Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile.
David celebrates a signal deliverance: when he fled to King Achish of Gath, whom he reckoned his deadliest enemy after Saul, he feigned madness to escape certain death. That God granted him escape contrary to all expectation shows a memorable instance of His favor, fit for the instruction of the whole Church.
AI summary
Commenting on Psalm 34:1-22
Keep thy tongue from evil. Guard with careful diligence that dangerous member, the tongue, lest it utter evil, for that evil will recoil upon thee, and mar the enjoyment of thy life. Men cannot spit forth poison without feeling some of the venom burning their own flesh. And thy lips from speaking guile. Deceit must be very earnestly avoided by the man who desires happiness.
A king and warrior, with his head full of cares and hands full of business, did not think it beneath him to gather the children and teach them the fear of the Lord from his own hard experience. The tender branches are more easily bent than the stubborn trees; children will be tractable when their elders refuse instruction.
AI summary
Commenting on Psalm 34:11-22