Psalms 118:150
They that persecute me have drawn nigh to iniquity; but they are gone far off from thy law.
Open Psalms 118:150 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Appropinquaverunt persequentes me iniquitati : a lege autem tua longe facti sunt.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- προσήγγισαν οἱ καταδιώκοντές με ἀνομίᾳ, ἀπὸ δὲ τοῦ νόμου σου ἐμακρύνθησαν.
- Hebrew (WLC) shown from Psalms 119:150
- קָ֭רְבוּ רֹדְפֵ֣י זִמָּ֑ה מִתּוֹרָתְךָ֥ רָחָֽקוּ
Haydock's commentary
Law. There is no medium between faith and infidelity. If we do not observe the law, we sin. Not to advance is to go back. (Calmet)
Shall we hesitate whether to follow the narrow or the broad road? (Berthier)
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Augustine Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Koph
148. “They draw nigh, that of malice persecute me:” or, as some copies read, “maliciously” ( ver. 150 ). Then they that persecute draw nigh, when they go the length of torturing and destroying the flesh: whence the twenty-first Psalm, wherein the Lord’s Passion is prophesied, saith, “O go not from me, for trouble is hard at hand;” where those things are spoken of which He suffered when His Passion was not imminent upon Him, but actually realized. “And are far from Thy law.” The nearer they drew to the persecuting the righteous, so much the farther were they from righteousness. But what harm did they do unto those, to whom they drew near by persecution; since the approach of their Lord is nearer unto their souls, by whom they no wise are forsaken?