Psalms 10 Study Notes: A Plea Against the Arrogant Wicked
The psalmist asks why God seems distant while proud, greedy men prey on the helpless and assume God will never hold them to account. He calls on the LORD to act and ends confident that the eternal King hears the humble and defends orphans and the oppressed.
General
How does Psalm 10 end?
Answer: With confidence that the eternal King hears the lowly
The psalm that began by asking why God seemed far away ends in confidence. The LORD reigns as King for all time, and the nations vanish from His land (10:16). He has heard what the humble long for; He will make their hearts strong and listen closely, defending orphans and the oppressed so that mere mortals can no longer terrorize them (10:17-18). Moses sang of the LORD's never-ending reign (Exodus 15:18). Mary praised God for bringing down rulers and lifting up the humble (Luke 1:52), and James says God sets Himself against the arrogant and shows favor to the lowly (James 4:6).
- Psalm 10:16-18 (BSB)“The LORD is King forever and ever; the nations perish from His land. You have heard, O LORD, the desire of the humble; You will strengthen their hearts. You will incline Your ear, to vindicate the fatherless and oppressed, that the men of the earth may strike terror no more.”The psalm ends with the LORD as eternal King who hears the humble and defends the oppressed.
- Exodus 15:18 (BSB)“The LORD will reign forever and ever!””Moses' song celebrates that the LORD will reign forever.
- Luke 1:52 (BSB)“He has brought down rulers from their thrones, but has exalted the humble.”Mary praises God for bringing down rulers and exalting the humble.
- James 4:6 (BSB)“But He gives us more grace. This is why it says: “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.””God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.
Theological
How is the lament of Psalm 10 resolved in 10:16-18?
Answer: With confidence that the eternal King hears the lowly
The psalm resolves in confident trust. The LORD reigns as King for all ages, and the nations vanish from His land (10:16); He has heard the longing of the lowly, will make their hearts strong, and will vindicate orphans and the oppressed so that mortal man may no longer terrify (10:17-18). The movement from lament to assurance rests on God's eternal kingship and His hearing of the humble. Exodus 15:18 celebrates the same everlasting reign, Luke 1:52 praises God's reversal of the proud and lowly, and James 4:6 states the principle that God resists the arrogant and shows favor to the lowly.
- Psalm 10:16-18 (BSB)“The LORD is King forever and ever; the nations perish from His land. You have heard, O LORD, the desire of the humble; You will strengthen their hearts. You will incline Your ear, to vindicate the fatherless and oppressed, that the men of the earth may strike terror no more.”The psalm ends with the LORD as eternal King who hears the humble and defends the oppressed.
- Exodus 15:18 (BSB)“The LORD will reign forever and ever!””Moses' song celebrates that the LORD will reign forever.
- Luke 1:52 (BSB)“He has brought down rulers from their thrones, but has exalted the humble.”Mary praises God for bringing down rulers and exalting the humble.
- James 4:6 (BSB)“But He gives us more grace. This is why it says: “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.””God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.
General
True or False: In 10:14 the psalmist insists that God does see the trouble the wicked cause, and the victim commits himself to God as the helper of orphans.
Answer: True
This is true. The wicked man says God does not see (10:11), but the psalmist answers: God has seen the trouble and grief, and He takes note so that He can repay it by His own hand. The helpless person entrusts himself to God, who is the helper of children without fathers (10:14). So the psalmist calls on God to rise and act (10:12) and to break the power of the evildoer until his wickedness is fully dealt with (10:15). This is an appeal to God's justice, leaving punishment in His hands rather than taking revenge. God calls Himself a father to the fatherless (Psalm 68:5), who secures justice for orphans and widows (Deuteronomy 10:18). Those who suffer are told to commit themselves to the Creator who is faithful (1 Peter 4:19).
- Psalm 10:14 (BSB)“But You have regarded trouble and grief; You see to repay it by Your hand. The victim entrusts himself to You; You are the helper of the fatherless.”The psalmist affirms that God sees trouble and grief and helps the fatherless who trust Him.
- Psalm 10:15 (BSB)“Break the arm of the wicked and evildoer; call him to account for his wickedness until none is left to be found.”He asks God to break the power of the wicked and call him to account.
- Psalm 68:5 (BSB)“A father of the fatherless and a defender of widows is God in His holy habitation.”God is a father to the fatherless and a defender of widows.
- Deuteronomy 10:18 (BSB)“He executes justice for the fatherless and widow, and He loves the foreigner, giving him food and clothing.”God executes justice for the fatherless and the widow.
- 1 Peter 4:19 (BSB)“So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should entrust their souls to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.”Those who suffer are to entrust themselves to their faithful Creator.
Theological
True or False: In 10:14 the psalmist affirms, against the wicked man's claim, that God sees trouble and grief and is the helper to whom the victim commits himself.
Answer: True
This is true. Against the wicked man's claim that God does not see (10:11), the psalmist confesses that God has taken note of trouble and sorrow in order to requite it, and that the victim commits himself to Him as the One who helps the orphan (10:14). The petition to arise (10:12) and to shatter the evildoer's arm (10:15) is an appeal to divine justice, vengeance handed to God rather than taken. Psalm 68:5 names God a father to orphans, Deuteronomy 10:18 shows Him executing justice for the orphan, and 1 Peter 4:19 commends the same self-entrustment to the faithful Creator.
- Psalm 10:14 (BSB)“But You have regarded trouble and grief; You see to repay it by Your hand. The victim entrusts himself to You; You are the helper of the fatherless.”The psalmist affirms that God sees trouble and grief and helps the fatherless who trust Him.
- Psalm 10:15 (BSB)“Break the arm of the wicked and evildoer; call him to account for his wickedness until none is left to be found.”He asks God to break the power of the wicked and call him to account.
- Psalm 68:5 (BSB)“A father of the fatherless and a defender of widows is God in His holy habitation.”God is a father to the fatherless and a defender of widows.
- Deuteronomy 10:18 (BSB)“He executes justice for the fatherless and widow, and He loves the foreigner, giving him food and clothing.”God executes justice for the fatherless and the widow.
- 1 Peter 4:19 (BSB)“So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should entrust their souls to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.”Those who suffer are to entrust themselves to their faithful Creator.
General
What does the picture of a lion lurking in a thicket stand for in 10:8-10?
Answer: The wicked man secretly preying on the helpless
The psalm compares the wicked man to a hunter and a lion. He hides near the villages to ambush and kill the innocent, watching secretly for victims (10:8). Like a lion crouched in the brush, he waits to seize the weak and traps them in his net (10:9), and the helpless are crushed under his power (10:10). The image is about cruelty against the defenseless, done in secret. Micah describes his own day the same way, with men lying in wait to shed blood and hunting one another with nets (Micah 7:2). Proverbs warns against joining those who plan ambushes against the innocent (Proverbs 1:11), and Jeremiah describes wicked men setting traps for people like bird-catchers (Jeremiah 5:26).
- Psalm 10:8-10 (BSB)“He lies in wait near the villages; in ambush he slays the innocent; his eyes watch in stealth for the helpless. He lies in wait like a lion in a thicket; he lurks to seize the oppressed; he catches the lowly in his net. They are crushed and beaten down; the helpless fall prey to his strength.”The wicked man is pictured as an ambusher and a lion seizing the helpless.
- Micah 7:2 (BSB)“The godly man has perished from the earth; there is no one upright among men. They all lie in wait for blood; they hunt one another with a net.”Micah describes men who lie in wait and hunt one another with a net.
- Proverbs 1:11 (BSB)“If they say, “Come along, let us lie in wait for blood, let us ambush the innocent without cause,”Sinners invite others to ambush the innocent without cause.
- Jeremiah 5:26 (BSB)“For among My people are wicked men; they watch like fowlers lying in wait; they set a trap to catch men.”Wicked men are compared to fowlers setting traps to catch people.
Theological
What does the lion-and-net imagery of 10:8-10 represent?
Answer: The wicked man secretly preying on the helpless
The imagery depicts predatory oppression of the vulnerable. The wicked man lurks near villages to murder the innocent in secret (10:8), crouches like a lion under cover to seize the afflicted, and traps them in his net (10:9), so that the helpless collapse under his strength (10:10). Micah 7:2 describes the same predatory society, Proverbs 1:11 records the invitation of those who ambush the innocent, and Jeremiah 5:26 likens the wicked to fowlers setting traps for men.
