“I was a reproach among all mine enemies, but especially among my neighbours, and a fear to mine acquaintance: they that did see me without fled from me.”
The psalmist adds social suffering to physical affliction, describing how his condition makes him an object of derision and shame among his peers. The phrase "I am the scorn of all my adversaries" suggests that enemies seize upon his weakness for mocking. The reference to neighbors and acquaintances being horrified suggests the visual manifestation of his affliction. The image of being "a dread to my acquaintances" suggests that people have withdrawn from him, avoiding contact. This verse indicates that the psalmist's suffering has a social dimension.
Church Fathers on Psalms 31:11
To the end, a psalm of David himself, an ecstasy. 1. To the end a Psalm of David Himself, the Mediator strong of hand in persecutions. For the word ecstasy, which is added to the title, signifies a transport of the mind, which is produced either by a panic, or by some revelation. But in this Psalm the panic of the people of God troubled by the persecution of all the heathen, and by the failing of faith throughout the world, is principally seen. But first the Mediator Himself…
Nicene & Post-Nicene / Ante-Nicene Fathers translations · public domain
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