1. The fool said. Previously, the psalmist condemned the iniquity of sinners from the perspective of their affection for sin; here, he condemns their iniquity from the perspective of their contempt for God.

The title is for the end, for David, for an instruction of understanding, for Maeleth. His story is in 1 Samuel 27, when David, fleeing, came to Achish, king of the Philistines, who gave him the city of Ziklag. It happened that while he was gone, the Amalekites burned the city, but David pursued them and recovered what they had plundered.

Mystically, Christ is represented by David. Thus, the gloss says that the Amalekites are a people who lap blood, and they represent the antichrist and his followers, who are immersed in carnal desire. Flesh and blood has not revealed it to you ([Reference Matthew 16:17]). Therefore, their wickedness should be interpreted in this way, and from this they are led to Christ.

Augustine says the title is for Maeleth, which means “mourning and giving birth” and represents the Church, about which John says, a woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow ([Reference John 16:21]). And so the psalm stands for the tribulations that the Church endures because of the world’s evils.Augustine, Expositions on the Psalms 52.1 (Corpus Christianorum Series Latina, 39:638).

This psalm is also by Korah, who was one of the principal singers, and so this psalm was sung through his ministry.

It should also be known that this psalm appears earlier as Psalm 14. However, it does not have the same purpose, nor are all the verses the same. There, it is introduced because of the first coming of Christ, whereas here it is introduced because of Christ’s coming for judgment.

Regarding this, he makes two points:

First, he presents the wickedness of sinners.
Second, he introduces divine judgment, at God looked down from heaven.

Regarding the first point, he also makes two points:

First, he presents the root of evil, namely, contempt.
Second, he shows what springs from such a root, at they are corrupted.

It should be known that wisdom, properly understood, differs from knowledge, because wisdom is concerned with the understanding of divine things, while knowledge is concerned with the understanding of human things.Cf. ST II-II, q. 9, a. 2. The fool has contempt for the understanding of divine things. Depart from us, we desire not the knowledge of your ways ([Reference Job 21:14]). Their foolish heart was darkened ([Reference Romans 1:21]).

Therefore, the fool said—that is, he showed contempt for God and the knowledge of God—and he did this in his heart when he said, “There is no God.”

On the other hand, Anselm says that no one can think that God does not exist.Cf. Anselm, Proslogion 3.4.

It should be said that something can be unknown to us in two ways:

in one way, because of its own nature;
in another way, because of our limitations.

In the first way, those things are unknown to us that have primacy in being, like contingent things, prime matter, motion, and time.Cf. ST I, q. 2, a. 1, resp.

In the second way, those things are unknown to us that exceed our knowledge.

This is why I say that if we were considering God in Himself, then He cannot be thought not to exist. No proposition is better known than one whose predicate is included in its subject. God’s existence is His essence, and therefore this proposition—God is—is supremely known in itself.

But in relation to us, God’s essence is not known to us; rather, it is made known to us through His effects. And so it is that he who denies some of God's effects—for example, His providence over good and bad people and over all things, His miracles, or His omnipotence—denies God. He says this in his heart, because the knowledge that God exists is placed in everyone’s heart by God, and no one wants to be thought a fool for saying that God does not exist.

Alternatively, the fool is the Jew—understand, you senseless among the people ([Reference Psalms 94:8])—because he said that Christ is not God. You, being a man, make yourself God ([Reference John 10:33]).

2. They are corrupted. This is the effect of their malice. Just as the fear, knowledge, and love of God is the source of every good work, so when the knowledge and love of God are taken away, a good life is entirely taken away.

He shows that this follows in two ways:

first, regarding the practice of evil;
second, regarding the abandonment of good.

Two evils follow from this.

The first is that they are corrupted. A body is corrupted through the loss of its natural heat and through the removal of external heat.

The natural heat of the human soul is God Himself. So, as long as the knowledge of God is in the soul, the soul retains its form, which God impresses on it: namely, innocence and the divine image.

But when that divine heat is lost, its functional heat is removed (namely, the heat of sinful desire and fear), the soul is corrupted. Consequently, many who remove from themselves the fear, love, and knowledge of God are corrupted in impurity, and so, they are made abominable in iniquities. They became abominable, as those things were, which they loved ([Reference Hosea 9:10]).

And he says iniquity, that is, because of iniquities, they also lose what is good. There is not one who does good. They are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge ([Reference Jeremiah 4:22]).

3. He looked down from heaven. Here he describes the judgment of God.

He proceeds in three steps:

First, he presents a consideration of the judgment.
Second, he shows what the judge has found: all have gone aside.
Third, he adds the sentence: shall they not all know?

