Psalms 9:12

Psa 9:12 When he maketh inquisition for blood, he remembereth them: he forgetteth not the cry of the humble.

Ver. 12. When he maketh inquisition for blood] For innocent blood unjustly spilled; as he did for the blood of Abel, Gen 4:10, of Naboth, (2Ki 9:26, "Surely I have seen yesterday the blood of Naboth." Murder ever bleeds fresh in the eyes of God) of Zechariah, the son of Barachiah, 2Ch 24:22; those ungrateful guests, who slew those that came to call them: "And when the king heard it" (for blood cries aloud), "he was wroth, and destroyed those murderers," Mat 22:6-7. These shall have blood to drink, for they are worthy, Rev 16:6. God draws articles of inquiry in this case as strict and as critical as ever the Inquisition of Spain doth; the proceedings whereof are with greatest secresy and severity.

He forgetteth not the cry of the humble] Heb. of the poor, lowly, meek, afflicted. Humility and meekness are collactaneae, twin-sisters, as Bernard hath it.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Psa 9:12. When he maketh inquisition for blood — The bloodshed of his innocent and holy ones: which though he may not seem to regard for a season, yet he will certainly call the authors of it to a severe account; he remembereth them — The humble, as it follows, or the oppressed, (Psa 9:9,) that trust in him, and seek to him, (Psa 9:10,) whom he seemed to have forgotten. He forgetteth not the cry of the humble — Or, meek, as the word עני, gnani, which occurs also Zec 9:9, is translated, Mat 21:5. Who do not, cannot, and will not avenge themselves, but commit their cause to God, as the God to whom vengeance belongeth.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

13. (Psa 9:12). For seeking blood, or as an inquisitor of blood, he has remembered, he remembers, it, i. e. the blood; he has not forgotten the cry of the distressed. God is here revealed in the character which he assumes in Gen 9:5, where the same verb and noun are used in the first clause of the verse before us. The word translated blood is in the plural form. See above, on Psa 5:7 (6). Hence the literal translation of the next word is, he has remembered them, i. e. the bloods or murders. The cry meant is the cry of suffering and complaint, with particular reference to Gen 4:10. According, to another reading of the last clause, the cry is that of the meek or humble, not of the distressed. But the common text affords a better sense, and really includes the other, as the innocence of the sufferers is implied, though not expressed. The general import of the verse is that God's judgments, though deferred, are not abandoned, that he does not forget even what he seems to disregard, and that sooner or later he will certainly appear as an avenger. Murder is here put as the highest crime against the person, for all others, and indeed for wickedness in general.

Joseph Addison Alexander, The Psalms Translated and Explained (1850) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

9:12 The Lord avenges and saves his servants (18:46) by righteously judging his enemies on earth (58:11). The godly do not seek revenge; they wait for the Lord to vindicate them (94:1-2; Deut 32:35; Rom 12:19).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Though God revengeth not suddenly the wrong done to his, yet he suffereth not the wicked unpunished.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

for blood--that is, murders (Psa 5:6), including all the oppressions of His people.

maketh inquisition--(compare Gen 9:5). He will avenge their cause.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 12. When he maketh inquisition for blood] This not only applies to the Canaanites, Moabites, Ammonites, and Philistines, who shed the blood of God's people unjustly, but to all the nations of the earth who, to enlarge their territory, increase their wealth, or extend their commerce, have made destructive wars. For the blood which such nations have shed, their blood shall be shed. If man should make no inquisition for this iniquitously spilt blood, GOD will do it, for he remembers them; and the cry of the humbled, distressed people, driven to distraction and ruin by such wars, is not forgotten before him.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

12. For in requiring blood. In the original, it is bloods, in the plural number, and, therefore, the relative which follows immediately after, And remembereth THEM, may very properly be referred to that word in this way, He requireth bloods, and remembereth them. But as it is sufficiently common in Hebrew to invert the order of the antecedent and the relative, and to put them before the word to which it refers, “Et de mettre Eux, devant le mot auquel il se rapporte.” — Fr.

