John Calvin Commentary Psalms 31:20

"In the covert of thy presence wilt thou hide them from the plottings of man: Thou wilt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues." — Psalms 31:20 (ASV)

You shall hide them in the secret of your countenance. In this verse the Psalmist especially commends the grace of God, because it preserves and protects the faithful against all harm. As Satan persistently and by innumerable ways opposes their well-being, and as most of the world is at deadly war with them, they are exposed to many dangers.

Therefore, unless God protected them by His power and came to their aid from time to time, their condition would be most miserable. The Psalmist alludes to the hiding he had just mentioned. Although the metaphor may, at first glance, seem somewhat harsh, it very fittingly expresses that, provided the Lord takes care of them, the faithful are perfectly safe under His protection alone.

By this praise, therefore, he highly extols the power of divine Providence, because it alone is sufficient to ward off every kind of evil; and while it shines upon the godly, it blinds the eyes of all the wicked and weakens their hands. In the opinion of some, when the Psalmist speaks of the secret of God’s countenance, he refers to the sanctuary—an interpretation I do not entirely reject, although it does not seem sufficiently sound to me.

Again, he says that God hides the faithful from the pride of man and the strife of tongues, because, if God does not restrain the wicked, we know they have the audacity to unleash outrageous violence against the truly godly. But however unbridled their lust and insolence may be, God preserves His people from harm by wondrously covering them with the brightness of His countenance.

Some translate the Hebrew word ריכסים, rikasim, conspiracies, others perversities, but without any good reason; nor, indeed, does the word’s etymology allow for it, as it comes from a root that signifies to lift up, or to elevate. To pride is added the strife of tongues, because God’s children have reason to fear not only the inhuman deeds of their enemies but also their even more wicked and violent slanders, as David himself experienced more than enough.

And as our innocence ought rightly to be dearer to us than our life, let us learn to cultivate uprightness so that, trusting in God’s protection, we may disregard every false slander. And let us always remember that it is God’s unique prerogative to vindicate His people from all unjust reproaches.