Psalms 12:3

Psalms 12:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)The Lord shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things:
• New International Version (NIV)May the Lord silence all flattering lips and every boastful tongue—
• English Standard Version (ESV)May the Lord cut off all flattering lips, the tongue that makes great boasts,
• New King James Version (NKJV)May the Lord cut off all flattering lips, And the tongue that speaks proud things,

Context of Psalms 12:3

1Save and help and rescue, Lord, for godly people cease to be, For the faithful vanish from among the sons of men. 2They speak deceitful and worthless words to one another; With flattering lips and a double heart they speak. May the Lord cut off all flattering lips, The tongue that speaks great things [in boasting]; 4Who have said, “With our tongue we will prevail; Our lips are our own; who is lord and master over us?” 5“Because of the devastation of the afflicted, because of the groaning of the needy, Now I will arise,” says the Lord; “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”

Psalms 12:3 word by word

יַכְרֵ֣ת יְ֭הוָה כָּל־שִׂפְתֵ֣י חֲלָק֑וֹת לָ֝שׁ֗וֹן מְדַבֶּ֥רֶת גְּדֹלֽוֹת׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• The Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• shall cut offכָּרַתkârath · to cut: eliminateH3772
• all flatteringחֶלְקָהchelqâh · portionH2513
• lipsשָׂפָהώâphâh ώepheth · lipsH8193
• the tongueלָשׁוֹןlâshôn lâshôn leshônâh · tongueH3956
• that speakethדָבַרdâbar · to speak: speakH1696
• proudגָּדוֹלgâdôl gâdôl · great: largeH1419

Cross-references for Psalms 12:3

• Job 32:22For I do not know how to flatter, [in an appropriate way, and I fear that], My Maker would soon take me away.
• Psalms 17:10They have closed their unfeeling heart [to kindness and compassion]; With their mouths they speak proudly and make presumptuous claims.
• Psalms 73:8They mock and wickedly speak of oppression; They speak loftily [with malice].
• Exodus 15:9The enemy said, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; My desire shall be satisfied against them; I will draw my sword, my hand shall dispossess them and drive them out.’
• 1 Samuel 2:3Do not go on boasting so very proudly, Do not let arrogance come out of your mouth; For the Lord is a God of knowledge, And by Him actions are weighed (examined).
• 1 Samuel 17:43The Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with [shepherd’s] staffs?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.
• 2 Kings 19:23Through your messengers you have taunted and defied the Lord, And have said [boastfully], “With my many chariots I came up to the heights of the mountains, To the remotest parts of Lebanon; I cut down its tall cedar trees and its choicest cypress trees. I entered its most distant lodging, its densest forest.
• Isaiah 10:10As my hand has reached to the kingdoms of the idols, Whose carved images were greater and more feared than those of Jerusalem and Samaria,
• Ezekiel 28:2“Son of man, say to the prince of Tyre, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Because your heart is lifted up And you have said and thought, ‘I am a god, I sit in the seat of the gods In the heart of the seas’; Yet you are [only] a man [weak, feeble, made of earth] and not God, Though you [imagine yourself to be more than mortal and] think your mind is as [wise as] the mind of God—
• Ezekiel 29:3Speak and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I am against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt, The great monster that lies in the midst of his rivers, [Boastfully] declaring, ‘My Nile is my own, and I have made it for myself.’
• Daniel 4:30The king said thoughtfully, ‘Is not this the great Babylon which I myself have built as the royal residence and seat of government by the might of my power and for the honor and glory of my majesty?’
• Daniel 7:8While I was considering the horns, behold, there came up among them another horn, a little one, and three of the first horns were pulled up by the roots before it; and behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth boasting of great things.
• Malachi 3:13“Your words have been harsh against Me,” says the Lord. “But you say, ‘What have we spoken against You?’
• 2 Peter 2:18For uttering arrogant words of vanity [pompous words disguised to sound scholarly or profound, but meaning nothing and containing no spiritual truth], they beguile and lure using lustful desires, by sensuality, those who barely escape from the ones who live in error.
• Jude 1:16These people are [habitual] murmurers, griping and complaining, following after their own desires [controlled by passion]; they speak arrogantly, [pretending admiration and] flattering people to gain an advantage.
• Revelation 13:5And the beast was given a mouth (the power of speech), uttering great things and arrogant and blasphemous words, and he was given freedom and authority to act and to do as he pleased for forty-two months (three and a half years).

Commentaries on Psalms 12:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3Proud things - גדלות gedoloth, great things; great swelling words, both in their promises and in their commendations.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3The Lord shall cut off - This might be rendered, “May the Lord cut off,” implying a wish on the part of the psalmist that it might occur. But probably the common rendering is the correct one. It is the statement of a solemn truth, designed for warning, that all such persons would be punished. All flattering lips - The meaning is, that he will cut off all “persons” who use flattery; that is, he will cut them off from the favors which he will show to his…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-4Evil becomes so widespread that the godly pray for rescue (Isaiah 57:1; Micah 7:2; compare Psalms 1:6; 37:20; 58:7; 104:35).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 3-43-4. Boasting (Da 7:25) is, like flattery, a species of lying. lips, and ... tongue--for persons.Read the comment

Topics related to Psalms 12:3

• Falsehood
• Flattery
• Infidelity
• Speaking

In the dictionaries

• Double
• Fail
• Joy
• Lip
• Music
• Papyrus
• Psalms, Book of

Commentaries on Psalms 12

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• The Treasury of David
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings