Psalm 69/Commentary

Psalms 69 “Man of Sorrows”

“This psalm reveals a vulnerable man: one who could not shrug off slander, betrayal or self-accusation (5), as a hard or self-absorbed person might, and whose sense of justice had not been dulled. His prayers and curses both alike spring from this personal and moral sensitivity, and the New Testament sees Christ prefigured in the singer’s zeal for God’s house and in his sufferings (69:9,21)” (Kidner p. 245).

“What does it mean to stand with Christ in this world? There are many different answers to this question. It means to confess Him, to love Him, to grow in Him. It means to submit to His lordship, to minister in His kingdom, and to do His works and His will. It also means to love His people, to identify with them, to worship with them, to grow with them. To stand with Christ also means to bear His reproach, to share in His sufferings, and to live at His cross. To stand with Christ is to stand against this world-system. It is to do battle in His name” (Williams p. 464).

This psalm was written by a man in crisis, but it is also prophetic of the life of Christ. For Jesus had a zeal for God’s house (69:9; John 2:17). Also, reproaches directed toward God fell on Him (69:9; Romans 15:3). And like the psalmist, Jesus was given vinegar to drink (69:21; John 19:28-29). Next to Psalms 22 and 110, this psalm is most frequently cited in the New Testament.

According to the title, this was a psalm written by David. When we study this psalm, we are reminded how difficult life must have been for him at times, even though he was the powerful and esteemed king of Israel. In addition, when we study this psalm let us also remember the depth of suffering that Jesus endured for our sake (Hebrews 12:1-4), and that Jesus can certainty identify with our suffering in this life (Hebrews 4:14-16).

A Sea Of Troubles 69:1-2 David feels he is being completely overwhelmed by external persecution.

He is sinking, the water is up to his neck and he is losing his footing at the same time. He is floundering and on the verge of going under for the last time. Do you ever feel completely overwhelmed by the problems of life? “We often feel overwhelmed with problems we cannot seem to solve, pressures we don’t see how we can sustain, and demands on us and our time we know we can not meet.

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Then, in addition, we feel that we are at the end of our ability even to pray, to petition, to plead, to place our hurts and needs before God….In a similar way, we too speak of drowning in deep troubles or being stuck somewhere and being unable to get out” (Boice p. 570).

69:3 Added to this, David has been constantly praying to God, but God hasn’t responded. Not only is he drowning and sinking in his crisis, he is also enduring God’s silence.

69:4 His opponents are many, more than the hairs of his head and they hate him without cause. This also happened to Jesus (John 15:25). Here we are reminded that the world’s opposition to Christianity is unreasonable. The world doesn’t have any valid reason for opposing Christians and hating what we embrace and proclaim (1 Peter 2:12; 3:16; 4:4; 12). His enemies are powerful, and though David had stolen nothing, they are demanding that he give up what is rightfully his (Hebrews 10:32-34).

69:5 At this point David confesses his sins to God. He calls sin “folly”, because rebellion against a loving and holy God is sheer stupidity. “The psalmist is innocent (69:4), yet he is conscious that God knows him more deeply than he knows himself. Thus he does not claim to be perfect. Moreover, he does not want his life to be a stumbling block to others” (Williams p. 467). What is surprising here is that we would have expected David to protest his innocence, yet instead he acknowledges his sins. Yes, he is being persecuted without cause, and yet he has sinned against God in the past. Godly people do their best to live without blame before other men and women, but they nevertheless know their lack of wisdom and acknowledge their guilt before God. “In fact, it is their profound awareness of their guilt before God that keeps them close to God and causes them to lead morally upright lives” (Boice p. 571).

The Sting Of Insult 69:6 Even while he is suffering, David is intensely concerned that he would set the right example for others. “The precise substance of his prayer is that these sins (69:5) of his may not in one way or another be allowed to do harm to those who trust in the Lord and seek Him…Men pray thus when they have the burden of the welfare of souls on their heart” (Leupold pp. 502-503). David knew very well how damaging the unexpected effects of sin may be upon others. Do we earnestly try to avoid becoming a stumbling block to others? (Matthew 18:4ff) 69:7 David is suffering “for Thy sake”, he is suffering for the cause of righteousness (Matthew 5:10-12). “He has identified himself with the Lord’s cause; his opponents were antagonists of that cause” (Leupold p. 503). The

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term “reproach”, means “slander” or “scorn”. For God’s cause, David has faced insult, ridicule, scorn, and insult. People are doing their best to discredit and bring disgrace upon him. When you stand for the truth—do people try to make you feel ashamed?

69:8 Standing for the truth has alienated David from his own relatives. The same thing happened to Jesus (John 7:2-5), and often happens to Christians today (Matthew 10:35-36). We can take some comfort in the fact that both David and Jesus experienced rejection from their own families.

