Thomas Aquinas, on Ps 39:14

“Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me, look down, O Lord, to help me.”

“"Let them be confounded." Here he presents the confusion of adversaries, of whom some are capital enemies and seek to kill. Others do not seek to kill but to harm. Others seek to mock or deceive with words. And these three kinds of evils are designated here. And these things can refer either to good or to evil: because there is a twofold confusion. One confusion is good, which is through repentance; Rom. 6: "What fruit did you have then in those things of which you are now ashamed?" The other is confusion through punishment. Therefore when he says, "Let them be confounded," that is, let them be punished. And he prays this in conformity with the divine will, or justice. Or, "Let them be confounded," that is, let them repent, "and be put to shame together"; either through fear of punishments. As to the first, Wis. 17: "Since wickedness is timid, it gives testimony of condemnation." Or through fear that provokes repentance. And this because "they seek my soul," to kill it corporally. Or souls, to lead them into darkness: Gen. 14: "Give me the souls; keep the rest for yourself." He asks that the bodily enemies be impeded; hence he says, "Let them be turned backward," for good, that is, let them follow Christ behind him, Mt. 16; or for evil, that is, let them fall from their intention, so that they fail. "And let them blush who think evil things against me," that is, who rejoice at my evils: Lam. 1: "All my enemies have heard my evil; they rejoiced because you have done it."”

Imported from an open dataset — not yet checked against the printed edition.