- Psalm 10:8-10 (BSB)“He lies in wait near the villages; in ambush he slays the innocent; his eyes watch in stealth for the helpless. He lies in wait like a lion in a thicket; he lurks to seize the oppressed; he catches the lowly in his net. They are crushed and beaten down; the helpless fall prey to his strength.”The wicked man is pictured as an ambusher and a lion seizing the helpless.
- Micah 7:2 (BSB)“The godly man has perished from the earth; there is no one upright among men. They all lie in wait for blood; they hunt one another with a net.”Micah describes men who lie in wait and hunt one another with a net.
- Proverbs 1:11 (BSB)“If they say, “Come along, let us lie in wait for blood, let us ambush the innocent without cause,”Sinners invite others to ambush the innocent without cause.
- Jeremiah 5:26 (BSB)“For among My people are wicked men; they watch like fowlers lying in wait; they set a trap to catch men.”Wicked men are compared to fowlers setting traps to catch people.
General
Paul echoes 10:7, about the wicked man's mouth, in Romans 3. What is he proving there?
Answer: That Jews and Gentiles alike are under sin
The psalmist says the wicked man's speech overflows with curses, lies, and threats, with harm and evil hidden beneath his tongue (10:7). In Romans 3 Paul strings together several Old Testament verses to prove a charge he has already made: every person, Jew or Greek, stands under the power of sin (Romans 3:9). His words about mouths filled with cursing (Romans 3:14) draw on this verse. The point is that the whole world stands accountable to God, and every mouth is silenced (Romans 3:19). The sinful speech of Psalm 10 is a picture of the human heart apart from God's grace, which is why everyone needs a righteousness that comes as a gift through faith in Christ.
- Psalm 10:7 (BSB)“His mouth is full of cursing, deceit, and violence; trouble and malice are under his tongue.”The wicked man's mouth is full of cursing, deceit, and violence.
- Romans 3:9 (BSB)“What then? Are we any better? Not at all. For we have already made the charge that Jews and Greeks alike are all under sin.”Paul states his charge that Jews and Greeks alike are all under sin.
- Romans 3:14 (BSB)““Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.””Paul uses the language of mouths full of cursing in his list of Scriptures.
- Romans 3:19 (BSB)“Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God.”The purpose is that every mouth be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God.
Theological
In Romans 3 Paul draws on 10:7. What does that catena of Scripture establish?
Answer: That Jews and Gentiles alike are under sin
Psalm 10:7 describes the wicked man's mouth as brimming with curses, lies, and oppression, with mischief under his tongue. Paul incorporates this language into the catena of Romans 3:10-18 (Romans 3:14) to establish that Jew and Greek without distinction stand under sin (Romans 3:9), so that all mouths are stopped and all the world is answerable to God (Romans 3:19). The psalm's portrait of the wicked becomes a diagnosis of fallen humanity universally, the doctrine of total depravity, which prepares for justification by grace through faith apart from works of the law.
- Psalm 10:7 (BSB)“His mouth is full of cursing, deceit, and violence; trouble and malice are under his tongue.”The wicked man's mouth is full of cursing, deceit, and violence.
- Romans 3:9 (BSB)“What then? Are we any better? Not at all. For we have already made the charge that Jews and Greeks alike are all under sin.”Paul states his charge that Jews and Greeks alike are all under sin.
- Romans 3:14 (BSB)““Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.””Paul uses the language of mouths full of cursing in his list of Scriptures.
- Romans 3:19 (BSB)“Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God.”The purpose is that every mouth be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God.
General
What conviction does the wicked man keep telling himself in 10:6, 10:11, and 10:13?
Answer: That God will never hold him responsible
Three times the psalm lets us hear what the wicked man tells himself. He is sure nothing will ever shake him (10:6); he thinks God has forgotten and turned away and does not see (10:11); and he is certain God will never make him answer for what he does (10:13). Underneath all three is one lie: there will be no reckoning. But Scripture says nothing is hidden from God, and everyone must give Him an account (Hebrews 4:13). God cannot be mocked; people reap what they sow (Galatians 6:7). When punishment is delayed, the wicked grow bolder, but delay is not escape (Ecclesiastes 8:11).
