Psalms 35:8
in Psalms 35May ruin befall them by surprise; may the net they hid ensnare them; may they fall into the hazard they created.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Let destruction come upon him unawares; And let his net that he hath hid catch himself: With destruction let him fall therein.
KJV
Let destruction come upon him at unawares; and let his net that he hath hid catch himself: into that very destruction let him fall.
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This verse in Psalms 35
Commentary
12 notes on this verseLet destruction come upon him at unawares,.... Or a "storm" (r), such as is caused in the eastern countries by a south wind, very sudden, violent, and destructive (s): the singular number being here used, some Jewish commentators, as Kimchi, have thought Saul is particularly meant; and some Christian interpreters have been of opinion that Judas is intended: the imprecations here may be compared with those which respect him, Psa 109:
This site's exposition
be disgraced and put to shame
on Psalms 35:4-8
David asks that the men who seek his life be shamed, driven like chaff, and chased by the angel of the LORD. Verses 7 and 8 ask that the net and the pit they hid take those who dug them. The ground he gives is that they had no cause.
This site's exposition
may the net they hid ensnare them
Verse 8 speaks of one enemy in the Hebrew. John Gill reported that Kimchi took him to be Saul while some Christian readers saw Judas. Matthew Henry traced the fulfilment in Saul, who hoped David would fall to the Philistines in 1 Samuel 18:25, and Saul himself fell to them.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
I think this speaks about the cross on which the devil falls unknowingly. For if he had known never would he have affixed the Lord of glory to the cross.
But yet what is to be done? "Without a cause have they hid for me the corruption of their trap." What meaneth, "Without a cause"? I have done them no evil, I have hurt them not at all. "Vainly have they reviled my soul." What is, "Vainly"? Speaking falsely, proving nothing. "Let a trap come upon them which they know not of" (ver. 8). A magnificent retribution, nothing more just! They have hidden a trap that I might know not: let a trap come upon them which they know not of. For I know of their trap. But what, trap is coming upon them? That which they know not of. Let us hear, lest haply he speak of that. "Let a trap come upon them, which they know not of." Perhaps that is one which they hid for him, that another which shall come upon themselves. Not so: but what? "The wicked shall be holden with the cords of his own sins." Thereby are they deceived, whereby they would deceive. Thence shall come mischief to them, whence they endeavoured mischief. For it follows, "And let the net which they have hidden catch themselves, and let them fall into their own trap." As if any one should prepare a cup of poison for another, and forgetting should drink it up himself: or as if one should dig a pit, that his enemy might fall thereinto in the darkness and himself forgetting what he had dug, should first walk that way, and fall into it...
The Medieval Church1 voice
Consequently, when he says, "let the snare come upon him," etc., the punishment fitting the guilt is set forth; and this, because they are judged by the same judgment by which they wished to judge: Mt. 7: "With what judgment you judge, you shall be …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
This was remarkably fulfilled in the ruin of Saul; for he had laid a plot to make David fall by the hand of the Philistines ( 1 Sam. xviii. 25 ), that was the net which he hid for him under pretence of doing him honour, and in that very net was he himself taken, for he fell by the hand of the Philistines when his day came to fall.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
"Let destruction come, upon him at unawares." This tremendous imprecation is frequently fulfilled. God's judgments are often sudden and signal. Death enter the persecutor's house without pausing to knock at the door. The thunderbolt of judgment leaps from its hiding-place, and in one crash the wicked are broken for ever. "And let his net that he hath hid catch himself: into that very destruction let him fall." There is a lex talionis with God which often works most wonderfully. Men set traps and catch their own fingers. They throw up stones, and they fall upon their own heads.
4 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century4 voices
"Let destruction come, upon him at unawares." This tremendous imprecation is frequently fulfilled. God's judgments are often sudden and signal. Death enter the persecutor's house without pausing to knock at the door. The thunderbolt of judgment leaps from its hiding-place, and in one crash the wicked are broken for ever. "And let his net that he hath hid catch himself: into that very destruction let him fall." There is a lex talionis with God which often works most wonderfully. Men set traps and catch their own fingers. They throw up stones, and they fall upon their own heads. How often Satan outwits himself, and burns his fingers with his own coals! This will doubtless be one of the aggravations of hell, that men will torment themselves with what were once the fond devices of their rebellious minds. They curse and are cursed; they kick the pricks and tear themselves; they pour forth floods of fire, and it burns them within and without.