The reason they deny God is that they believe that, due to His greatness, God does not look down on what is happening. Do you not think that God is higher than heaven? And you say, “What does God know? He judges as it were through a mist. He walks about the poles of heaven, and he does not consider our things” ([Reference Job 22:12–14]).

But it pertains to the perfection of His wisdom that He sees all things. Who is like the Lord, who dwells on high and looks down on the low things in heaven and in earth? ([Reference Psalms 113:5-6]). Therefore, he says that the Lord looks down even from heaven; that is, He considers the sons of men from His greatness. For what is my soul in such an immense creation? (). All the ways of a man are open to his eyes ([Reference Proverbs 16:2]). From heaven the Lord has looked upon the earth ([Reference Psalms 102:19]).

Alternatively, from heaven means from Christ, or from the soul of a righteous person.

He searches among the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, or seek God. The difference between God and human judges is that human judges investigate things that are done externally, but God looks into the heart. God is the searcher of hearts and reins ([Reference Psalms 7:9]).

4. In his heart. Two things should happen in relation to God:

the intellect should be fixed on the knowledge of God,
and the emotions should be directed toward God as their ultimate goal.

Hence he says that he looked down to see if there were any who did understand. If this refers to the righteous person, God corrects him gently. But if it refers to the wicked person, it is said of him that he would not understand that he might do well ([Reference Psalms 36:3]). Therefore, it says, or did seek God, because God is trying to make him come to Him—seek the Lord, and your soul will live ([Reference Psalms 69:32]). But when the Lord looks down to see this latter person, He finds great wickedness.

5. All have gone aside. First, he touches on their falling away from the root of faith, and second, on what follows from this.

He explains that he sought, but he found that all have gone aside, they have become unprofitable together; there is none who does good. All have fallen away from understanding and seeking God. Every one has turned aside into his own way ([Reference Isaiah 53:6]).

From this it follows that they are unprofitable both to themselves and to others. For those who do not have the love of God do not have true faith. Whatever good works such a person does are unprofitable for him in relation to the reward of eternal life.Cf. ST I-II, q. 114, a. 2. This is why he says, they have become unprofitable together—that is, they have been doing unprofitable works. If I should distribute all my goods to feed the poor . . . and have not charity, it profits me nothing ([Reference 1 Corinthians 13:3]). But you are cast out of your grave, as an unprofitable branch defiled ([Reference Isaiah 14:19]).

He explains how they are unprofitable: because there is none who does good. Things that do not proceed from the virtue of faith and are not shaped by the love of God are not objectively good. What is not of faith is dead ([Reference Romans 14:23]).

He shows that they have fallen away when he says, no, not one, meaning not even one good person can be found.

But is there not someone good somewhere?

In one way, if this refers to the company of wicked people, then there is no good person among them.

In another way, it can be taken universally: no, not one, that is, until Christ, there is no one who is good by his own power. For it is God who works in you, both to will and to accomplish ([Reference Philippians 2:13]).

6. Shall not all the workers of iniquity know. Above, the psalmist depicted the judge looking down on wickedness and unprofitableness. Here he discusses the sentence of judgment.

He does this in two parts:

First, regarding the condemnation of the wicked.
Second, regarding the salvation of the good, at who will give out of Zion the salvation of Israel?

Regarding the first part, he makes two points:

First, he proposes a question.
Second, he reveals a proposition, at for God has scattered the bones.

Regarding the question, he first investigates their failure to repent, and second, he assigns the cause for their punishment, at workers of iniquity.

We should consider that it frequently happens that in a state of prosperity people do not think of God, but through the punishments inflicted by God they remember that He exists. It is as if he were to say, “And this is necessary because of wrongdoing.” The Lord shall be known when he executes judgments ([Reference Psalms 9:16]).

We have an example of this in Pharaoh, who said, I know not the Lord ([Reference Exodus 5:2]). But after the punishments were inflicted, the Egyptians said, let us flee from Israel, for the Lord is fighting for them against us ([Reference Exodus 14:25]).

It was said above that the fool said in his heart, “There is no God.” Because of this, he now asks, shall not all the workers of iniquity know through punishments that God exists? It is as if to say, “They will indeed know, for only God can inflict such punishments.”

This is absolutely necessary because of the wrongdoing they committed, both in deed and in desire. Wrongdoing is the enactment of iniquity, and therefore he says, workers of iniquity. Iniquity, properly speaking, is sin against one’s neighbor, which is opposed to equity.