- Psalm 10:6 (BSB)“He says to himself, “I will not be moved; from age to age I am free of distress.””The wicked man tells himself he will never be shaken or face distress.
- Psalm 10:11 (BSB)“He says to himself, “God has forgotten; He hides His face and never sees.””He assures himself that God has forgotten and does not see.
- Psalm 10:13 (BSB)“Why has the wicked man renounced God? He says to himself, “You will never call me to account.””He is convinced God will never call him to account.
- Hebrews 4:13 (BSB)“Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight; everything is uncovered and exposed before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.”Nothing is hidden from God, and all must give account to Him.
- Galatians 6:7 (BSB)“Do not be deceived: God is not to be mocked. Whatever a man sows, he will reap in return.”God is not mocked; a man reaps what he sows.
- Ecclesiastes 8:11 (BSB)“When the sentence for a crime is not speedily executed, the hearts of men become fully set on doing evil.”Delay in punishing evil emboldens people to do more of it.
Theological
What single conviction unites the wicked man's inner speeches in 10:6, 10:11, and 10:13?
Answer: That God will never hold him responsible
The three soliloquies expose a denial of divine judgment: he will never be shaken (10:6), God has forgotten and does not see (10:11), and God will not require an account (10:13). The wicked presume on God's apparent inactivity. Hebrews 4:13 answers that all things lie open before the One who will require an account from everyone, Galatians 6:7 insists God is not mocked, and Ecclesiastes 8:11 explains how delayed sentence emboldens evil without cancelling it.
- Psalm 10:6 (BSB)“He says to himself, “I will not be moved; from age to age I am free of distress.””The wicked man tells himself he will never be shaken or face distress.
- Psalm 10:11 (BSB)“He says to himself, “God has forgotten; He hides His face and never sees.””He assures himself that God has forgotten and does not see.
- Psalm 10:13 (BSB)“Why has the wicked man renounced God? He says to himself, “You will never call me to account.””He is convinced God will never call him to account.
- Hebrews 4:13 (BSB)“Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight; everything is uncovered and exposed before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.”Nothing is hidden from God, and all must give account to Him.
- Galatians 6:7 (BSB)“Do not be deceived: God is not to be mocked. Whatever a man sows, he will reap in return.”God is not mocked; a man reaps what he sows.
- Ecclesiastes 8:11 (BSB)“When the sentence for a crime is not speedily executed, the hearts of men become fully set on doing evil.”Delay in punishing evil emboldens people to do more of it.
General
How does 10:3-4 describe the wicked man's attitude toward God?
Answer: He leaves God entirely out of his plans
His pride already drives him to hunt down the needy (10:2). He brags about what his heart craves, praises the greedy, and speaks with contempt of the LORD (10:3). Because of his pride he does not look for God, and none of his thinking makes any room for Him (10:4). Pride is at the root: he acts as though God does not matter. Psalms of David describe the same heart elsewhere: the fool who inwardly denies God exists (Psalm 14:1) and the man who has no dread of God at all (Psalm 36:1). Paul explains that when people refuse to acknowledge God, God hands them over to a corrupt mind (Romans 1:28).
- Psalm 10:3-4 (BSB)“For the wicked man boasts in the cravings of his heart; he blesses the greedy and reviles the LORD. In his pride the wicked man does not seek Him; in all his schemes there is no God.”The wicked man boasts, spurns the LORD, and in his pride leaves God out of all his plans.
- Psalm 14:1 (BSB)“For the choirmaster. Of David. The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt; their acts are vile. There is no one who does good.”The fool says in his heart that there is no God.
- Psalm 36:1 (BSB)“For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, the servant of the LORD. An oracle is in my heart regarding the transgression of the wicked man: There is no fear of God before his eyes.”The wicked man has no fear of God before his eyes.
- Romans 1:28 (BSB)“Furthermore, since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, He gave them up to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done.”Those who refuse to acknowledge God are handed over to a depraved mind.
