How are they brought to desolation? they have suddenly ceased to be: they have perished by reason of their iniquity.
אֵ֤יךְ הָי֣וּ לְשַׁמָּ֣ה כְרָ֑גַע סָ֥פוּ תַ֝֗מּוּ מִן־בַּלָּהֽוֹת׃
6 Church Fathers comment on this verse
He admired them, comprehending every detail. They have vanished. Truly, like smoke that ascends and then dissipates, so have they disappeared. How does he proclaim, ‘They are lost’? By recognizing the truth: they have perished because of their wrongdoing.
Listen, then, to the fate that awaits those who neglect the Lord.
All these events came to pass with the Babylonians during Cyrus's reign; while he captured the Babylonians, he restored the Jews to their homeland. The Prophet aptly compared their success to a dream because the reality of earthly existence resembles a fleeting vision. This is evident in the Babylonians themselves. They, who had recently prided themselves on their control over the entire world, swiftly lost their power and plunged into deep subjugation.
David, anticipating the downfall of the Babylonians, was astonished by the unplanned transformation they experienced; for the term suddenly conveys the idea of unintentionality, and the term vanished serves to clarify the concept of perished, suggesting that both verbs convey a similar meaning. In this repetition, David articulates the profound joy he felt upon witnessing the demise of the Babylonians.
This inquiry, paired with astonishment, significantly reinforces the prior statement. Just as the prosperity of the unrighteous can lead to confusion and, at times, awe, their abrupt downfall awakens us from our complacency and compels us to reflect on God's extraordinary plans. Thus, the Prophet questions, almost in disbelief, by asking, "How did they come to be desolate?" implying a sense of astonishment at how those who appeared as unassailable fortresses could swiftly be reduced to a forsaken ruin, a landscape devoid of life. How could those who seemed to possess eternal existence on this earth vanish so suddenly? By posing such a query, the Prophet highlights that God performs such wonders regularly, granting us ample reason to be astounded, provided we lack spiritual insight.
Yet, if we had foresight through faith, we would not find anything new, astonishing, or remarkable, for amazement stems from a lack of understanding. The subsequent expression, "They perished for fear," signifies that God does not smite the wicked through ordinary means, but rather in ways that induce terror by the mere report of it. Even if He does not act directly against them, He can obliterate His foes with a single breath, rendering them nothing, although they boldly dismiss peril, as if they have forged a pact with death, an attitude echoed in Psalm 11 where they presumptuously assert, "Who is the Lord to us?"
Inspired by the Holy Spirit, the Psalm was given to David and entrusted to Asaph, the leader of the singers (1 Chron. 16:7), so that he might express it through song for the comfort of all those gathered in God's presence. This message aims to alleviate concerns about the wicked, who prosper in this life with an abundance of worldly pleasures, and the faithful, who endure hardship and suffering. It emphasizes that both have a brief time on earth: the wicked for their multitude of earthly delights, and the righteous for their trials and tribulations (2 Pet. 2:13). Ultimately, the fate of the wicked is eternal destruction, while the righteous will experience everlasting joy (Theodoret, Athanasius, Chrysostom). Those whose feet stumble due to sin should seek to amend their ways through repentance, maintaining hope in the grace of Christ, who restores the fallen (Theodoret, Chrysostom).
Passages read together with this verse.
THEOSIS