Lest he tear. — The poet turns from the thought of his enemies generally to the one who has just made himself conspicuous. Such a change from plural to singular often occurs in the Psalms. (Comp. Psalms 41:5-6.)
Rending it in pieces. — The LXX., followed by the Vulg. (so too the Syriac), take the verb in its primitive sense of “snatch away,” and translate, “there being none to redeem or deliver.” So Milton: “Tearing, and no rescue nigh.” Notice the comparison of human enemies to beasts of prey — a reminiscence of the lion and the bear of his youth, so constantly present to David. (Comp. Psalms 3:7; 1 Samuel 17:37.)