Theological
What characterizes the wicked man's relation to God in 10:3-4?
Answer: He leaves God entirely out of his plans
Driven by pride he hounds the afflicted (10:2); he boasts of his appetites, commends the greedy, and spurns the LORD (10:3); in his arrogance he does not seek God, and God has no place in any of his schemes (10:4). This is practical atheism rooted in pride, not a theoretical denial but a life ordered as if God were irrelevant. Psalm 14:1 locates the same denial in the heart of the fool, and Psalm 36:1 diagnoses the absence of any fear of God. Romans 1:28 shows the judicial consequence: those who refuse to acknowledge God are given over to a debased mind.
- Psalm 10:3-4 (BSB)“For the wicked man boasts in the cravings of his heart; he blesses the greedy and reviles the LORD. In his pride the wicked man does not seek Him; in all his schemes there is no God.”The wicked man boasts, spurns the LORD, and in his pride leaves God out of all his plans.
- Psalm 14:1 (BSB)“For the choirmaster. Of David. The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt; their acts are vile. There is no one who does good.”The fool says in his heart that there is no God.
- Psalm 36:1 (BSB)“For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, the servant of the LORD. An oracle is in my heart regarding the transgression of the wicked man: There is no fear of God before his eyes.”The wicked man has no fear of God before his eyes.
- Romans 1:28 (BSB)“Furthermore, since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, He gave them up to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done.”Those who refuse to acknowledge God are handed over to a depraved mind.
General
How does Psalm 10 open?
Answer: A question about why God seems remote when trouble strikes
Psalm 10 opens with an honest complaint. The psalmist asks why the LORD seems to keep His distance and to hide Himself just when times are hardest (10:1). He does not stop praying; he brings his confusion straight to God. The Bible is full of such prayers. Habakkuk asks how long he must cry for help while God seems not to listen (Habakkuk 1:2), and David asks why God stays distant instead of rescuing him (Psalm 22:1-2), the psalm whose opening cry Jesus spoke from the cross. Complaint of this kind is not unbelief; it is faith speaking to God when His ways are hard to understand, and the psalm ends in confidence (10:16-18).
- Psalm 10:1 (BSB)“Why, O LORD, do You stand far off? Why do You hide in times of trouble?”The psalmist asks why the LORD seems far away and hidden in times of trouble.
- Habakkuk 1:2 (BSB)“How long, O LORD, must I call for help but You do not hear, or cry out to You, “Violence!” but You do not save?”The prophet likewise asks God how long he must cry for help without an answer.
- Psalm 22:1-2 (BSB)“For the choirmaster. To the tune of “The Doe of the Dawn.” A Psalm of David. My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Why are You so far from saving me, so far from my words of groaning? I cry out by day, O my God, but You do not answer, and by night, but I have no rest.”David cries out that God seems far from saving him; Jesus spoke this psalm's opening cry on the cross.
Theological
What kind of utterance opens Psalm 10?
Answer: A question about why God seems remote when trouble strikes
The psalm begins as a lament, with a double question of theodicy: why does the LORD stand far off and hide Himself when trouble comes (10:1)? The complaint is addressed to God, not about Him, and so is itself an exercise of faith. Habakkuk 1:2 voices the same perplexity at apparent divine silence, and Psalm 22:1-2, taken up by Christ on the cross, asks why God is far from saving. The lament will resolve into confident trust in the eternal King (10:16-18).
- Psalm 10:1 (BSB)“Why, O LORD, do You stand far off? Why do You hide in times of trouble?”The psalmist asks why the LORD seems far away and hidden in times of trouble.
- Habakkuk 1:2 (BSB)“How long, O LORD, must I call for help but You do not hear, or cry out to You, “Violence!” but You do not save?”The prophet likewise asks God how long he must cry for help without an answer.
- Psalm 22:1-2 (BSB)“For the choirmaster. To the tune of “The Doe of the Dawn.” A Psalm of David. My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Why are You so far from saving me, so far from my words of groaning? I cry out by day, O my God, but You do not answer, and by night, but I have no rest.”David cries out that God seems far from saving him; Jesus spoke this psalm's opening cry on the cross.