphemy. [Matthew 26:65] But by whom? By them of whom it follows, "They rewarded Me evil for good, and barrenness to My Soul" [Psalm 35:12]. I gave unto them fruitfulness, they rewarded Me barrenness; I gave life, they death; I honour, they dishonour; I medicine, they wounds; and in all these which they rewarded Me, was truly barrenness. This barrenness in the tree He cursed, when seeking fruit He found none. [Matthew 21:19] Leaves there were, and fruit there was not: words there were, and deeds there were not. See of words abundance, and of deeds barrenness. "Thou that preachest a man should not steal, stealest: thou that sayest a man should not commit adultery, committest adultery." [Romans 2:21-22] Such were they who charged Christ with things that He knew not.
Fruitless is the soul that births nothing good and does good for no one.
The Medieval Church1 voice
As to the second, he says, "they repaid me evil for good," done for them in the Old Testament. Mic. 6: "My people, what have I done to you?" etc. And in the New Testament, because he opened the eyes of the blind and conferred …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Herein he was a type of Christ, to whom this wicked world was very ungrateful. Many good works have I shown you from my Father; for which of those do you stone me?
They rewarded me evil for good,....
4 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century4 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Though they rendered evil for good, he showed a tender sympathy in their affliction. spoiling--literally, "bereavement." The usual modes of showing grief are made, as figures, to express his sorrow.
"They rewarded me evil for good." This is devilish; but men have learned the lesson well of the old Destroyer, and practise it most perfectly. "To the spoiling of my soul." They robbed him of comfort, and even would have taken his life had it not been for special rescues from the hand of God. The wicked would strip the righteous naked to their very soul: they know no pity. There are only such limits to human malice as God himself may see fit to place.
To the spoiling of my soul - To destroy my life; so נפש nephesh should be translated in a multitude of places, where our translators have used the word soul.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
They rewarded me evil for good - They recompensed, or returned evil instead of good. The manner in which they did it he states in the following verses. To the spoiling of my soul - Margin, “depriving.” The Hebrew word means “the being forsaken,” or “abandoned.” The idea is, that owing to this conduct he was forsaken or abandoned by all in whom he might have put confidence.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
and may my prayer return upon my bosom That is to say: If they say that I afflicted myself only for their detriment, that their illness should become more serious, may my prayer that I prayed for them return to me.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 5 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
6 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| יְשַׁלְּמ֣וּנִי | yeshalemuni | they repay me | H7999 → | 116 times |
| רָ֭עָה | raah | harm | H7451 → | 662 times |
| תַּ֥חַת | tachat | in place of | H8478 → | 505 times |
| טוֹבָ֗ה | tovah | good | H2896 → | 538 times |
| שְׁכ֣וֹל | shekhol | bereavement | H7908 → | |
| לְנַפְשִֽׁי׃ | lenafshi | [belongs] to self my | H5315 → | 754 times |
יְשַׁלְּמ֣וּנִיthey repay me
yeshalemuniH7999 →116 times
רָ֭עָהharm
raahH7451 →662 times
תַּ֥חַתin place of
tachatH8478 →505 times
טוֹבָ֗הgood
tovahH2896 →538 times
שְׁכ֣וֹלbereavement
shekholH7908 →
לְנַפְשִֽׁי׃[belongs] to self my
lenafshiH5315 →754 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Psalms 38:20Those who repay my good with evil attack me for pursuing the good.
it leads to
- 1 John 3:12
Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did Cain slay him? Because his own deeds were evil, while those of his brother were righteous.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 John 3:12
Through
Proverbs 17:13If anyone returns evil for good, evil will never leave his house.
it leads to
- Psalms 109:4–13
In return for my love they accuse me, but I am a man of prayer.
- 1 Peter 3:9
Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.
- Psalms 55:12–15
For it is not an enemy who insults me; that I could endure. It is not a foe who rises against me; from him I could hide.
- Romans 12:17
Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Carefully consider what is right in the eyes of everybody.
- Psalms 38:20
Those who repay my good with evil attack me for pursuing the good.
- Psalms 109:4–13
Through
Jeremiah 18:20Should good be repaid with evil? Yet they have dug a pit for me. Remember how I stood before You to speak good on their behalf, to turn Your wrath from them.
it leads to
- Psalms 35:7
For without cause they laid their net for me; without reason they dug a pit for my soul.
- Psalms 57:6
They spread a net for my feet; my soul was despondent. They dug a pit before me, but they themselves have fallen into it! Selah
- Psalms 35:7
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Psalms
This page draws on 10 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Augustine of Hippo, Exposition on Psalm 35; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 2; Evagrius Ponticus, NOTES ON THE PSALMS 34[35].12; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Exposition on the Psalms of David.