Psalms 58:3 · Bible study
Psalms 58:3 Commentary: The Root of Wickedness
Hebrew · 11 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Does Psalm 58:3 describe universal original sin or a specific indictment of David's enemies? A study of the language, context, and interpretive history.
Research Summary
- Meaning: Wickedness is not merely learned; it is native and early, coming from the very beginning of life.
- Key words: “Estranged” (alienated from God like a foreigner), “go astray” (active rebellion), “from the womb” (from birth).
- Main debate: Does the verse teach universal original sin, or is it a specific indictment of David’s corrupt opponents?
- Theological theme: The depth and early onset of human sinfulness, which only God’s grace can overcome.
- Best use: A starting point for teaching on human depravity and the necessity of new birth, while respecting the original context.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
The wicked are estranged from the womb; the liars go astray from birth.
WEB World English Bible 2000
The wicked go astray from the womb. They are wayward as soon as they are born, speaking lies.
KJV King James Version 1769
The wicked are estranged from the womb: they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
The wicked are estranged from the womb: They go astray as soon as they are born, speaking lies.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
The wicked have been estranged from the womb, They have erred from the belly, speaking lies.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
The wicked go astray from the womb; they err as soon as they are born, speaking lies.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
Deliver me from them that work iniquity, and save me from bloody men.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Enajenáronse los impíos desde la matriz; descarriáronse desde el vientre, hablando mentira.
Os perversos se desviam desde o ventre da mãe; afastam-se desde o ventre os mentirosos.
Loin de là! Dans le cœur, vous consommez des iniquités;
Die Gottlosen sind verkehrt von Mutterschoß an; die Lügner irren von Mutterleib an.
Ja, gij werkt ongerechtigheden in het hart; gij weegt het geweld uwer handen op de aarde.
Gli empi sono sviati fin dalla matrice, i mentitori son traviati fino dal seno materno.
Owszem, radniej w sercu nieprawości knujecie, a gwałty rąk waszych na ziemi odważacie.
избавь меня от делающих беззаконие; спаси от кровожадных,
惡人 一出母胎就與 神疏遠，一離母腹 便走錯路，說 謊話。
The evil-doers are strange from the first; from the hour of their birth they go out of the true way, saying false words.
Verse in Context
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree that Psalm 58:3 describes a deep, early-seated pattern of wickedness. The wicked are depicted as ‘estranged’ from God from the womb, going astray as soon as they are born, and speaking lies. Cambridge Bible notes the word ‘estranged’ (used by the LXX in Ephesians 4:18 and Colossians 1:21) points to alienation from God and His laws. Gill sees here original corruption: ‘they are conceived in sin, shapen in iniquity, and are transgressors from the womb.’ Wesley likewise says ‘their very natures are corrupt, even from their birth.’
But the main interpretive question remains: is this a universal statement about all humans, or a specific charge against David’s opponents? Barnes argues that the verse cannot directly prove original sin for all people; it only describes those who develop a wicked character. Calvin treats the whole psalm as David vindicating himself against calumny, and sees the description as fitting the particular malice of his enemies. Keil and Delitzsch speak of men in whom evil from childhood has a ‘diabolical character,’ while acknowledging that hereditary sinfulness is common to all. So there is broad agreement that the verse testifies to an early, native bent toward sin in those it describes, but disagreement on whether that includes every human being.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Universal original sin: The verse is read alongside Psalm 51:5, Job 15:14, and Ephesians 2:3 as describing the condition of all humanity by nature.
- Specific indictment of David's enemies: The immediate context of Psalm 58 is about unjust judges who oppose David; the description fits their particular persistence in evil.
- Both specific and illustrative: The verse targets a specific group but uses language that reveals a general truth about human sinfulness.
