Commentaries:
Barnes' Notes
There shall no evil befall thee - The Chaldee Paraphrase has, "The Lord of the world answered and said, ' There shall no evil befall thee,' " etc. The sentiment, however, is that the psalmist could assure such an one, from his own personal experience, that he would be safe. He had himself made Yahweh his refuge, and he could speak with confidence of the safety of doing so. This, of course, is to be understood as a general truth, in accordance with what has been said above.
Neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling - On the word rendered "plague" here nega‛ - see Psalms 38:12, note; Psalms 39:11, note. It is not the same word which is used in Psalms 91:6, and translated "pestilence;" and it does not refer to what is technically called the "plague." It may denote anything that would be expressive of the divine displeasure, or that would be sent as a punishment. The word rendered "dwelling" here means a tent; and the idea is, that no such mark of displeasure would abide with him, or enter his tent as its home. Of course, this also must be understood as a general promise, or as meaning that religion would constitute a general ground of security.
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