Psalms 17:8

Next he sets forth the manner of deliverance, which is diligently and safely; therefore he says, "Guard me as the pupil of the eye." The pupil of the eye is guarded with diligence, because nothing that could harm it is permitted to approach; so also …

A saint's life must be pure, that is, everything must be done out of love for God, and not out of love for something else, since all love is suspect if it is not addressed to God. "Keep me as the apple of your eye." …

37 . " Hide me under the shadow of thy wings, where I may be both safe and warm." Or, perhaps, it rather alludes to the wings of the cherubim shadowing the mercy-seat: "Let me be taken under the protection of that glorious grace which is peculiar to God's Israel." What David here prays for was performed to the Son of David, our Lord Jesus, of whom it is said ( Isa. xlix.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens

Keep me as the apple of the eye,....

"Keep me as the apple of the eye." No part of the body more precious, more tender, and more carefully guarded than the eye; and of the eye, no portion more peculiarly to be protected than the central apple, the pupil, or as the Hebrew calls it, "the daughter of the eye." The all-wise Creator has placed the eye in a well-protected position; it stands surrounded by projecting bones like Jerusalem encircled by mountains. Moreover, its great Author has surrounded it with many tunics of inward covering, besides the hedge of the eyebrows, the curtain of the eyelids, and the fence of the eyelashes; and, in addition to this, he has given to every man so high a value for his eyes, and so quick an apprehension of danger, that no member of the body is more faithfully cared for than the organ of sight. Thus, Lord, keep thou me, for I trust I am one with Jesus, and so a member of his mystical body. "Hide me under the shadow of thy wings." Even as the parent bird completely shields her brood from evil, and meanwhile cherishes them with the warmth of her own heart, by covering them with her wings, so do thou with me, most condescending God, for I am thine offspring, and thou hast a parent's love in perfection. This last clause is in the Hebrew in the future tense, as if to show that what the writer had asked for but a moment before he was now sure would be granted to him. Confident expectations should keep pace with earnest supplication.

THIS prayer is full of meaning and is the outflow of a well-instructed mind. It is no parrot cry, but the leaping up of a living desire from a Grace-taught and thoughtful heart. The man knows something of himself who sincerely offers this plaintive petition to his God, "Keep me." Is there not a deep and sorrowful confession implied in this brief utterance of the suppliant? As though he should say, "Preserve me from my own heart, for it is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked: guard me from the rising up of my natural corruptions, for the carnal mind is enmity against God. It is not subject to the Law of God, neither, indeed, can be. Defend me from the turbulence of my own passions, those household foes which are the worst enemies to the peace and purity of my mind. Keep me from that evil man, Myself." Has not the man who utters this request a clear perception of the evils surrounding him in his circumstances and his relations and his position in life? Conscious of danger, he desires to be held back from pride. If he is in prosperity he asks to be withheld from pining and unbelief. If he is in adversity he would be restrained from sinning in public or transgressing in private. He desires that he may not be imperiled, even, by the objects of his joy and affection, lest they should become idols and so provoke the Lord to jealousy and cause Him to withdraw His dear Presence and sweet communings from the soul. The prayer has a singular sensitiveness—it seems to shiver like the leaves of the aspen—to shrink like the sensitive plant. Knowing that there are snares all around him, the pleading soul is desirous that God should at all times encompass his path—"Keep me." The man has some idea of the craft and malice of Satan, therefore he appeals to God that he may be preserved from that fowler who first decoys and afterwards destroys unguarded souls.

THIS prayer is full of meaning and is the outflow of a well-instructed mind. It is no parrot cry, but the leaping up of a living desire from a Grace-taught and thoughtful heart. The man knows something of himself who sincerely offers this plaintive petition to his God, "Keep me." Is there not a deep and sorrowful confession implied in this brief utterance of the suppliant?

Keep me as the apple of the eye - Or, as the black of the daughter of eye. Take as much care to preserve me now by Divine influence, as thou hast to preserve my eye by thy good providence. Thou hast entrenched it deeply in the skull; hast ramparted it with the forehead and cheek-bones; defended it by the eyebrow, eyelids, and eyelashes; and placed it in that situation where the hands can best protect it. Hide me under the shadow of thy wings - This is a metaphor taken from the hen and her chickens. See it explained at large in the note on Mat 23:37 (note). The Lord says of his followers, Zec 2:8: “He that toucheth you, toucheth the apple of mine eye.” How dear are our eyes to us! how dear must his followers be to God!

Keep me as the apple of the eye - Preserve me; guard me; defend me, as one defends that which is to him most precious and valuable. In the original there is a remarkable strength of expression, and at the same time a remarkable confusion of gender in the language. The literal translation would be, “Keep me as the little man - the daughter of the eye.” The word “apple” applied to the eye means the pupil, the little aperture in the middle of the eye, through which the rays of light pass to form an image on the retina (“Johnson, Webster”); though “why” it is called the “apple” of the eye the lexicographers fail to tell us. The Hebrew word - אישׁון 'ı̂yshôn - means properly, “a little man,” and is given to the apple or pupil of the eye, “in which, as in a mirror, a person sees his own image reflected in miniature.” This comparison is found in several languages. The word occurs in the Old Testament only in Deu 32:10; Psa 17:8; Pro 7:2; where it is rendered “apple;” in Pro 7:9, where it is rendered “black;” and in Pro 20:20, where it is rendered “obscure.” The other expression in the Hebrew - “the daughter of the eye” - is derived from a usage of the Hebrew word “daughter,” as denoting that which is dependent on, or connected with (Gesenius, Lexicon), as the expression “daughters of a city” denotes the small towns or villages lying around a city, and dependent on its jurisdiction, Num 21:25, Num 21:32; Num 32:42; Jos 17:11. So the expression “daughters of song,” Ecc 12:4. The idea here is, that the little image is the “child” of the eye; that it has its birth or origin there. The prayer of the psalmist here is, that God would guard him, as one guards his sight - an object so dear and valuable to him. Hide me under the shadow of thy wings - Another image denoting substantially the same thing. […]