He again insists on what I adverted to before, that God does not always put a stop to injuries so speedily as we would wish, nor break the attempts of the wicked at the first, but rather withholds and delays his assistance, so that it may seem that we cry to him in vain, a truth which it is of importance for us to understand; for if we measure the help of God according to our senses, our courage will ever and anon fail us, and in the end our hope will be entirely extinguished, and will give place to despondency and despair. We would fondly wish him, as I have said, to stretch forth his hand to a distance, and drive back the troubles which he sees to be prepared for us; yet he seems to take no notice, and does not prevent the blood of the innocent from being shed. Let this consolatory consideration, however, sustain us, that he will at length actually show how precious our blood was in his sight. If it is objected, that God’s assistance comes too late, after we have endured all calamities, I answer, God delays to interfere no longer than he knows it to be of advantage for us to be humbled under the cross, and if he chooses rather to take vengeance after we have suffered outrage, than to aid us previous to the infliction of evil, it is not because he is not always willing and ready to succor us; but because he knows it is not always a proper time for manifesting his grace. By the way, it is a striking evidence, not only of his fatherly love towards us, but of the blessed immortality which is the portion of all the children of God, that he has a care about them even after they are dead. Were he always by his grace to prevent affliction from befalling us, who is there amongst us who would not be wholly attached to the present life? When, however, he avenges our death, from this it appears that, though dead, we still remain alive in his presence. For he does not, after the manner of men, hold in estimation the memory of those whom he could not preserve alive, “Car ce n’est pas qu’il face comme les hommes qui auront en estime et reverence apres la mort la memoire de leurs amis quand ils ne leur ont peu sauver la vie. — Fr. “For he does not act like men, who hold in estimation and reverence after death the memory of their friends, when they can no longer preserve their life.”

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

(12) When.—Better, for he maketh inquisition; literally, the seeker of bloods: i.e., “the avenger of blood.” The allusion is to the goel, the nearest relative of the murdered man, who must, according to Oriental custom, avenge him. The verbs are better in the past, “remembered,” “forgot not.”

Them—i.e., the sufferers to be mentioned now.

Humble.—This follows the Hebrew margin. Better here, the afflicted. In the Hebrew the two readings give two forms from the same root, generally taken to have, one of them, an ethical, the other, a physical sense; but the distinction is not borne out by Biblical use.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

12. For he that maketh requisition for bloodshed hath remembered them:

He hath not forgotten the cry of the humble.

The call to praise is based on a definite experience (hath remembered, hath not forgotten), rather than on a general truth (remembereth, forgetteth not). Jehovah is the Goel, the Avenger of blood, who investigates all offences against His sacred gift of human life, and demands satisfaction for them (Gen_9:5 f.). Such offences ‘cry’ to God for vengeance (Gen_4:10). ‘Bloodshed’ may include crimes of violence which fall short of actual murder, but rob men of the rightful use and enjoyment of their lives. Cf. Job_24:2 ff.

them] The oppressed seekers of Jehovah mentioned in Psa_9:9-10; the ‘poor’ of the next line.

the cry] For illustration comp. Exo_3:7; Exo_3:9; 1Sa_9:16; Job_34:28.

the humble] R.V. the poor, marg. meek. The traditional reading (Qrî) is ‘anâvîm, though the text (Kthîbh) has ‘aniyyîm. Both words are derived from the same root, meaning to bend or bow down. The first is intransitive in form, and denotes the character of one who bows himself down: lowly, humble, meek (LXX πραΰς). The second is passive in form, and denotes primarily the condition of one who is bowed down by external circumstances of poverty, trouble, or oppression: poor, afflicted (comp. the cognate substantive in Psa_9:13, my trouble, R.V, affliction). But inasmuch as humility is learnt in the school of affliction and, poverty (cp. Mat_5:3 with Luk_6:20), it often has the secondary sense of meek, humble (LXX generally πτωχός, πένης, sometimes ταπεινός or πραΰς), and the distinction between the two words is lost. The second of the two words (but not the first) is often coupled or in parallelism with ebhyôn ‘needy,’ Psa_9:18), or dal ‘weak,’ ‘feeble’ (Psa_82:3-4); and these words also, though primarily denoting condition, tend to acquire a moral significance.

The ‘afflicted,’ ‘poor,’ ‘meek,’ ‘humble,’ are a class that meet us frequently in the Psalms and Prophets. They are those whose condition specially calls for the special protection of Jehovah, and of righteous rulers who are His true representatives (Psa_72:7; Psa_72:4; Psa_72:12); and whose character for the most part fits them to be objects of the divine favour. They are contrasted with the proud, the scorners, the oppressors, whose contemptuous independence and high-handed violence will meet with due punishment (Pro_3:34).