What is clear: The verse affirms that wickedness appears very early in life—from birth—and is characterized by active rebellion and deceit.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Scope of the verse | It describes people who are persistently wicked from birth. | Some (Gill, Wesley) see it as a universal statement about all humans because of original sin. Others (Barnes) insist it applies only to those who actually develop a wicked character, not necessarily the whole race. |
| Nature of sin | Sin is early, innate, and expresses itself in lies and rebellion. | Whether this sinfulness is inherited guilt (Reformed view) or inherited corruption that leads to actual sin (Wesleyan/Arminian view) is not settled by this verse alone. |
| Relation to grace | If sin is this radical, rescue must be wholly God’s work. | How that grace works, irresistibly or resistibly, is debated, but the need for grace is not. |
| Use in doctrine of original sin | It is a key text often cited in discussions about innate depravity. | Barnes argues it only proves original sin if other passages first establish that all humans are wicked. Others (Gill) treat it as direct proof. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Psalm 58 carries the title ‘Michtam of David’ and the instruction ‘Do Not Destroy.’ This links it to Psalms 56 and 57, which are set during David’s flight from Saul (1 Samuel 22, 24). The psalm as a whole is a cry against corrupt judges who pervert justice. Verses 1, 2 confront these leaders: ‘Do you indeed speak righteousness, silent ones? … No, in your heart you plot injustice.’ The ‘wicked’ in verse 3 are likely these same unjust rulers, who have opposed David despite his innocence.
The language of ‘going astray from the womb’ and ‘speaking lies’ is strong. In ancient Israel, the womb was seen as the beginning of life (Psalm 22:10, Isaiah 46:3). To say someone was estranged ‘from the womb’ meant their alienation from God began as early as life itself. The accusation that they ‘speak lies’ fits the context of corrupt judges: they give false verdicts and slander David. The comparison to snakes in verses 4, 5 reinforces the idea of a malicious, untamable nature.
Some commentators, such as Clarke, see this as God’s answer to the question in verses 1, 2, a divine verdict on the judges’ character. The psalm thus functions both as a personal complaint and as a theological reflection on the deep roots of injustice. The historical situation gave David firsthand experience of opponents whose wickedness seemed ingrained, not just learned.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note no significant textual variants for Psalm 58:3. The Hebrew text is stable across the Masoretic tradition. The LXX translation uses the verb ἀπηλλοτριώθησαν (“were alienated”), which the Cambridge Bible notes is echoed in the Pauline letters (Ephesians 4:18, Colossians 1:21). The verse is securely attested.
Reception History
Psalm 58:3 has been a focal text in Christian debates about original sin. Augustine cited similar passages (e.g., Psalm 51:5) to argue for inherited depravity, and this verse was often drawn into that orbit. In the Reformation, Calvin read it as part of David’s self-vindication, but still saw in it a reflection of the natural corruption of the wicked. Later Reformed commentators like Gill and the Geneva Bible used it to support the doctrine of total depravity. Wesley, though from a different tradition, also saw here evidence that ‘their very natures are corrupt, even from their birth.’ More cautious voices, like Barnes in the 19th century, warned against reading the verse as a universal proof-text apart from other Scriptures. The psalm continues to be valued in liturgical traditions for its honest portrayal of human evil and its cry for divine justice.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The origin of wickedness: It runs deeper than bad choices, it begins at birth. Psalm 58:3 forces us to take human sin seriously.
- The fruit of wickedness: It produces lies. Corrupt speech comes from a corrupt source (compare James 3:11-12).
- The hope for the wicked: Even those born estranged can be reconciled through Christ, who restores what sin has broken.
Five-point outline
- Wickedness is early: it appears as soon as a person can act.
- Wickedness is native: it is estrangement from God by nature.
- Wickedness is deliberate: they ‘go astray’, active rebellion, not mere weakness.
- Wickedness is deceitful: lying is its signature.
- Wickedness is hardened: like a deaf adder (v.4-5), it resists correction.
Illustration hooks
- A child’s first lie: parents often see selfishness and deception appear without being taught. That experience matches the psalm’s claim.
- News stories of career criminals who showed violent tendencies from a very young age. The verse doesn’t excuse them, but it diagnoses a reality.
- Our own struggle: we don’t have to learn to sin; it comes naturally. The gospel is the only remedy.
Questions your congregation is asking
- “Are babies born sinful, or do they learn to be bad?”
- “If I was born this way, how can God hold me responsible?”
- “Does this mean some people are beyond hope?”