69:9 Yet, David doesn’t give up. Even though a zeal for God had consumed David, his relatives still hated him. “This zeal was so strong that he could claim that it had consumed him” (Leupold p. 503). The same was true in the life of Christ (John 2:17). Do we have a zeal for God and the things of God which consumes us, or our we consumed by something else?

Point To Note: This type of zeal moved Jesus to remove from God’s house that which was corrupting it. Those who have a zeal for God cannot tolerate error or the misuse of that which is holy. This type of zeal moves one to remove all human additions and restore the true faith. It also moves one to remove all sinful attitudes and actions from one’s own life. A zeal which will not compromise with evil. What is presently consuming us? In addition, David was willing to bear insults which were directed at God. Are we willing to stand with God and endure the world’s bitterness and wrath? Are we willing to take some of the insults directed at Him and bear them ourselves?

69:10-11 Here we find some of the specific taunts and reproaches that David had borne. Anytime David turned to God, whether in fasting, prayer or repentance, people made fun of him.

Point To Note: Often those who are most concerned about pleasing God are ridiculed for their devotion and concern. The world says, “Lighten up”, “You don’t have to follow the Bible exactly”. In fact, the Christian who really takes the word of God seriously is often viewed as naïve, legalistic, ignorant and backward. David was ridiculed for being concerned about pure worship, God’s commandments, morality and spirituality among His people, the spiritual condition of the nation as a whole. “We know how a Christian student may be sneered at on a college campus---called a ‘Christer’ or a ‘Holy Joe’ (Today we speak of ‘religious nuts’, the ‘radical right’ or the ‘God squad’)” (Boice p. 573).

69:12 Solomon reminded us that “fools mock at sin” (Proverbs 14:9). His enemies included powerful men that conducted business at the city gate, where David was the center of conversation and gossip. And the town drunks even 3

composed little songs of ridicule in his honor. “His signs of humility and repentance, however, made him a laughingstock rather than bringing Israel to repentance. Wasn’t this also true of Jesus?” (Williams p. 469).

The Cry 69:13 Note, David is allowing God to set the time for his deliverance, “at an acceptable time”. “It is a humble admission that however urgently one may cry out (17), one’s times are in God’s hand (31:15)” (Kidner p. 247). David says, “as for me”—regardless of what others do or don’t do, David will continue to trust in God. Here is David in the foreground praying for deliverance, trusting in God’s mercy and truth, whereas in the background the mockers and drunkards are singing their songs of mockery and revelry. David doesn’t presume upon God. In His time of grace, the answer will come. The basis for this confidence is the fact that God is merciful and faithful.

69:14-15 David realizes that only God can pull him out of this situation. I believe we can really identify with David’s situation, for we too long for vindication. We don’t want our enemies to have the last word or the last laugh.

We desperately want unbelievers to see that God delivers His people and that the boasting of the arrogant is short-lived.

69:16-19 David pleads for God to answer quickly, yet David also quiets himself with the thought that God knows everything about him. David is comforted by the fact that God knows what the enemy is doing and saying about him. “We always live in the tension between our need and God’s timing (Luke 22:42)” (Williams p. 470). From verse 19 it is clear that David was deeply hurt by the bad things that people said about him, he wasn’t insensitive and neither was he callous. He deeply felt all these barbs and insults. Yet, he knows that God has heard every evil word. “Even if the foes take the attitude that the Almighty cannot know what they are perpetrating they are continually in His very sight.

There is comfort in that fact” (Leupold p. 505).

The Cup 69:20-21 The psalmist looks for those who identify with him, but there is no sympathy or comfort. Instead, they made things worse for him. “They did their best to aggravate his troubles, as is expressed by the metaphors ‘gall’ and ‘vinegar’” (Gaebelein p. 459). “When I hoped for refreshment or some relaxation, they intensified their cruel treatment” (Leupold pp. 505-506). “With this key, the references to reproach, shame, dishonor, adversaries, a broken heart, heaviness, and the absence of pity and comfort all paint of vivid picture of

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Jesus at the cross” (Williams p. 471) (Matthew 27:34; 48; Mark 15:23,36; Luke 23:36; John 19:29).

The Curse 69:22-28 Here is a prayer for God’s swift and utter judgment on the psalmist’s enemies. The statements in this section build in intensity, ending in the eternal condemnation of such men and women (28). “We pull back from words wishing that someone else might go to hell. But if those others are persistently and ultimately unrepentant, that is the only place they could possibly go and be. If they were taken into heaven, they would ruin heaven” (Boice p. 579).

Points To Note: Many people feel that this prayer is simply an example of how unspiritual people were in the Old Testament. But David is following God instruction, to leave room for the wrath of God (Romans 12:19). 1. While on the cross, Jesus prayed that His enemies would be given the chance to be forgiven (Luke 23:34). And yet, these are also sentiments of a godly person who is suffering. To me both prayers (Luke 23:34) and Psalm 69:22-28 are compatible. Luke 23:34 is the earnest desire that sinners would to given the opportunity to repent and be forgiven. Psalm 69:22-28 is what a righteous person says concerning those who spurn such opportunities. Even Jesus noted that His people need to stop wasting their time trying to save people who have demonstrated themselves to be pigs and dogs (Matthew 7:6).

Basically, David prays that the wicked would suffer a loss of peace, health, strength, family, and friends. They had preyed on those who God was disciplining (69:26). “Evil men presumptuously take God’s judgment into their own hands and, like a pack of wolves, attack the wounded of the herd” (Williams p. 473) The expression “add iniquity to their iniquity” appears to mean that God would judge them for every sin they have ever committed, may full and complete justice prevail, i.e., give them the punishment their sins deserve.

69:27 “may they not come into Thy righteousness”: David isn’t praying that God would never give such a person a chance to be saved, rather, he is praying that unrepentant sinners would not be viewed as righteous or given the rewards due the righteous.

Point To Note: Now and then someone might say, “Well, God just might change His mind and save everyone”. Such a thought would have horrified a righteous man like David! Godly people in the Bible definitely did not want God giving out salvation to hard-hearted and defiant sinners.

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69:28 Well, what else do you say about someone who is defiant and unwilling to change? What do you say about someone who is persecuting God’s people and inflicting suffering upon innocent individuals? What else do you say about someone who is determined to spread as much evil as they can and condemn as many souls as they can?

Praise From The Heart 69:29 David is in pain, but he isn’t bitter against God, in fact, his pain moves him to praise God and trust in Him. This verse reveals that the psalmist’s cry for judgment in verses 22-28 came from a humble heart. David isn’t arrogant and neither is he bitter, he is a broken man and in need of God’s deliverance.

“Having invoked the just judgment of God, the writer feels that, unless God’s help safeguards him, there is much because of which he himself would have to suffer, and so he casts himself upon God’s mercy. This is scarcely an attitude of self-righteousness” (Leupold p. 508).

69:30 David will sing out and praise God, even from this difficult situation.

69:31 As in other passages, David knows that while sacrifices are commanded, such sacrificing itself gave no pleasure to God unless the true sentiment of the heart were also in evidence. Compare with Psalm 51:16-17 and 1 Samuel 15:22-23. “The intention here, however, is not to deny the sacrificial system but rather to stress the importance of the attitude behind the act. When Isaiah denounces sacrifices it is because the hands that offer them are ‘full of blood’ (Isaiah 1:15)” (Williams p. 474).

69:32-33 When God delivers David, such a deliverance is an encouragement to all those who wait for God’s deliverance.

69:33 “For the Lord hears the needy, and does not despise His who are prisoners”: “I wish I could plant that truth in your mind so that nothing would ever blot it out…..In this world there is always much pain and evil…What is more, God does not always remove the pain or troubling times. Jesus prayed in great agony in Gethsemane, asking that the cup He was about to drink might be taken from Him, and God did not remove the cup….God nevertheless heard His prayer and did not despise His agony. Moreover, He sent angels to minister to Him and strengthen Him so that He might go through His trial gloriously for God” (Boice pp. 582-583).

Praise From The Host

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69:34-36 Praise for God looks beyond the present distress to better times.

Even in the midst of trials, Christians can remain optimistic, for the future of the faithful is bright. All creation is to join in shouts of worship and gladness. In addition, the writer is concerned about more than just his own deliverance, he is concerned about what happens to the people of God as a whole. “The concern of the psalmist was with the Lord (69:9); and to this end he prays for the speedy deliverance of Zion, her cities, and her people. The suffering of the individual is always related to the prosperity to the whole” (Gaebelein p. 462). “In addition to hope for himself he has a more hopeful outlook for others. He recognizes that he himself is in all his life and thinking closely united with all the rest of the people of God” (Leupold p. 509).

Point To Note: Some contend that these last verses must refer to a period after the time of David and therefore David could not have been the author of this psalm. But verses 34-35 could apply to a period of time after Absalom’s rebellion and the subsequent disorders. Here we may be learning that Absalom’s rebellion had done great harm to the nation, especially in Judah. The mention of “Judah” doesn’t necessarily infer that the nation was divided into Israel and Judah when this psalm was composed. The crisis in this psalm had definitely affected Jerusalem and the cities that surrounded her, but may not have affected the rest of the nation.

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