Psalm 59 (58):12Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Therefore, if He has created vessels of wrath to showcase His richness upon the vessels of mercy, it is rightly proclaimed, His mercy shall be evident before me: my God has made known His grace among my adversaries; as considerable as this grace is that He has bestowed upon me, He has done so in the presence of those whom He has chosen not to forgive. For one who has been forgiven a debt, if free from uncertainty, feels less gratitude towards the one who cancels their obligation. My God has made this known to me among my adversaries.

And what constitutes these enemies? Do not destroy them, lest they forget Thy Law. He requests from His adversaries, and He fulfills the commandment.... You shall not slay those whose sins You have condemned. But what does it mean to be slain? It means to forget the law of the Lord. To fall into sin is true death; this indeed applied concerning the Jews. Why does the command not to kill them exist, lest they forget Thy law? The adversaries who have persecuted me, let them not be killed. Let the Jewish nation endure: though conquered by the Romans, without doubt their city has faced destruction, the Jews are barred from their city, yet they remain. For all these regions have been subdued by Roman authority. Who can nowadays tell apart the nations within the Roman Empire, since all have become Romans and are referred to as such? Nevertheless, the Jews maintain their identity; they were not defeated in the same manner, as if consumed by their conquerors. There is a reason that God placed a mark on Cain, who, after killing his brother, was spared from being slain by anyone. (Gen. 4:15) This same mark is upon the Jews: they steadfastly observe the core of their laws; they have circumcision, honor the Sabbath, and celebrate the Passover; they consume unleavened bread. Thus, they are Jews, kept alive, and are essential to the believing nations. Why is this so? To manifest His mercy among us in the presence of our enemies. My God has demonstrated His mercy upon my adversaries. He extends His grace to the wild olive tree that has been grafted onto branches severed due to pride. Here lies the prideful, and here lies your incorporation; do not boast, lest you become worthy of destruction. Thou shalt scatter them with thy virtue. (Psalm 58:11). Now witness this work: the Jews have been dispersed across all nations, serving as witnesses to their transgressions and our righteousness. They possess the scriptures that foretell Christ, and we cling to Christ. And if any Gentile ever felt doubt when informed about the prophecies regarding Christ, marveling at their clarity and supposing they were authored by us, through the records of the Jews we demonstrate how these events were anticipated long ago. Observe how through our foes we confound other adversaries. Scatter them by your might: diminish their power, strip them of their strength. And humble them, O my Defender, O Lord.

God, in His righteousness, responded by punishing those Jews who were stubborn and unrepentant with the sword of Rome while allowing those who sought repentance to escape, thereby fulfilling the prayer of the prophet David.

As stated by Nyssa: through these reflections, we understand that the elimination of humanity does not serve to nullify God’s plans or lead to the extinction of His creation. Rather, it signifies the eradication of sin. As he further explains, the transgressions of their speech—such as pride, cursing, and deceit brought about by wrath—will ultimately be absent; and upon their annihilation, they will recognize that God reigns over Jacob and all the ends of the earth. When evil has vanished, undoubtedly, the sin that prevailed among many will be cast out.

In the words of Athanasius: he petitions that the generation rebelling against the Lord not be entirely wiped from existence, but rather that, due to their sinful speech and arrogance, they might be dispersed and find a better path even in their bondage. Indeed, according to another interpreter, not all the Jews are removed from among men; instead, though they remain and persist, they are akin to those who have been brought low and stripped of the honor bestowed upon them by God in former times.

He elucidates this further by stating, “Thou shalt waste me by Thy power, and bring me down.” His intention is for them, having been humbled from their positions of authority and reduced to a state of degradation, to be a continuous reminder of God’s wrath to all. Moreover, to demonstrate that his concern extends beyond himself, he emphasizes collective support with the plural terms: Our Lord our defender. Chosen by God to reign, David bore the weight of the church's welfare, and thus, his suffering was not solely personal; it reflected the affliction of the entire nation for whose benefit God was working through him. This illustrates why he exhibited patience during the delays of divine justice, to encourage the people to persist in contemplating their own fate.