May ruin befall them by surprise; may the net they hid ensnare them; may they fall into the hazard they created.
David's enemies are not mere dupes swept along by Saul's court; he distinguishes carefully between those thoughtlessly caught up in hatred through ignorance and those deliberate malefactors who wickedly conspired to destroy an innocent man for favor. Against the latter, he calls on God for justice, knowing his own innocence and relying on God's promise spoken through Samuel.
AI summary
Commenting on Psalm 35:1-28
"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.
In these verses we have, I. David's representation of his case to God, setting forth the restless rage and malice of his persecutors. He was God's servant, expressly appointed by him to be what he was, followed his guidance, and aimed at his glory in the way of duty, had lived (as St.
Commenting on Psalm 35:1-10