Psalms 11:7

Old Testament Poetry/Hymns ASV (1901)

What does Psalms 11:7 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “For Jehovah is righteous; he loveth righteousness: The upright shall behold his face. Psalm 12 For the Chief Musician; set to the Sheminith. A Psalm of David.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

For Jehovah is righteous; he loveth righteousness: The upright shall behold his face. Psalm 12 For the Chief Musician; set to the Sheminith. A Psalm of David.
Psalms 11:7 — American Standard Version

Context — Psalms 11

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
7For Jehovah is righteous; he loveth righteousness: The upright shall behold his face. Psalm 12 For the Chief Musician; set to the Sheminith. A Psalm of David.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“I [am for] peace, etc.] Amos wholly peace; a man of peace, as Aben Ezra; of a peaceable disposition, devoted to peace; love it, seek and pursue it, as every good man does, who is called to it, and in whose heart it rules: such follow peace with all men, and the things which make for it; and, as much as in them lies, endeavour to live peaceably with all; but when I speak, they [are] for war; make a motion for peace, and propose the terms of it, they declare against it, and for war: or when he spoke of the things of God, and of his experience of them, of the word of God, and of the truths of it, and of what he believed, (<19B610>Psalm 116:10); and especially when he gave good counsel and…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“his countenance--literally, "their faces," a use of the plural applied to God, as in Gen 1:26; Gen 3:22; Gen 11:7; Isa 6:8, &c., denoting the fulness of His perfections, or more probably originating in a reference to the trinity of persons. "Faces" is used as "eyes" (Psa 11:4), expressing here God's complacency towards the upright (compare Psa 34:15-16). Next: Psalms Chapter 12”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“For the righteous Lord loveth righteousness - This would be more correctly rendered, “For Jehovah is righteous; he loves righteousness.” The idea is, that God is himself righteous, and, consequently, he loves those who are righteous. He may be confided in, therefore, by the righteous as their friend, and being under his protection they have nothing to fear. His countenance doth behold the upright - The word rendered “countenance” is, in the Hebrew, in the plural number; literally,” his faces.” It is not easy to account for this use of the plural, though it is common in the Scriptures. There may be an allusion to the fact that man seems to have two faces - one on the right side, and one on…”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“11:7 The godly are assured of the Lord’s favorable presence when they see his face (see 23:6).”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“For: Psa 45:7, Psa 99:4, Psa 146:8; Isa 61:8 his: Psa 5:12, Psa 21:6, Psa 33:18, Psa 34:15, Psa 42:5; Job 36:7; Pe1 3:12 Next: Psalms Chapter 12”
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Keil & Delitzsch
C. F. Keil & F. Delitzsch · Commentary on the Old Testament · 19th-century historical commentary
“Psa 11:7, which assumes a declaration of something that is near at hand, is opposed to our rendering the voluntative form of the fut., ימטר, as expressive of a wish. The shorter form of the future is frequently indicative in the sense of the future, e.g., Psa 72:13, or of the present, e.g., Psa 58:5, or of the past, Psa 18:12. Thus it here affirms a fact of the future which follows as a necessity from Psa 11:4, Psa 11:5. Assuming that פּהים might be equivalent to פּחמים, even then the Hebrew פּחם, according to the general usage of the language, in distinction from גּחלת, does not denote burning, but black coals. It ought therefore to have been אשׁ פּחמי. Hitzig reads פּהים from פּיח ashes;…”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification