Their eyes swell out through fatness; their hearts overflow with follies.
English Standard Version (ESV)
It's easy to read "their eyes swell out through fatness" as simply describing physical plumpness, but it's more about a greedy, excessive indulgence that makes their whole demeanor bold and unrestrained. This prosperity hasn't just filled their bellies; it's inflated their sense of self to the point where their hearts overflow with misguided desires and proud thoughts that have no limits.
Their eyes swell out through fatness; their hearts overflow with follies.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The psalmist is grappling with the apparent prosperity of the wicked, which seems to contradict God's justice. He describes their physically robust health, their freedom from the common troubles of humanity, and their outward display of pride and violence fueled by their success. This verse vividly portrays the unsettling reality that these godless individuals seem to thrive, their physical abundance leading to excessive indulgence and wild, unchecked desires.
Have you ever noticed how some people's outward success seems to distort their very being? This verse paints a vivid picture of that phenomenon.
The phrase 'their eyes swell out through fatness' is a powerful image. It's not just about being overweight; it speaks to a prosperity so overwhelming it distorts their perspective and even their physical appearance. Think of it like this:
A Distorted View
What happens when prosperity fills someone up so much that their inner life spills over? This verse tells us it's not a pretty sight.
The second part of the verse, 'their hearts overflow with follies,' is the inner consequence of the outward 'fatness.' It reveals the mental and spiritual state of those who only know ease:
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The Mind of Excess
Understand the original words
lebab · Hebrew Noun
Refers to the seat of intellect, emotion, and will; in the Bible, it is the center of human moral decision-making and the primary object of God's transformative work.
maskiyyoth · Hebrew Noun
Morally corrupt thoughts, sinful intentions, or foolish speech that flows from a mind disconnected from divine wisdom and truth.
This verse describes the wicked who, due to their prosperity, have grown fat and insolent, leading them to mock and oppress others, much like the description in Psalm 73:7.
Job 15:27Job 15:27 describes the wicked as covering their faces with fat, suggesting a similar physical manifestation of their prosperity and indulgence that leads to pride and arrogance.
Luke 12:16-21Jesus' parable of the rich fool highlights the danger of a heart overflowing with material possessions and self-satisfaction, a spiritual parallel to the state of the wicked described in Psalm 73:7.
Proverbs 30:8-9This passage speaks to the danger of being filled and growing rich, which can lead to rejecting God and forgetting Him, a spiritual danger implied by the physical 'fatness' and overflowing hearts of the wicked in Psalm 73:7.
poolePsalms 73:7: "Their eyes stand out with fatness: they have more than heart could wish."
Their eyes stand out with fatness; as they do in some fat persons, though not in others. The meaning is, they live in great plenty and prosperity, as the next clause explains it.
expositorsPsalms 73:1-28: "A Psalm of Asaph. Truly God is good to Israel, even to such as are of a clean heart."
Psalm 73:1-28 THE perennial problem of reconciling God’s moral government with observed facts is grappled with in this psalm, as in Psalm 37:1-40 ; Psalm 49:1-20 . It tells how the prosperity of the godless, in apparent flat contradiction of Divine promises, had all but swept the psalmist from his faith, and how he was led, through doubt and struggle, to closer communion with God, in which he…
It's easy to read "their eyes swell out through fatness" as simply describing physical plumpness, but it's more about a greedy, excessive indulgence that makes their whole demeanor bold and unrestrained. This prosperity hasn't just filled their bellies; it's inflated their sense of self to the point where their hearts overflow with misguided desires and proud thoughts that have no limits.
The psalmist is grappling with the apparent prosperity of the wicked, which seems to contradict God's justice. He describes their physically robust health, their freedom from the common troubles of humanity, and their outward display of pride and violence fueled by their success. This verse vividly portrays the unsettling reality that these godless individuals seem to thrive, their physical abundance leading to excessive indulgence and wild, unchecked desires.
The psalmist is grappling with the apparent prosperity of the wicked, which seems to contradict God's justice. He describes their physically robust health, their freedom from the common troubles of humanity, and their outward display of pride and violence fueled by their success. This verse vividly portrays the unsettling reality that these godless individuals seem to thrive, their physical abundance leading to excessive indulgence and wild, unchecked desires.
"Their eyes swell out through fatness; their hearts overflow with follies." — It's easy to read "their eyes swell out through fatness" as simply describing physical plumpness, but it's more about a greedy, excessive indulgence that makes their whole demeanor bold and unrestrai…
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Last reviewed October 2026