For the wicked boasteth of his heart's desire, and blesseth the covetous, whom the LORD abhorreth.
For the wicked boasteth of his heart's desire. The Hebrew for "heart's" is rather 'soul's х napshow (H5315)]. Hengstenberg objects to the English version, that the Hebrew verb х hileel (H1984)] is generally used actively, and therefore translates, 'The wicked extols the desire of his soul.' The "of," or 'upon,' in the Hebrew х `al (H5921)], favours the English version. The wicked congratulates himself upon his success in gratifying his desire by oppressing the godly. So the Hebrew is used, Psalms 44:8; compare Philippians 3:19, "whose glory is in their shame." Instead of glorying in the Lord, he glories in his own bad lusts, and his success in them (Habakkuk 1:11).
And blesseth the covetous, (whom) the Lord abhorreth. He blesses those who, like himself, covet and who seize upon what they covet by force or fraud. The Hebrew х botseea` (H1214)] for covetous expresses one who makes gain by fair means or foul (Psalms 10:8-10; cf. Hebrews 2:9). The parallelism favours the English version, rather than Hengstenberg's translation, 'He who makes gain blesses (the Lord for his ill-gotten gain, in doing which he) despises the Lord;' or Maurer's translation, 'curses (or renounces), despises the Lord;' or Venema's translation, 'the covetous blesses himself.' etc. "He blesseth the covetous" (including himself; cf. Zechariah 11:5) is parallel to "the wicked boasteth of his soul's desire," for covetousness is his soul's desire. In the last clause, as "whom" is not in the Hebrew, we may make "the Lord" the object of the verb, not the subject, 'he contemneth the Lord.' Psalms 10:13 ("Wherefore doth the wicked contemn God?") confirms this. The same Hebrew word is used in both verses х ni'eets (H5006)].