Psalm 53 is almost word for word the same as Psalm 14: “The fool said in his heart: There is no God. They are corrupted, and become abominable in iniquities.” It appears twice in the Psalter because it was included in two older collections of psalms. In the Douay-Rheims it is numbered Psalm 52. Below is the full Catholic text, what the psalm means, how the Church uses it, and a prayer.
Psalm 53 in the Douay-Rheims Bible
Unto the end, for Maeleth, understandings to David. The fool said in his heart: There is no God.
They are corrupted, and become abominable in iniquities: there is none that doth good.
God looked down from heaven on the children of men: to see if there were any that did understand, or did seek God.
All have gone aside, they are become unprofitable together, there is none that doth good, no not one.
Shall not all the workers of iniquity know, who eat up my people as they eat bread?
They have not called upon God: there have they trembled for fear, where there was no fear. For God hath scattered the bones of them that please men: they have been confounded, because God hath despised them.
Who will give out of Sion the salvation of Israel? when God shall bring back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.
Psalm 53 or Psalm 52?
The Douay-Rheims Bible follows the numbering of the Latin Vulgate and the Greek Septuagint, while most modern Bibles follow the Hebrew. So the Douay’s Psalm 52 is Psalm 53 in the New American Bible and other modern translations. In Latin the psalm begins Dixit insipiens in corde suo: Non est Deus. See how many psalms are there?
Why is the same psalm in the Bible twice?
The Book of Psalms was gathered from several earlier collections. Psalm 14 belongs to the first book, where God is usually called by his personal name, the LORD; Psalm 53 belongs to a collection that prefers the general word “God.” Compare the two and you will see that where Psalm 14 says “the Lord,” Psalm 53 says “God.” Psalm 53 also adds a line about God scattering “the bones of them that please men.”
That the Church kept both shows how seriously Scripture takes the danger of living as if there were no God, and how much it longs for “the salvation of Israel.” See Psalm 14.
What the psalm means
- Practical atheism: the fool lives as though God did not see.
- Universal sin: “there is none that doth good, no not one” (quoted in Romans 3).
- God looks for seekers: he looks down “to see if there were any that did understand.”
- Misplaced fear: “there have they trembled for fear, where there was no fear.”
- Hope of salvation from Sion.
How the Church uses Psalm 53
- In the Liturgy of the Hours.
A prayer with Psalm 53
Written for this page:
Lord, do not let me live as if you did not exist.
Look down on all who have gone astray and lead them to seek you.
Scatter every proud thought in me, and keep me humble before you.
Bring salvation out of Sion, and let your people rejoice. Amen.
Frequently asked questions
Why are Psalm 14 and Psalm 53 almost the same?
They come from two earlier collections of psalms; Psalm 53 uses the word “God” where Psalm 14 uses “the Lord.”
What does “The fool says in his heart, There is no God” mean?
It describes someone who lives without reference to God, whatever he may say with his lips.
More psalms and prayers
Texts and sources
- Scripture: Psalm 52 (53), Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner), public domain.
- The prayer was written for this page.