Psalms 91:8
When the wicked shall spring up as grass: and all the workers of iniquity shall appear: That they may perish for ever and ever:
Open Psalms 91:8 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Cum exorti fuerint peccatores sicut fœnum, et apparuerint omnes qui operantur iniquitatem, ut intereant in sæculum sæculi :
- Septuagint (Swete)
- ἐν τῷ ἀνατεῖλαι τοὺς ἁμαρτωλοὺς ὡς χόρτον, καὶ διέκυψαν πάντες οἱ ἐργαζόμενοι τὴν ἀνομίαν, ὅπως ἂν ἐξολεθρευθῶσιν εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ αἰῶνος.
- Hebrew (WLC) shown from Psalms 92:8
- בִּפְרֹ֤חַ רְשָׁעִ֨ים כְּמ֥וֹ עֵ֗שֶׂב וַ֭יָּצִיצוּ כָּל פֹּ֣עֲלֵי אָ֑וֶן לְהִשָּֽׁמְדָ֥ם עֲדֵי עַֽד
Haydock's commentary
Appear. Hebrew, "flourish." Still they are but as grass, (Haydock) short-lived, and of small utility. The just resembles the palm-tree, ver. 13. (Calmet)
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, Psalm LIV
9. “Turn away evil things unto mine enemies” ( ver. 5 ). So however green they are, so however they flourish, for the fire they are being reserved. “In Thy virtue destroy Thou them.” Because to wit they flourish now, because to wit they spring up like grass: do not thou be a man unwise and foolish, so that by giving thought to these things thou perish for ever and ever. For, “Turn Thou away evil things unto mine enemies.” For if thou shalt have place in the body of David Himself, in His virtue He will destroy them. These men flourish in the felicity of the world, perish in the virtue of God. Not in the same manner as they flourish, do they also perish: for they flourish for a time, perish for everlasting: flourish in unreal good things, perish in real torments. “In Thy strength destroy,” whom in Thy weakness Thou hast endured.
St Augustine Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Psalm XCII
9. For this reason, after saying, “Thy thoughts are very deep,” he at once subjoins: “An unwise man doth not well consider this, and a fool doth not understand it” ( ver. 6 ). What are the things which an unwise man doth not well consider, and which a fool doth not understand? “When the ungodly are green as the grass.” What is, “as the grass”? They flourish when it is winter, but they will wither in the summer. Thou observest the flower of the grass? What more quickly passeth by? What is brighter? What is greener? Let not its verdure delight thee, but fear its withering. Thou hast heard of the ungodly being green as the grass: hear also of the righteous: “For lo.” In the mean while, consider the ungodly; they flourish as the grass; but who are they who understand it not? The foolish and unwise. …