Leading a Discussion
Psalm 58:3 confronts us with an uncomfortable truth: wickedness runs deeper than bad choices, it begins at birth. But the verse also sets the stage for the gospel: if our problem is that radical, our rescue must be equally radical. As you discuss, keep the context of David’s unjust judges in mind, but also consider how the verse speaks to the human condition more broadly.
Discussion questions
- Read Psalm 58:3 in its context (verses 1-5). Who is David talking about, and why does he describe them this way?
- The word ‘estranged’ suggests being like a foreigner to God. How does that image fit what you know about sin?
- Does this verse describe all people, or only especially wicked ones? What evidence from the psalm and from other Scriptures can you give for your view?
- How does the idea that sin begins ‘from the womb’ affect the way you understand God’s grace?
- If we are born ‘speaking lies,’ what does that say about the need for a new birth (John 3:3)?
- How does comparing the wicked to a deaf adder (v.4-5) show the seriousness of unrepentant sin?
- Why is it important to hold together both human responsibility and our inborn tendency to sin?
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Job 15:14 | What is man, that he should be clean? What is he who is born of a woman, that he should be righteous? |
| Psalms 22:10 | I was thrown on you from my mother’s womb. You are my God since my mother bore me. |
| Psalms 51:5 | Behold, I was born in iniquity. My mother conceived me in sin. |
| Proverbs 22:15 | Folly is bound up in the heart of a child; the rod of discipline drives it far from him. |
| Isaiah 46:3 | “Listen to me, house of Jacob, and all the remnant of the house of Israel, that have been carried from their birth, that have been carried from the womb. |
| Isaiah 48:8 | Yes, you didn’t hear. Yes, you didn’t know. Yes, from of old your ear was not opened, for I knew that you dealt very treacherously, and were called a transgressor from the womb. |
| Ephesians 2:3 | We also all once lived among them in the lusts of our flesh, doing the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. |
Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
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What the Commentators Say
11 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke, following Kennicott, reads this verse as God's direct answer to the opening complaint. These people were wicked from birth, not corrupted later, and their present deceit simply matches the character they have always had.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes argues that the psalmist’s statement about the wicked being estranged from the womb does not directly teach universal original sin. It describes those who develop wicked character, not the whole human race. The passage can only support original sin if other texts first prove that all people are depraved.
Calvin's Commentaries Reformed 1564
Calvin highlights the boldness of David's challenge: by appealing to his enemies themselves to judge whether he speaks right, David shows the strength of a clear conscience. Only someone absolutely certain of his innocence would dare call his accusers as witnesses, forcing them to acknowledge the truth against their own malice.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The Cambridge Bible connects these wicked judges to Paul's language in Ephesians and Colossians, noting the same Greek word for "alienated from God." While all humans are born prone to evil, these men show an extraordinary ingrained wickedness that makes them deaf to correction and unable to reform.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva note stresses that wickedness is not acquired later in life but is present from the moment of birth. Even from the womb, people are estranged from God and prone to error and falsehood, showing that sinfulness is innate and universal.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill traces all human wickedness back to original corruption from the womb, noting that infants lisp lies as soon as they can speak, learning from their father the devil. He distinguishes the elect, whose natures are restrained from plunging into every sin they are inclined to.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
describe the wicked generally, who sin naturally, easily, malignantly, and stubbornly.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch see the deaf adder as a figure for the self-hardened evildoer who remains completely unreachable by any human art, even the most skillful sorcery. They find here a biblical dualism: while all share inherited sinfulness, some develop a diabolical, loveless character that no patience or magic can soften.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange treats the opening question as ironic: these judges literally speak righteousness in silence, an oxymoron that exposes their pretended justice. Their obduracy is like deaf adders that stop their ears, and their ruin comes as suddenly as a whirlwind scattering thorns before the pot can boil.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry views this psalm as aimed at corrupt rulers during Saul's persecution of David. Though learned in God's laws, these judges perverted justice because Saul could reward them with land and positions. David speaks not as king but as a prophet, exposing their hypocrisy and bought verdicts.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley draws a sharp double emphasis: humans are estranged not only from God but from all goodness, and their very nature is corrupt from birth as the sinful offspring of sinful parents. He adds that they go astray by actual sins from earliest childhood, as soon as reason begins to operate.