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Have mercy upon me, O Lord,.... The psalmist proceeds to petitions on his own account in this verse: the ends he proposes by the fulfilling of them are mentioned in the next. A good man, a man called by the grace of God, though he has obtained mercy of the Lord, yet still stands in need of more, of fresh discoveries of pardoning grace and mercy, of merciful supplies, of merciful support, and merciful deliverances from enemies, inward and outward: and such an one flees to God, and not to the creature; and pleads, not his own dignity, righteousness, or merit, but the mercy of God;

consider, my trouble which I suffer of them that hate me; or "see my affliction because of mine enemies" (l); look upon me under it with an eye of pity and compassion, and help and deliver me; and look upon mine enemies that give me this trouble, and take vengeance on them;

thou that liftest me up from the gates of death; the house appointed for all living; that is, from the power of it, when just upon the brink of it; when near it, as a person is to an house, when he is at the gates of it; either through sickness, or some violent distemper of body, as Hezekiah was; or through some imminent danger in battle, as David was when engaged with Goliath; when everyone thought, as Kimchi observes, that he should fall by his hand: or it may be this may have respect to his being raised up from the death of sin, and delivered from the power of darkness; to his being brought out of the horrible pit and miry clay of an unregenerate state, and set upon the rock of salvation; which is a lifting up indeed, an exaltation from a very low to a very high estate: and this the psalmist takes notice of to encourage his faith; and makes use of it as an argument with God, that as he had dealt so graciously and bountifully with him, he would still show mercy to him, and look upon him under his affliction.

(l) "intuere afflictionem meum propter osores meos", Gejerus.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

When he maketh inquisition for blood - When he “inquires” after blood; that is, when he comes forth with this view, to wit, for purposes of punishment. There is allusion here to such passages as that in Gen 9:5, “And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man.” The idea is, that when blood was shed in murder, God would seek out the murderer; he would require satisfaction of him who had shed the blood; he would punish the offender. The language, there, becomes equivalent to that of seeking punishment for murder, and then for sin in general; and the representation here is that of God as going forth in the capacity of an executioner of his own laws to inflict punishment on the guilty.

He remembereth them - “He remembereth,” says Prof. Alexander, “the bloods or murders,” since the word blood, as in Psa 5:6, is in the plural - bloods. The better interpretation, however, is, that the word “them” here refers to the oppressed and the afflicted - for that is the main idea in the passage. See Psa 9:8-9. When he goes forth in the earth to execute judgment on the wicked; when he cuts them down in his wrath; when he sweeps them away as with a flood - the punishment will not be indiscriminate. He will then mark the oppressed, the afflicted, the persecuted, the troubled, and the sad, and will interpose to save them - delivering them from the storms of wrath. The idea, then, is, that the righteous will not be forgotten; that even in the most fierce and awful of his dispensations he will still regard them, and interpose to save them.

He forgetteth not the cry of the humble - Margin, afflicted. The margin expresses the true idea. The reference is not to the humble in the common sense of that term, but to the afflicted; the oppressed; to those who are in trouble, Psa 9:9. He will then remember the cry which in their afflictions they have been long sending up to him.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

For blood, Heb. bloods; the bloodshed or murder of his innocent and holy ones; which though he may connive at for a season, yet he will certainly call the authors of it to a very severe account, and avenge it upon them.

He remembereth them; either,

1. The humble, as it follows, or the oppressed, Psa 9:9, that trust in him, and seek to him, Psa 9:10, whom he seemed to have forgotten. Or,

2. The bloods last mentioned, for that noun and this pronoun are both of the masculine gender; and then remembering is put for revenging or punishing, as it is Deu 25:17,19; Ne 6:14; Jer 14:10; 44:21, and oft elsewhere.

The humble, or meek, as this word, which is used also Zec 9:9, is translated Mat 21:5, who do not, and cannot, and will not avenge themselves, but commit their cause to me, as the God to whom vengeance belongeth. Or, afflicted or oppressed ones.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Ver. 12. When an inquest is held concerning the blood of the oppressed, the martyred saints will have the first remembrance; he will avenge his own elect. Those saints who are living shall also be heard; they shall be exonerated from blame, and kept from destruction, even when the Lord's most terrible work is going on; the man with the inkhorn by his side shall mark them all for safety, before the slaughtermen are permitted to smite the Lord's enemies. The humble cry of the poorest saints shall neither be drowned by the voice of the thundering justice nor by the shrieks of the condemned.

