King James Version
Psalm 12
Structured as a communal lament, Psalm 12 addresses the decline of faithfulness in society and the prevalence of deceitful, double minded speech. The speaker grieves how flattery and lies harm the poor, but finds relief in contrasting human deceit with the utter purity of divine promises. Unlike unstable human words, God’s words are pictured as silver refined seven times in a furnace. Within the Psalter, this chapter offers a sharp critique of social corruption while pointing toward trustworthy divine truth. The key verse highlights this enduring dependability, declaring, "The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times."
1 Help, LORD; for the godly man ceaseth; for the faithful fail from among the children of men.
2 They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak.
3 The LORD shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things:
4 Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail; our lips are our own: who is lord over us?
5 For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the LORD; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.
6 The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
7 Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.
8 The wicked walk on every side, when the vilest men are exalted.
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