Psalm 12 (11):8Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

An additional translator, whose identity remains unknown, expresses: thou shalt preserve them. A third translator, Aquila and Theodotion, articulates: thou wilt preserve it, safeguarding us from this generation and for eternity. The fourth, also an unknown translator, states: along with the eternal generation. ‘Thou, O Lord, wilt preserve us and keep us.’ Observe how frequently—better yet, how consistently—he turns to God and seeks assistance from Him, knowing His help is all-powerful and transcends any temporal limitations. He asserts that we have no reliance on human resources; continuously preserve us, O Lord.

Here as those in need and in a state of want, there as affluent and prosperous.

You will safeguard us, for the unrighteous encircle us and scheme against our deliverance; these are the opposing and malevolent forces.

If we are sustained by your grace, we will not only break free from the bondage of this current age, but we will also experience everlasting salvation.

The phrase “preserve us” replaces the expression “Lord, preserve us from those who arm us from without,” while “keep us” stands in for “preserve us from those who attack us from within.” In other words, the prophet seeks divine protection against attackers from the outside as well as against unseen assailants. You will indeed safeguard us from this current generation and will protect us from future generations of wicked individuals, now and for eternity.

It is also stated that we receive everlasting comfort from Him in our trials, while in His presence we find eternal peace. Here, He offers us assistance, and there, He bestows glory and crowns us. In this way, our most blessed Creator sustains us in this life so we do not fall into despair, and delights us in the next so that we lack nothing.

He affirms from the previous discussions that God will undoubtedly accomplish His promises. It is as though he suggests, "For we are unable, through our own efforts and strength, to safeguard ourselves from this generation, characterized by deceitful and flattering individuals, or from this fallen age. Yet, O Lord, through the might of Your promises, uphold us against this generation eternally, providing us not only solace in our trials here but also granting us everlasting peace in the life that is to come."

Christ the Lord shields the faithful from succumbing to sin, just as He interceded with the Father, ‘Father, I pray that You will keep them from the evil one’ (John 17:11). He protects and guides the souls of His saints toward eternal majesty. The souls of the upright rest in the palm of God, and their suffering shall not assail them (Prem. 3:1).

On Sunday afternoon, the service is held in honor of the Resurrected Christ. The prokeimenon varies in tone and reflects the significance of the event of Christ's resurrection. Prokeimenon: Preserve us, O Lord, and safeguard us from this generation forever. ‘Keep us, O Lord, safe from the wicked and deceitful individuals of our times and of those to come.’ Verse: Rescue me, O Lord, for the righteous have vanished. ‘There are no longer any honest and virtuous people.’ Those who honor the day of Christ's resurrection may interpret both psalm verses in this manner: ‘As Thou Thyself, O Lord, hast conquered the schemes of Thy adversaries through Thy resurrection, so by Thy mighty power, deliver us from the destruction that looms over us due to the temptations of this world.’