"Let destruction come, upon him at unawares." This tremendous imprecation is frequently fulfilled. God's judgments are often sudden and signal. Death enter the persecutor's house without pausing to knock at the door. The thunderbolt of judgment leaps from its hiding-place, and in one crash the wicked are broken for ever. "And let his net that he hath hid catch himself: into that very destruction let him fall." There is a lex talionis with God which often works most wonderfully. Men set traps and catch their own fingers. They throw up stones, and they fall upon their own heads.
Let his net that he hath hid - See the notes on Psa 7:15, Psa 7:16.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Let destruction come upon him at unawares - Margin, which “he knoweth not of.” So the Hebrew. The meaning is, Let destruction come upon him when he is not looking for it, or expecting it. And let his net that he hath hid catch himself - See the notes at Psa 7:15-16. The psalmist prays here that the same thing may occur to his enemy which his enemy had designed for him. It is simply a prayer that they might be treated as they purposed to treat him.
The words behind it
11 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| תְּבוֹאֵ֣הוּ | tevoehu | may it come to him | H935 → | 2568 times |
| שׁוֹאָה֮ | shoah | destruction | H7722 → | 13 times |
| לֹֽא־ | lo'- | [which] not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יֵ֫דָ֥ע | yeda' | he knows | H3045 → | 945 times |
| וְרִשְׁתּ֣וֹ | verishto | and net his | H7568 → | 22 times |
| אֲשֶׁר־ | ʾasher- | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| טָמַ֣ן | taman | he hid | H2934 → | 31 times |
| תִּלְכְּד֑וֹ | tilkedo | may it catch him | H3920 → | 121 times |
| בְּ֝שׁוֹאָ֗ה | beshoah | in destruction | H7722 → | 13 times |
| יִפָּל־ | yipol- | may he fall | H5307 → | 435 times |
| בָּֽהּ׃ | bah | in it |
תְּבוֹאֵ֣הוּmay it come to him
tevoehuH935 →2568 times
שׁוֹאָה֮destruction
shoahH7722 →13 times
לֹֽא־[which] not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
יֵ֫דָ֥עhe knows
yeda'H3045 →945 times
וְרִשְׁתּ֣וֹand net his
verishtoH7568 →22 times
אֲשֶׁר־which
ʾasher-H834 →5497 times
טָמַ֣ןhe hid
tamanH2934 →31 times
תִּלְכְּד֑וֹmay it catch him
tilkedoH3920 →121 times
בְּ֝שׁוֹאָ֗הin destruction
beshoahH7722 →13 times
יִפָּל־may he fall
yipol-H5307 →435 times
בָּֽהּ׃in it
bah
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
1 Thessalonians 5:3While people are saying, “Peace and security,” destruction will come upon them suddenly, like labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.
it leads to
- Luke 21:34–35
But watch yourselves, or your hearts will be weighed down by dissipation, drunkenness, and the worries of life—and that day will spring upon you suddenly like a snare.
- Matthew 24:37–39
As it was in the days of Noah, so will it be at the coming of the Son of Man.
- Luke 17:26–30
Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man:
- Luke 21:34–35
Through
Luke 21:34But watch yourselves, or your hearts will be weighed down by dissipation, drunkenness, and the worries of life—and that day will spring upon you suddenly like a snare.
it leads to
- Mark 4:19
but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth, and the desire for other things come in and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:2–8
For you are fully aware that the Day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.
- Luke 12:45–46
But suppose that servant says in his heart, ‘My master will be a long time in coming,’ and he begins to beat the menservants and maidservants, and to eat and drink and get drunk.
- Luke 12:40
You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour you do not expect.”
- 1 Peter 4:3–7
For you have spent enough time in the past carrying out the same desires as the Gentiles: living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing, and detestable idolatry.
- Mark 4:19
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; Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Vol. 2; Evagrius Ponticus, NOTES ON THE PSALMS 34[35].8; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Thomas Aquinas, Exposition on the Psalms of David.