He portrays this wrongdoing in an exaggerated form when he says, who eat up my people as they eat bread. Bread is sustaining and delightful, so it is as if he were saying, “These people persevere with delight in their evildoing and take pleasure in inflicting injustices.” They have eaten the flesh of my people ([Reference Micah 3:3]), and their corpses, and have taken away their goods. First the king of Assyria devoured Israel ([Reference Jeremiah 50:17]).

After all this, he speaks of the effect: they have not called upon God. Sinners are disordered in their desires in two ways:

First, through contempt of God.
Second, through their disordered love for temporal things.

Regarding the first, he says, they have not called upon God for two reasons.

First, they do not believe in God: how then shall they call on him, in whom they have not believed? ([Reference Romans 10:14]).
Second, they believe that they are self-sufficient: our lips are our own; who is Lord over us? ([Reference Psalms 12:4]).

Regarding the second, he says, there have they trembled for fear, where there was no fear, as if to say, “For this reason they feared where there was nothing to fear.”

The word there designates not a place but a cause. So Augustine says that fear is caused by love. These people—that is, the wicked or sinners—love only temporal things. Therefore, they fear only temporal loss, which is something that should not be feared. Fear not those who kill the body and are not able to kill the soul ([Reference Matthew 10:28]). And so one should not fear the loss of temporal things, because our real good does not truly exist in them. It is certain that if we were to cling to God, He would also give us all these things: seek first the kingdom of God, and his justice, and all these things shall be added unto you ([Reference Matthew 6:33]).

7. For the Lord has scattered. Here he addresses the question of how correction may occur, that is, through punishment.

He sets out a double punishment:

namely, interior
and exterior.

He describes the first when he says, God has scattered the bones of those who please men, that is, those who ultimately desire to please men.

Bones means courage. This courage is either entirely physical, and this is destroyed by God, or it is spiritual, and this is destroyed through sin.

These bones are the virtues of good people; so on the Cross, Christ’s bones were not broken, but the bones of the thieves were crushed.

But he says, those who please men. Is it wrong to please people? It seems not. Be without offense ([Reference 1 Corinthians 10:32]). The Apostle says in the same place, in all things I please all men ([Reference 1 Corinthians 10:33]).

It should be said that if someone wants to please another for vainglory, or to have human glory as their goal, this is wrong. Such people sin with carelessness in secret even as they appear pleasing outwardly.

But sometimes someone wishes to please others in order to draw them to God, and such pleasing is meritorious and good. This is the sense in which the Apostle wanted us to please others and so himself pleased them.

After this interior punishment, he juxtaposes an exterior punishment: they have been confounded, because their sins have been uncovered. To be "confounded" means to be put to shame. The heavens shall reveal his iniquity ([Reference Job 20:27]). They are put to shame because they deceived, and because they lose the temporal things through which they thought they would find happiness. They shall be greatly confounded ([Reference Jeremiah 20:11]). Let those who persecute me be confounded ([Reference Jeremiah 17:18]).

And they shall suffer this because God has despised them. Those whom God loves are honored. Your friends, O God, are made exceedingly honorable ([Reference Psalms 139:17]). But those whom God has despised are put to shame.

8. Who will give out of Zion? Here he discusses good things.

He proceeds with a question and then a response.

The question is, “Who will give salvation to Israel from Zion?” Who indeed? Christ, because salvation is of the Jews ([Reference John 4:22]). Therefore, the preachers of salvation came forth from Zion—that is, from the Jews, from David, and from Zion’s upper room, where the Apostles received the Holy Spirit. And only God will give this.

And how? When God shall bring back the captivity of his people. For God brought back His faithful people who were held in captivity—that is, in the Devil’s prison—when He released them. Bring back our captivity, O Lord ([Reference Psalms 126:4]).

And what will follow from this? Joy and gladness. When the Lord brought back the captivity of Zion, we became like men comforted ([Reference Psalms 126:1]).

But the faithful have two states: sorrow and the crown, or merit and reward. And there is joy in each.Cf. ST II-II, q. 28, a. 2.

First is the joy of participation in grace.Cf. ST II-II, q. 28, a. 1. The kingdom of God is justice ([Reference Romans 14:17]). And so he says, Jacob shall rejoice. My heart has rejoiced in the Lord ([Reference 1 Samuel 2:1]).

There is also joy in the reward, as the gloss says. Everlasting joy shall be upon their heads ([Reference Isaiah 35:10]). And so he says, Israel shall be glad.

Commentaries

Albert Barnes

On Psalms 53:2

John Gill

On Psalms 53:2

Matthew Henry

On Psalms 53:1–6

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Thomas Aquinas

On Psalm 53:1–6