“Give them according to their deeds, and according to the wickedness of their endeavours: give them after the work of their hands; render to them their desert.”
The psalmist calls for God to repay the wicked according to their deeds and the evil of their hands, invoking the principle of retributive justice. The verb "give them what they deserve" employs language of proportional consequence, where wickedness generates corresponding punishment. The phrase "according to the work of their hands" emphasizes that judgment corresponds to actual conduct, not mere intent. The petition "Do not give them the pleasure of their desires" suggests preventing the wicked from achieving their goals. This verse does not arise from personal revenge but from covenantal theology: God is bound to uphold justice.
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