Psalms 14:1

For the music director; by David. Fools say to themselves, ²  “There is no God.” ³  They sin and commit evil deeds; ⁴  none of them does what is right. ⁵ 

For the director of music. Of David. The fool says in his heart, "There is no God." They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no-one who does good.

<<For the choir director. A Psalm of David.>> The fool has said in his heart, "There is no God." They are corrupt, they have committed abominable deeds; There is no one who does good.

<<For the choir director: A psalm of David.>> Only fools say in their hearts, "There is no God." They are corrupt, and their actions are evil; no one does good!

Bilious and bloated, they gas, "God is gone." Their words are poison gas, fouling the air; they poison Rivers and skies; thistles are their cash crop.

<To the chief music-maker. Of David.> The foolish man has said in his heart, God will not do anything. They are unclean, they have done evil works; there is not one who does good.

Fools say in their hearts, "There is no God." They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is no one who does good.

<<To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.>> The fool has said in his heart, " There is no God." They are corrupt, They have done abominable works, There is none who does good.

For the music director; by David. Fools say to themselves, ²  “There is no God.” ³  They sin and commit evil deeds; ⁴  none of them does what is right. ⁵ 

¹ sn Psalm 14. The psalmist observes that the human race is morally corrupt. Evildoers oppress God’s people, but the psalmist is confident of God’s protection and anticipates a day when God will vindicate Israel.

² tn Heb “a fool says in his heart.” The singular is used here in a collective or representative sense; the typical fool is envisioned.

³ sn “There is no God.” The statement is probably not a philosophical assertion that God does not exist, but rather a confident affirmation that God is unconcerned about how men live morally and ethically (see Ps 10:4, 11).

⁴ tn Heb “they act corruptly, they make a deed evil.” The verbs describe the typical behavior of the wicked. The subject of the plural verbs is “sons of man” (v. 2). The entire human race is characterized by sinful behavior. This practical atheism – living as if there is no God who will hold them accountable for their actions – makes them fools, for one of the earmarks of folly is to fail to anticipate the long range consequences of one’s behavior.

⁵ tn Heb “there is none that does good.”