Psalm 10 (9):4Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

The Lord has been vexed by the sinner. One translator, Symmachus, notes that the lawless individual who praises according to the desires of his heart, as well as the one who condones the selfish, has troubled the Lord. When His anger is aroused, that sinner will not call out for help. Aquila echoes this, stating that the wicked person has offered praise driven by his own lust, and the self-serving individual who approves of such actions has insulted the Lord. He remarks that those wicked individuals, when overwhelmed by their anger, will not cry out. The seventy interpreters render it similarly: the sinner vexes the Lord, and in the multitude of his wrath, he shall find no solace. This showcases the extent of the audacity of the wicked. What does the prophet convey?

Do not celebrate a person who thrives in his own path when there is no one to atone for his transgressions and no one to endorse him. This represents the deeper anger of the Lord. The sinner incites the Lord's wrath by enduring a fate in which he lacks the scourge of discipline. The Lord is provoked by the sinner, and in accordance with the abundance of His anger, He chooses not to pursue it. His fury is immense when He refrains from pursuing, when it appears that He overlooks and does not acknowledge sin. Through cunning and wickedness, one may attain wealth and status, a fate especially true for the Antichrist, who will seem so blessed to humanity that he will be mistaken for God himself. The profound extent of God's wrath is demonstrated as follows.

Offend the Lord, O sinner. Offend Him by ridiculing what the Scriptures declare about His Sovereignty and judgment. Many, upon hearing such words, immediately succumb to laughter. In relation to this, it is stated, According to the multitude of his wrath, which conveys this meaning: the sinner has provoked the Lord, accumulating for himself a great deal of wrath; for the term ‘his own’ refers to the one who has caused vexation. The subsequent phrase, he will not recover, should be interpreted after the punctuation, leading to this understanding: although the sinner angers God, igniting in himself a multitude of wrath, will God not restore him?

Ultimately, in the face of the adversary: "There is no God before him, he sits in ambush with the wealthy" (Psalm 9:25). Blessed are those who are poor in spirit, for they are free from the snares of the devil. Notice the implication of "sits in ambush with the wealthy." A wealthy individual can only attain riches through the suffering of others unless he lends a helping hand to those in need. This is why the psalmist asserts, "Sits in ambush with the wealthy." When the affluent oppress believers, we can affirm, "The devil lies in wait alongside the wealthy."

"Ignite the Lord’s anger, O sinner, because of the abundance of His wrath." Here, a pause is appropriate, followed by the addition, "He will not speak," indicating that we provoke the Lord and imply "He will not speak." He succumbs to chaos and frenzy, as if unmonitored, plunging into every wrongdoing, forgetting that the Divine Judge will hold him accountable for his actions. The Prophet clarifies this further: "There is no God before Him." What is the reason for this?

The sinner asserts that they have provoked the Lord or stirred His desire for retribution through their sinful actions, inciting His just judgment. In response to the abundance of His anger, God will not, as He states, demand from the wicked what His righteous indignation seeks; for as Scripture reminds us, "But if iniquity you call out, O Lord, O Lord, who will stand" (Psalm 129:3). The prophet refers to God's wrath as the just consequence that He dispenses upon the unrighteous. He acknowledges that God is compassionate and does not impose punishment on the excessively wicked, even when such punishment may be warranted.

A hardened sinner, emboldened by the absence of a desire for God, falls prey to despair. As it is written, "According to his great boldness, saying, ‘He will not call upon him.’" There is no recognition of God in his presence. His soul becomes saturated with arrogance, and thoughts of the divine vanish from his mind. The one who does not keep God before his eyes tarnishes all his deeds, leaving the paths of life defiled and impure, for God is not before him. To the degree that the sinner, devoid of God, finds success in this world and his adversaries yield to him, the sin by which he has triumphed over them ultimately leads to his own punishment.

The passage further illustrates the nature of the arrogant individual, who not only fails to express gratitude or worship to God for his blessings but also speaks ill of the Divine. Living a life devoid of law and steeped in wickedness, he neither contemplates the need for correction nor seeks to restore his relationship with God. Instead, he asserts, ‘According to the multitude of his wrath he will not cry out,’ suggesting that his transgressions will not be harshly punished. Pride and malice so obscure the sinner’s understanding that he remains unaware of the grave offense it is to provoke God. Why does he remain ignorant of this? It is because God is absent from his thoughts, or as indicated in the Hebrew text, God is entirely unconsidered in his mind. Thus, he has completely overlooked the presence of God.

Though a sinner may provoke the Lord, the Compassionate God is not consumed by His anger; instead, due to His mercy, He remains patient, anticipating the sinner's return, for His desire is to redeem all.

In essence, believing that God does not rigorously demand, as stated in verse 34, is the interpretation offered by Theodoret regarding this perspective.