Yes, they opened their mouth wide against me. They said, “Aha! Aha! Our eye has seen it!”
Parallel Translations
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Yes, they opened their mouth wide against me. They said, “Aha! Aha! Our eye has seen it!”
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Yea, they opened their mouth wide against me, and said, Aha, aha, our eye hath seen it.
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Yea, they open their mouth wide against me; they say: 'Aha, aha, our eye hath seen it.'
Cross-references (6)
Passages linked to Psalms 35:21 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Psalms 22:13 They open their mouths wide against me, lions tearing prey and roaring.
- Psalms 40:15 Let them be desolate by reason of their shame that tell me, “Aha! Aha!”
- Luke 11:53-54 As he said these things to them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to be terribly angry, and to draw many things out of him; lying in wait for him, and seeking to catch him in something he might say, that they might accuse him.
- Psalms 70:3 Let them be turned because of their shame who say, “Aha! Aha!”
- Psalms 54:7 For he has delivered me out of all trouble. My eye has seen triumph over my enemies.
- Isaiah 9:12 The Syrians in front, and the Philistines behind; and they will devour Israel with open mouth. For all this, his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (14 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain They rejoiced as though they had now seen David…
They rejoiced as though they had now seen David overthrown.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Psa 35:21 Yea, they opened their mouth wide against…
Psa 35:21 Yea, they opened their mouth wide against me, [and] said, Aha, aha, our eye hath seen [it].
Ver. 21. They opened their mouth] As if the very banks of blasphemy had been broken down.
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Our eye hath seen] Eye for eyes, unless we would say that all the wicked are so conjoined, that they may seem to have but one eye, heart, head, &c., and then they say, as Hannibal did, when he saw a ditch full of man’s blood, O formosum spectaculum! O gallant sight! O rem regiam! as Valesus said, when he had slain three hundred Protestants.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain They opened their mouth wide against me; either,
They opened their mouth wide against me; either,
1. To devour me. It is a metaphor taken from wild beasts, when they come within reach of their prey. Or;
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2. To pour forth whole floods of scoffs, and slanders, and contumelies. Aha, aha; an expression of joy and triumph. See Poole "Job 39:25; Psa 40:15". Hath seen it, Heb. hath seen, to wit, what we have long desired and hoped for. See the same or like ellipsis Psa 54:7; 59:10; 112:8.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain Yea, they opened their mouth wide against me,.... In…
Yea, they opened their mouth wide against me,.... In laughter, scorn, and derision; see Psa 22:7;
and said, Aha, aha: a word expressive of joy; and the doubling it shows the greatness of it;
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our eye hath seen it; what their heart wished for; namely, the distress of him, whose enemies they were.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Wide - To pour forth whole floods of scoffs…
Wide - To pour forth whole floods of scoffs and slanders. \Aha - An expression of joy and triumph. Our eye - What we have long desired and hoped for.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 21. They opened their mouth wide] Gaped upon…
Verse 21. They opened their mouth wide] Gaped upon me to express their contempt.
And said, Aha, aha, our eye hath seen it.] They said, האח האח heach, heach, the last syllable in each word being a protracted strongly guttural sound, marking insult and triumph at the same time. It is the word which we translate Ah, Ps 35:25.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain Yea, they opened their mouth wide against me -…
Yea, they opened their mouth wide against me - See the notes at Psa 22:13.
And said, Aha, aha! - See Psa 40:15; Psa 70:3. The language is that which we use when we “detect” another in doing wrong - in doing what he meant to conceal.
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Our eye hath seen it - We are not dependent on the reports of others. We have seen it with our own eyes. We have found you out. We cannot be mistaken in regard to it. The reference is to some supposed “detection” of misconduct on the part of David, and the joy and triumph of such a supposed detection.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On the gesture compare Psa 22:7; and on the…
On the gesture compare Psa 22:7; and on the expressions of malicious triumph, compare Psa 10:13; Psa 28:3.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 21. Aha, aha—An expression of joyful surprise.
