Matthew Henry Commentary Psalms 53:1-6

"The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity; There is none that doeth good. God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, To see if there were any that did understand, That did seek after God. Every one of them is gone back; they are together become filthy; There is none that doeth good, no, not one. Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge, Who eat up my people [as] they eat bread, And call not upon God? There were they in great fear, where no fear was; For God hath scattered the bones of him that encampeth against thee: Thou hast put them to shame, because of God hath rejected them. Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion! When God bringeth back the captivity of his people, Then shall Jacob rejoice, [and] Israel shall be glad." — Psalms 53:1-6 (ASV)

This psalm is almost the same as the 14th. Its purpose is to convince us of our sins. God, through the psalmist, here shows us how bad we are, and proves this by his own certain knowledge. He speaks terror to persecutors, the worst of sinners. He speaks encouragement to God's persecuted people.

How is it that men are so bad? Because there is no fear of God before their eyes. Men's bad practices flow from their bad principles. If they profess to know God, yet in their works they deny him, because in their thoughts they deny him. See the folly of sin: he is a fool in the sight of God (whose judgment we are sure is right) who harbors such corrupt thoughts.

And see the fruit of sin—what it brings men to when their hearts are hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. See also the faith of the saints, and their hope and power regarding the cure of this great evil. There will come a Savior, a great salvation, a salvation from sin.

God will save his church from its enemies. He will save all believers from their own sins, so that they may not be led captive by them, which will be everlasting joy to them. From this work the Redeemer received his name JESUS, for he shall save his people from their sins (Matthew 1:21).