Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.
Depart ... do. This verse refers to deeds. Seek peace, and pursue it - i:e., inoffensiveness toward thy neighbour, and harmony with him. Not only "seek" it, but if it seem to flee from thee, still press eagerly after it, not giving up the pursuit, through impatience or resentment, because of the continued malice of adversaries. So Israel as to Sihon (Deuteronomy 2:26). Compare Hebrews 12:14; Romans 12:18; 2 Corinthians 13:11; Zechariah 8:19. Duties toward our neighbour are made prominent in "the fear of the Lord;" for they are what the hypocrite can least feign: the sincere discharge of them leads to a considerable amount of happiness even in this life. 1 Peter 3:10-12 quotes Psalms 34:13-15 as holding good in Christian times, as much as under the Old Testament. "The fear of the Lord," not fear of man, must be the animating motive.
[`ayin (')]