The Meaning of Psalms 109:2 Explained

Psalms 109:2

KJV: For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me: they have spoken against me with a lying tongue.

YLT: For the mouth of wickedness, and the mouth of deceit, Against me they have opened, They have spoken with me -- A tongue of falsehood, and words of hatred!

Darby: For the mouth of the wicked man and the mouth of deceit are opened against me: they have spoken against me with a lying tongue,

ASV: For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of deceit have they opened against me: They have spoken unto me with a lying tongue.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

For the mouth  of the wicked  and the mouth  of the deceitful  are opened  against me: they have spoken  against me with a lying  tongue. 

What does Psalms 109:2 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalms 109:1-16 - The Persecutor Of The Needy
This psalm is like a patch of the Sahara amid a smiling Eden. But, terrible as the words are, remember that they were written by the man who, on two occasions, spared the life of his persecutor, and who, when the field of Gilboa was wet with Saul's life-blood, sang the loveliest of elegiacs to his memory. These maledictions do not express personal vindictiveness. Probably they should be read as depicting the doom of the wrong-doer. The Apostle, quoting this psalm, expressly says that the Spirit of Inspiration spoke before by the mouth of David, Acts 1:16. The imperative let might better be translated by the future shall. This would be in perfect conformity with Hebrew usage.
Notice in Psalms 109:4 that by omitting the three words in italics, a beautiful suggestion is made of the life of prayer: But I-prayer. The only response of the psalmist to the hatred of his enemies was to give himself more absolutely to prayer. His whole being was consumed in the one intense appeal to God. Such times come to us all. Such prayers always end in praise and thanksgiving, Psalms 109:30. Happy are we who also can count on the Advocate with the Father, Psalms 109:31. Jesus prays our prayers with us. [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalms 109

1  David complains of his slanderous enemies
16  He shows their sin
21  Complaining of his own misery, he prays for help
29  He promises thankfulness

What do the individual words in Psalms 109:2 mean?

For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful against me have opened they have spoken against me with a tongue lying
כִּ֤י פִ֪י רָשָׁ֡ע וּֽפִי־ מִ֭רְמָה עָלַ֣י פָּתָ֑חוּ דִּבְּר֥וּ אִ֝תִּ֗י לְשׁ֣וֹן שָֽׁקֶר

פִ֪י  the  mouth 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: פֶּה  
Sense: mouth.
רָשָׁ֡ע  of  the  wicked 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular
Root: רָשָׁע  
Sense: wicked, criminal.
וּֽפִי־  and  the  mouth 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: פֶּה  
Sense: mouth.
מִ֭רְמָה  of  the  deceitful 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: מִרְמָה  
Sense: deceit, treachery.
עָלַ֣י  against  me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
פָּתָ֑חוּ  have  opened 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person common plural
Root: פָּתַח 
Sense: to open.
דִּבְּר֥וּ  they  have  spoken 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Perfect, third person common plural
Root: דָּבַר 
Sense: to speak, declare, converse, command, promise, warn, threaten, sing.
אִ֝תִּ֗י  against  me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
Root: אֵת 
Sense: with, near, together with.
לְשׁ֣וֹן  with  a  tongue 
Parse: Noun, common singular construct
Root: לָשֹׁון  
Sense: tongue.
שָֽׁקֶר  lying 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: שֶׁקֶר  
Sense: lie, deception, disappointment, falsehood.