Help, LORD
Psalm 12 summary: what it means
Psalm 12 is a short prayer about words. It opens with a cry for help because the godly and the faithful seem to have vanished. What is left is lying, flattery and a double heart. The speaker asks the LORD to cut off boasting lips, and quotes the boasters, who say their tongues will win and no one is lord over them. Then the LORD himself answers in verse 5.
His words are set against theirs. Human speech in the psalm is flattering and false, while the LORD's words are flawless, like silver refined seven times. The psalm says the LORD will keep them safe, but it does not end on a high note. The last verse admits that the wicked still walk on every side.
Psalm 12: Help, LORD
World English Bible, public domain. allpsalms.com/psalm-12
Psalm 12 commentary: explained verse by verse
Help, LORD; for the godly man ceases.For the faithful fail from among the children of men.
Help, LORD; for the godly man ceaseth; for the faithful fail from among the children of men.
The psalm begins with a two word cry for help. The reason is that the godly and the faithful seem to have disappeared. The speaker feels surrounded by people who cannot be trusted.
Also read Micah 7:1-2, Isaiah 63:5, Isaiah 1:21-22, Psalm 3:7
Everyone lies to his neighbor.They speak with flattering lips, and with a double heart.
They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak.
This is what the speaker sees instead. Everyone lies to his neighbour, with flattering lips and a double heart, saying one thing and meaning another. The whole problem in this psalm is speech.
Also read James 1:8, Proverbs 29:5, Psalm 55:21, Romans 16:18
May the LORD cut off all flattering lips,and the tongue that boasts,
The LORD shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things:
The speaker asks the LORD to act against two kinds of speech: flattering lips and the tongue that boasts. It is a request for the harm done by words to be stopped.
Also read Psalm 17:10, Ezekiel 28:9, Exodus 15:9, Daniel 7:8
who have said, “With our tongue we will prevail.Our lips are our own.Who is lord over us?”
Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail; our lips are our own: who is lord over us?
Here the boasters speak for themselves. They trust their tongues to win, they say their lips are their own, and they ask who is lord over them. Their own words show they answer to no one.
Also read James 3:5-6, Genesis 3:5, 2 Thessalonians 2:4, Jeremiah 2:31
“Because of the oppression of the weak and because of the groaning of the needy,I will now arise,” says the LORD;“I will set him in safety from those who malign him.”
For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the LORD; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.
This is the turning point, and the only place where the LORD speaks. He says he will now arise because of the oppression of the weak and the groaning of the needy, and he will set them in safety from those who malign them. The victims of the lying tongue are the reason he acts.
Also read Psalm 74:21-22, Psalm 10:5, Psalm 10:12, Exodus 3:7-9
The LORD’s words are flawless words,as silver refined in a clay furnace, purified seven times.
The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
After the boasters' words and the LORD's reply, the psalm compares the two. The LORD's words are flawless, like silver refined in a clay furnace and purified seven times. Nothing false is left in them.
Also read Psalm 119:140, Psalm 18:30, 2 Samuel 22:31, Psalm 66:10
You will keep them, LORD.You will preserve them from this generation forever.
Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.
The speaker repeats the LORD's promise back with confidence: you will keep them and preserve them from this generation for ever. The psalm does not say who them is; the weak and needy of verse 5 are the nearest.
Also read Psalm 10:18, Psalm 145:20, 1 Samuel 2:9, Deuteronomy 33:3
The wicked walk on every side,when what is vile is exalted among the sons of men.
The wicked walk on every side, when the vilest men are exalted.
The psalm closes by looking around again. The wicked still walk on every side, and what is vile is honoured among people. The promise stands, but the situation has not yet changed.
Also read Hosea 5:11, Judges 9:18-57, Micah 6:16, 1 Samuel 18:17-18
A prayer from Psalm 12
Help, LORD, for it seems the faithful are few. People speak with flattering lips and a double heart. Guard my own tongue from lies and boasting. You have said that because of the oppression of the weak and the groaning of the needy, you will arise and set them in safety. Your words are flawless, like silver refined seven times. Let me trust them more than the words around me. Keep and preserve your people in this generation, even when what is vile is exalted. Amen.
Psalm 12 Bible study questions
- In verse 2, how does the psalm describe the way people speak to their neighbors?
- In verse 5, what two reasons does the LORD give for arising?
- Verse 4 records people saying our lips are our own; where do you see that attitude toward speech today?
- Which words do you find yourself trusting most in an ordinary day, and how do they compare with the refined words of verse 6?
- Psalm 12:6 and Psalm 18:30 both describe the LORD's word as refined or tried; what does each verse add?
Questions about Psalm 12
What is Psalm 12 about?
It is a prayer about lying, flattery and boasting speech, and the LORD's promise to protect the weak and needy who suffer from it. It contrasts false human words with the flawless words of the LORD.
Who wrote Psalm 12?
The heading attributes it to David. It also marks the psalm for the Chief Musician, upon an eight-stringed lyre.
What does Psalm 12:5 mean?
It is the LORD's answer to the prayer. Because the weak are oppressed and the needy groan, he says he will now arise and set them in safety from those who malign them.
What does Psalm 12:3 say in the KJV?
The King James Version reads "The LORD shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things." The World English Bible words it as a request: may the LORD cut off all flattering lips.
What does Psalm 12:6 mean?
It says the LORD's words are flawless, like silver refined in a clay furnace and purified seven times. Unlike the flattery in the rest of the psalm, his words contain nothing false.
Psalm 12 KJV: the King James Version
Help, LORD; for the godly man ceaseth; for the faithful fail from among the children of men.1
They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak.2
The LORD shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things:3
Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail; our lips are our own: who is lord over us?4
For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the LORD; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.5
The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.6
Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.7
The wicked walk on every side, when the vilest men are exalted.8
Psalm 12 in Hebrew
The Hebrew text from the Westminster Leningrad Codex, public domain. Verse numbers follow the Hebrew Bible, which counts a psalm's heading as verse 1, so they can run one ahead of English Bibles.
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1 לַמְנַצֵּ֥חַ עַֽל־הַשְּׁמִינִ֗ית מִזְמ֥וֹר לְדָוִֽד׃
2 הוֹשִׁ֣יעָה יְ֭הוָה כִּי־גָמַ֣ר חָסִ֑יד כִּי־פַ֥סּוּ אֱ֝מוּנִ֗ים מִבְּנֵ֥י אָדָֽם׃
3 שָׁ֤וְא ׀ יְֽדַבְּרוּ֮ אִ֤ישׁ אֶת־רֵ֫עֵ֥הוּ שְׂפַ֥ת חֲלָק֑וֹת בְּלֵ֖ב וָלֵ֣ב יְדַבֵּֽרוּ׃
4 יַכְרֵ֣ת יְ֭הוָה כָּל־שִׂפְתֵ֣י חֲלָק֑וֹת לָ֝שׁ֗וֹן מְדַבֶּ֥רֶת גְּדֹלֽוֹת׃
5 אֲשֶׁ֤ר אָֽמְר֨וּ ׀ לִלְשֹׁנֵ֣נוּ נַ֭גְבִּיר שְׂפָתֵ֣ינוּ אִתָּ֑נוּ מִ֖י אָד֣וֹן לָֽנוּ׃
6 מִשֹּׁ֥ד עֲנִיִּים֮ מֵאַנְקַ֪ת אֶבְי֫וֹנִ֥ים עַתָּ֣ה אָ֭קוּם יֹאמַ֣ר יְהוָ֑ה אָשִׁ֥ית בְּ֝יֵ֗שַׁע יָפִ֥יחַֽ לֽוֹ׃
7 אִֽמֲר֣וֹת יְהוָה֮ אֲמָר֪וֹת טְהֹ֫ר֥וֹת כֶּ֣סֶף צָ֭רוּף בַּעֲלִ֣יל לָאָ֑רֶץ מְ֝זֻקָּ֗ק שִׁבְעָתָֽיִם׃
8 אַתָּֽה־יְהוָ֥ה תִּשְׁמְרֵ֑ם תִּצְּרֶ֓נּוּ ׀ מִן־הַדּ֖וֹר ז֣וּ לְעוֹלָֽם׃
9 סָבִ֗יב רְשָׁעִ֥ים יִתְהַלָּכ֑וּן כְּרֻ֥ם זֻ֝לּ֗וּת לִבְנֵ֥י אָדָֽם׃
Psalm 12 in the Catholic Douay-Rheims Bible
The Douay-Rheims Bible, 1899 edition, public domain. It follows the Greek and Latin numbering, so this psalm is Psalm 11 there.
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1 Unto the end; for the octave, a psalm for David.
2 Save me, O Lord, for there is now no saint: truths are decayed from among the children of men.
3 They have spoken vain things every one to his neighbour: with deceitful lips, and with a double heart have they spoken.
4 May the Lord destroy all deceitful lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things.
5 Who have said: We will magnify our tongue; our lips are our own; who is Lord over us?
6 By reason of the misery of the needy, and the groans of the poor, now will I arise, saith the Lord. I win set him in safety; I will deal confidently in his regard.
7 The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried by the fire, purged from the earth refined seven times.
8 Thou, O Lord, wilt preserve us: and keep us from this generation for ever.
9 The wicked walk round about: according to thy highness, thou best multiplied the children of men.
Psalm 12 in Latin
The Clementine Vulgate, public domain, where this psalm is Psalm 11.
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1 In finem, pro octava. Psalmus David.
2 Salvum me fac, Domine, quoniam defecit sanctus, quoniam diminutæ sunt veritates a filiis hominum.
3 Vana locuti sunt unusquisque ad proximum suum; labia dolosa, in corde et corde locuti sunt.
4 Disperdat Dominus universa labia dolosa, et linguam magniloquam.
5 Qui dixerunt: Linguam nostram magnificabimus; labia nostra a nobis sunt. Quis noster dominus est?
6 Propter miseriam inopum, et gemitum pauperum, nunc exsurgam, dicit Dominus. Ponam in salutari; fiducialiter agam in eo.
7 Eloquia Domini, eloquia casta; argentum igne examinatum, probatum terræ, purgatum septuplum.
8 Tu, Domine, servabis nos, et custodies nos a generatione hac in æternum.
9 In circuitu impii ambulant: secundum altitudinem tuam multiplicasti filios hominum.
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Psalm 12 at a glance
| Verses | 8 |
| Heading in the text | For the Chief Musician; upon an eight-stringed lyre. A Psalm of David. |
| Attributed to | The heading attributes it to David and marks it for the Chief Musician, upon an eight-stringed lyre. |
| Type | Lament |
| Number in Greek and Latin Bibles | Psalm 11 |
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Psalm 12 in other translations
This page prints the World English Bible and the King James Version because both are public domain. The NIV, ESV, NKJV, NLT and NASB are under copyright, so they cannot be printed in full here. You can read Psalm 12 in those translations at Bible Gateway.
Where Psalm 12 belongs
Psalms of DavidBook 1 of the Psalms
How this page was made
The psalm text comes from public domain translations and is not edited. The summary, the verse notes and the answers are written for this page from the text of the psalm itself. Where a claim goes beyond the text, it is sourced below.
Sources
- Text: World English Bible and King James Version, both public domain, from ebible.org source
- Hebrew text: Westminster Leningrad Codex, public domain, from ebible.org source
- Douay-Rheims: Douay-Rheims Bible, 1899 edition, public domain, from ebible.org source
- Latin text: Clementine Vulgate, public domain, from ebible.org source
- Numbering: Greek and Latin psalm numbering, Wikipedia, Psalms source