Psalms 101:3-4

101:3 I will not even consider doing what is dishonest.

I hate doing evil;

I will have no part of it.

101:4 I will have nothing to do with a perverse person;

I will not permit evil.

Psalms 101:8

101:8 Each morning I will destroy all the wicked people in the land,

and remove all evildoers from the city of the Lord.


tn Heb “I will not set before my eyes a thing of worthlessness.”

tn Heb “the doing of swerving [deeds] I hate.” The Hebrew term סֵטִים (setim) is probably an alternate spelling of שֵׂטִים (setim), which appears in many medieval Hebrew mss. The form appears to be derived from a verbal root שׂוּט (sut, “to fall away; to swerve”; see Ps 40:4).

tn Heb “it [i.e., the doing of evil deeds] does not cling to me.”

tn Heb “a perverse heart will turn aside from me.” The adjective עִקֵּשׁ (’iqqesh) has the basic nuance “twisted; crooked” and by extension refers to someone or something that is morally perverse (see Ps 18:26). It appears frequently in the Book of Proverbs, where it is used of evil people (22:5), speech (8:8; 19:1), thoughts (11:20; 17:20), and life styles (2:15; 28:6).

tn Heb “know.” The king will not willingly allow perverse individuals to remain in his royal court.