Psalms 37:12
My friends and my neighbours have drawn near, and stood against me. And they that were near me stood afar off:
Open Psalms 37:12 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Amici mei et proximi mei adversum me appropinquaverunt, et steterunt ; et qui juxta me erant, de longe steterunt : et vim faciebant qui quærebant animam meam.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- οἱ φίλοι μου καὶ οἱ πλησίον μου ἐξ ἐναντίας μου ἤγγισαν καὶ ἔστησαν, καὶ οἱ ἔγγιστά μου μακρόθεν ἔστησαν·
- Hebrew (WLC) shown from Psalms 38:12
- אֹֽהֲבַ֨י וְרֵעַ֗י מִנֶּ֣גֶד נִגְעִ֣י יַעֲמֹ֑דוּ וּ֝קְרוֹבַ֗י מֵרָחֹ֥ק עָמָֽדוּ
Haydock's commentary
Have. Hebrew, "over-against my wound (Haydock) or leprosy." (Calmet) Protestants, "stand aloof from my sore." (Haydock)
But the original means rather "near to." Septuagint may have read u for i, in nighi. (Berthier)
But Symmachus and St. Jerome translate, "stood against my leprosy, (Haydock) and my neighbour stood at a distance;" as if they had been afraid of the contagion. Job (xix. 13, 19.) makes the same complaints. (Calmet)
These manners of worldlings may be seen in every age, and ought not to fill us with surprise. (Berthier) (John xv. 18.)
David was abandoned by Achitophel, and by most of the tribe of Juda, (Theodoret) as our Saviour was by his disciples. (St. Augustine)
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 Irenaeus Against Heresies: Book IV, Chapter XXXIII. Whosoever confesses
12. Some of them, moreover, [when they predicted that] as a weak and inglorious man, and as one who knew what it was to bear infirmity, and sitting upon the foal of an ass, He should come to Jerusalem; and that He should give His back to stripes, and His cheeks to palms [which struck Him]; and that He should be led as a sheep to the slaughter; and that He should have vinegar and gall given Him to drink; and that He should be forsaken by His friends and those nearest to Him; and that He should stretch forth His hands the whole day long; and that He should be mocked and maligned by those who looked upon Him; and that His garments should be parted, and lots cast upon His raiment; and that He should be brought down to the dust of death with all [the other] things of a like nature, prophesied His coming in the character of a man as He entered Jerusalem, in which by His passion and crucifixion …
St Augustine Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Psalm XXXVIII
15. “My lovers;” why should I henceforth speak of my enemies? “My lovers and my neighbours drew nigh, and stood over against me” ( ver. 11 ). Understand this that he saith, “Stood over against me.” For if they stood over against me, they fell against themselves. “My lovers and my neighbours drew nigh and stood over against me.” Let us now recognise the words of the Head speaking; now let our Head in His Passion begin to dawn upon us. Yet again when the Head begins to speak, do not sever the Body from it. If the Head would not separate itself from the words of the Body, should the Body dare to separate itself from the sufferings of the Head? Do thou suffer in Christ’s suffering: for Christ, as it were, sinned in thy infirmity. …
St Cyril of Jerusalem On the words, Crucified and Buried
9. Let us then seek the testimonies to the Passion of Christ: for we are met together, not now to make a speculative exposition of the Scriptures, but rather to be certified of the things which we already believe. Now thou hast received from me first the testimonies concerning the coming of Jesus; and concerning His walking on the sea, for it is written, Thy way is in the sea . Also concerning divers cures thou hast on another occasion received testimony. Now therefore I begin from whence the Passion began. Judas was the traitor, and he came against Him, and stood, speaking words of peace, but plotting war. Concerning him, therefore, the Psalmist says, My friends and My neighbours drew near against Me, and stood . And again, Their words were softer than oil, yet be they spears . …