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Psalms 52:1–9, King James Version
Italic words were supplied in the English translation for clarity.
Psalms 52:1–9
Violent boasting confronted by rooted trust
A mighty man boasts in mischief, and the tongue is a razor
Why boastest thou thyself in mischief, O mighty man? the goodness of God endureth continually. The tongue devises mischiefs like a sharp razor, working deceitfully. The addressee loves evil more than good, and lying more than to speak righteousness. Devouring words and a deceitful tongue are the weapons.
The heading names Doeg the Edomite reporting David's presence to Saul. That frame is ancient reception of 1 Samuel 21-22, where priests of Nob are slaughtered. The numbered psalm never narrates that massacre. Use the heading as a lens, not as proof of one composition hour, and do not turn every rival speaker into Doeg.
Uprooted power is set against a green olive in the house of God
God shall likewise destroy thee for ever, take thee away, pluck thee out of thy dwelling place, and root thee out of the land of the living. The righteous will see, fear, and laugh at the one who would not make God his strength but trusted in the abundance of riches.
The speaker is like a green olive tree in the house of God, trusting in mercy for ever. Rooted trust answers violent speech. The laughter is moral recognition, not a permit to slander opponents or to enjoy a human being's ruin as entertainment. Denunciation of destructive speech must not become a campaign of invented charges.
How this should shape us
Refuse to admire people whose power is their cutting mouth. Plant trust where mercy is, and do not copy this psalm as a script for humiliating political enemies or gossiping a name to death.
Teach it back
Explain Psalms 52:1–9 in your own words. Name the poetic voice and movement, trace its place in Psalm 52 and Book II, identify one exact source control or uncertainty, and reject one use the passage does not authorize.
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Go deeper
The explanation above is meant to stand on its own. Open these notes only if you want language, history, disagreements, or source locations.
Where careful interpreters disagreeThe strongest options and their difficulties
Where do responsible readings differ?
Best judgment: The Doeg heading is ancient framing; denunciation of destructive speech must not become slander or political demonization.
How certain? probableResearch trail and exact locationsThe source record behind this section
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete thought-unit coverage.
Psalms 52:1–9, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology checked at the exact unit without treating morphology as a complete apparatus or interpretation.
Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Ps.xml, OSIS 52:1–9
Supports: Verse-level controls for poetic syntax, imagery, older KJV language, textual issues, headings, and alternatives in Psalms 52:1–9.
Official NET Bible Psalm 52 HTML, translator, textual, and study notes attached to Psalms 52:1–9
Supports: Five-book, genre, poetic, historical, theological, liturgical, communal, and reception synthesis with visible limits.
Enter the Bible Psalms course, Introductory Issues: individual and communal lament, from lament to praise, and Bible in the World; applied to Psalms 52:1–9
Supports: Ancient Greek wording, numbering, division, and superscription evidence where it materially clarifies translation or reception.
NETS Psalms, Pietersma introduction pp. 542–543 and exact Greek translation headed Ps 52 for Psalms 52:1–9
Supports: Davidic superscriptions and collection shaping treated as ancient editorial evidence without assuming direct authorship or a recoverable episode.
Botha, 'The role of David,' Verbum et Ecclesia 42.1 (2021), sections 'Davidic superscriptions' and 'Davidic collections'; applied to the heading and editorial placement of Psalm 52
Sources for This Section
These records identify the source, the claim it supports, and the exact location used. A source remains evidence to evaluate; it does not replace the biblical text.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete thought-unit coverage.
Exact location: Psalms 52:1–9, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Psalms
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology checked at the exact unit without treating morphology as a complete apparatus or interpretation.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Ps.xml, OSIS 52:1–9
Open the fixed Hebrew Psalms file ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible Notes: Psalms 1-150
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, current official online edition
Supports: Verse-level controls for poetic syntax, imagery, older KJV language, textual issues, headings, and alternatives in Psalms 52:1–9.
Exact location: Official NET Bible Psalm 52 HTML, translator, textual, and study notes attached to Psalms 52:1–9
Open the official NET Psalms notes ↗modern scholarly book course
Psalms course: summary, outline, background, introductory issues, theological themes, and Bible in the world
Fred Gaiser; revised by Nicholas Schaser
Enter the Bible, Luther Seminary, revised May 2024
Supports: Five-book, genre, poetic, historical, theological, liturgical, communal, and reception synthesis with visible limits.
Exact location: Enter the Bible Psalms course, Introductory Issues: individual and communal lament, from lament to praise, and Bible in the World; applied to Psalms 52:1–9
Open the Enter the Bible Psalms course ↗ancient greek text translation and introduction
A New English Translation of the Septuagint: Psalms
Albert Pietersma
International Organization for Septuagint and Cognate Studies; Oxford University Press, 2009
Supports: Ancient Greek wording, numbering, division, and superscription evidence where it materially clarifies translation or reception.
Exact location: NETS Psalms, Pietersma introduction pp. 542–543 and exact Greek translation headed Ps 52 for Psalms 52:1–9
Open NETS Psalms ↗peer reviewed open access literary and redaction study
The role of David in the composition and redactional grouping of the final Davidic Psalter
Carine H. Botha
Verbum et Ecclesia 42.1, 2021
Supports: Davidic superscriptions and collection shaping treated as ancient editorial evidence without assuming direct authorship or a recoverable episode.
Exact location: Botha, 'The role of David,' Verbum et Ecclesia 42.1 (2021), sections 'Davidic superscriptions' and 'Davidic collections'; applied to the heading and editorial placement of Psalm 52
Open Botha on the Davidic Psalter ↗