21. Aha, aha—An expression of joyful surprise.
Our eye hath seen it— “What we could not have believed on the testimony of another our eyes now see.”—Alexander. Compare this with the trial of our Lord, and Psa_22:7; Mat_27:39
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 21. And they open … a gesture of contempt…
21. And they open … a gesture of contempt (Isa_57:4), rather than of murderous intent (Psa_35:25): they say, Aha, aha, our eye hath seen: seen its desire, seen the fall of the man whose rise excited our envy.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Yea, they opened their mouth wide against me, and…
Yea, they opened their mouth wide against me, and said, Aha, aha! our eye hath seen it. They "opened their mouth wide" in scornful derision; and shouted triumphantly, "Ha, ha! our eye hath seen his downfall!"
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Charles H. Spurgeon 1885 · Public Domain Verse 21. ["Yea, they opened their mouth wide against…
Verse 21. ["Yea, they opened their mouth wide against me."] As if they would swallow him. Uttering great lies which needed wide mouths. They set no bounds to their infamous charges, but poured out wholesale abuse, trusting that if all did not stick, some of it would. ["And said, Aha, aha, our eye hath seen it."] Glad to find out a fault or a misfortune, or to swear they had seen evil where there was none. Malice has but one eye; it is blind to all virtue in its enemy. Eyes can generally see what hearts wish. A man with a mote in his eye sees a spot in the sun. How like a man is to an ass when he brays over another's misfortunes! how like to a devil when he laughs a hyna-laugh over a good man's slip! Malice is folly, and when it holds a festival its tones and gestures far exceed all the freaks and mummeries of the lord of misrule.
[Verse] 21. ["Our eye hath seen."] [Eye] for [eyes], unless we would say that all the wicked are so conjoined, that they may seem to have but one eye, heart, head. [John Trapp.]
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[Verse] 21. Yet, O ye saints, divulge not these things to wicked men; whisper them softly one to another, with fear and trembling, lest some profane wretch or other overhear you, and take that for encouragement that was only meant for caution. What is more common than for the vilest sinners to plead for their excuse, or warrant rather, the foul miscarriages of God's dearest saints? Thus the drunkard looks upon holy Noah as a pot-companion, whereby he discovers his nakedness in a worse sense than ever Cham did; and thus the unclean sensualist quotes David, and calls him in to be the patron of his debauchery. Certainly, if their be any grief that can overcast the perfect joys of the saints in heaven, it is that their names and examples should, to the great dishonour of God, be produced by wicked and sinful men, to countenance their grossest sins and wickednesses. But let such know, that God hath set up these in his church to be monuments of his mercy, to declare to humble and penitent sinners how great sins he can pardon; yet if any hereupon embolden themselves in sin, instead of being set up as monuments of mercy, God will set them up as pillars of salt. [Ezekiel Hopkins (Bishop).]
[Verse] 21. He who rejoices in another's fall rejoices in the devil's victory. [Ambrose, quoted in Nichol's Proverbs.]
[Verses] 21, 22: ---
They gape and drawe their mouthes in scornful wise.
And crie, fie, fie, wee sawe it with our eyes.
But thou their deed, (O Lord!) dost also see;
Then bee not silent soe, nor farr from mee.
None.
Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 They open their mouths wide against me
They open their mouths wide against me
The reason they open their mouths is to accuse the writer. AT: "They shout at me in order to accuse me" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
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Aha, Aha
This is an exclamation that is used when something is suddenly seen or understood. It emphasizes the statement that follows. (See: Exclamations)
our eyes have seen it
Here "our eyes" refers to the enemies' eyes. It is implied that they are saying they saw the writer do something wrong. AT: "we have seen it" or "we saw the wrong things that you did" (See: Synecdoche and Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
You have seen it
Here "it" refers to the false accusations of the writer's enemies. AT: "You have seen how they falsely accused me" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
do not be silent
"do not ignore what they did" This can be stated in positive form. AT: "judge them because of what they did" (See: Litotes)
do not be far from me
This can be stated in positive form. AT: "be very close to me" (See: Litotes)
Arouse yourself and awake
This does not mean that God is actually asleep. The writer wants God to intervene. Both words mean basically the same thing and emphasize the urgency of this request. AT: "I feel like you are sleeping! Wake up" (See: Metaphor and Doublet)
to my defense
This abstract noun "defense" can be stated as "defend." AT: "to defend me" (See: Abstract Nouns)
my cause
This refers to the writer. AT: "me" (See: Metonymy)
translationWords
Yahweh
lord
God
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 35:21, 25 Aha! . . . Look: Both words…
35:21, 25 Aha! . . . Look: Both words translate the same expression of glee (Hebrew he’akh).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.