Ver. 12. When he maketh inquisition for blood, he remembereth them. There is a time when God will make inquisition for innocent blood. The Hebrew word doresh, from darash, that is here rendered inquisition, signifies not barely to seek, to search, but to seek, search, and enquire with all diligence and care imaginable. Oh, there is a time coming when the Lord will make a very diligent and careful search and enquiry after all the innocent blood of his afflicted and persecuted people, which persecutors and tyrants have spilt as water upon the ground; and woe to persecutors when God shall make a more strict, critical, and careful enquiry after the blood of his people than ever was made in the inquisition of Spain, where all things are carried with the greatest diligence, subtlety, secrecy, and severity. O persecutors, there is a time coming, when God will make a strict enquiry after the blood of Hooper, Bradford, Latimer, Taylor, Ridley, etc. There is a time coming, wherein God will enquire who silenced and suspended such and such ministers, and who stopped the mouths of such and such, and who imprisoned, confined, and banished such and such, who were once burning and shining lights, and who were willing to spend and be spent that sinners might be saved, and that Christ might be glorified. There is a time when the Lord will make a very narrow enquiry into all the actions and practices of ecclesiastical courts, high commissions, committees, assizes, etc., and deal with persecutors as they have dealt with his people. Thomas Brooks.

Ver. 12. When he maketh inquisition for blood, he remembereth them. There is vox sanguinis, a voice of blood; and "he that planted the ear, shall he not hear?" It covered the old world with waters. The earth is filled with cruelty; it was [vox sanguinis that cried, and the heavens heard the earth, and the windows of heaven opened to let fall judgment and vengeance upon it. Edward Marbury, 1649.

Ver. 12. When he maketh inquisition for blood, etc. Though God may seem to wink for a time at the cruelty of violent men, yet will call them at last to a strict account for all the innocent blood they have shed, and for their unjust and unmerciful usage of meek and humble persons; whose cry he never forgets (though he doth not presently answer it), but takes a fit time to be avenged of their oppressors. Symon Patrick, D.D., 1626-1707.

Ver. 12. He maketh inquisition for blood. He is so stirred at this sin, that he will up, search out the authors, contrivers, and commissioners of this scarlet sin, he will avenge for blood. William Greenhill.

Ver. 12. He forgetteth not the cry of the humble. Prayer is a haven to the shipwrecked man, an anchor to them that are sinking in the waves, a staff to the limbs that totter, a mine of jewels to the poor, a healer of diseases, and a guardian of health. Prayer at once secures the continuance of our blessings, and dissipates the clouds of our calamities. O blessed prayer! thou art the unwearied conqueror of human woes, the firm foundation of human happiness, the source of ever enduring joy, the mother of philosophy. The man who can pray truly, though languishing in most extreme indigence, is richer than all beside, whilst the wretch who never bowed the knee, though proudly sitting as monarch of all nations, is of all men most destitute. Chrysostom.

Ver. 12.

1. God on awful business.

2. Remembers his people; to spare, honour, bless, and avenge them.

3. Fulfils their cries, in their own salvation, and overthrow of enemies. A consolatory sermon for times of war or pestilence.

Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

When he maketh inquisition for blood, he remembereth them; rather, for he that maketh inquisition for blood (see Gen_9:5) remembereth them. God, i.e. , the Requirer of blood (Kay), remembers, when he makes his inquisition, those who are oppressed (ver. 9), and who seek him (ver. 10). He forgetteth not the cry of the humble; or, the afflicted (Kay, Cheyne). He comes to the aid of such persons, and avenges them on their enemies.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Blood - The bloodshed of his innocent and holy ones: which though he may not seem to regard for a season, yet he will certainly call the authors of it to a severe account. Them - The humble, as it follows, or the oppressed, ver. 9, that trust in him, and seek to him, ver. 10, whom he seemed to have forgotten.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

Sing praises to the Lord, Who dwells in Zion When He restores His dwelling to Zion, they will praise Him in this manner.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.

Sing praises to the Lord which dwelleth in Sion: – He says: which dwelleth in Sion, and (that) in spite of the fact that Sion was still in the hands of the Jebusites, because they had a tradition that the Glory should dwell there and the Sanctuary be built there; and Sion is the principal part (head) of Jerusalem.

Declare among the peoples His doings: – In every place whither ye go, tell the doings and the wonders He worked among you.

Radak on the Tanakh — English translations: “Sefaria Community Translation” (CC0 1.0 (public-domain dedication)); “Eliyahu Munk, HaChut Hameshulash” (CC BY 4.0); “Rabbi Mike Feuer, Jerusalem Anthology” (CC BY 4.0); and “R. David Kimhi on the first book of Psalms, Translated by R.G. Finch, London, 1919” (public domain). Text via Sefaria.