The Book of Psalms

Word Study

"hold not thy peace," Hebrew al-techerash (אַל־תֶּחֱרַשׁ). The psalm opens by asking God not to stay silent. Lying mouths are loud against David, and his one plea is that God's voice would not be the only one missing.

"O God of my praise," Elohei tehillati (אֱלֹהֵי תְהִלָּתִי). Notice what David calls God even as the attack begins. Surrounded by lying mouths, he does not define himself by his enemies but by his worship; his God is the God he praises, and that identity holds firm under fire.

"words of hatred," divrei sin'ah (דִּבְרֵי שִׂנְאָה). The weapons here are words. They "compassed me about" and "fought against me without a cause", an encircling of speech that leaves no gap to escape through.

"for my love they are my adversaries," tachat-ahavati yistenuni (תַּחַת־אַהֲבָתִי יִשְׂטְנוּנִי). This is the deepest kind of wound, love repaid with hatred: "they have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for my love." There is no cruelty sharper than to be hated for loving.

"but I give myself unto prayer," va'ani tefillah (וַאֲנִי תְפִלָּה), literally, "but I am prayer." Here are the words that hold the key to the entire psalm. It is as if his whole being, in the face of betrayal, simply turns into a prayer. Whatever hard words come next, David is not lifting his own hand against his enemies; he is handing the entire matter over to God. He does not avenge; he prays.

Explanation

Two things frame this whole difficult psalm and must be seen before anything else. First, notice what David calls God even as the attack begins: "O God of my praise." Surrounded by lying mouths and words of hatred, he does not define himself by his enemies but by his worship; his God is the God he praises, and that identity holds firm under fire. Second, and most important of all, is the astonishing line in verse 4. He has just described the deepest kind of wound, love repaid with hatred: "For my love they are my adversaries... they have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for my love." There is no cruelty sharper than to be hated for loving. And how does David respond? Not with a scheme of revenge, not by taking matters into his own hands, but with five words that hold the key to the entire psalm: "but I give myself unto prayer." The Hebrew is even more striking, "but I am prayer", as if his whole being, in the face of betrayal, simply turns into a prayer. This is the frame for everything that follows. Whatever hard words come next, David is not lifting his own hand against his enemies; he is handing the entire matter over to God. He does not avenge; he prays. The curses he will speak are laid at God's feet, committed to the righteous Judge, not executed by David's own arm. When you are hated for your love, this is the way: do not strike back; become prayer.

Gospel Focus

"For my love they are my adversaries: but I give myself unto prayer", no one lived these words as the Lord Jesus Christ did. He was, in His own words, "hated... without a cause" (John 15:25), He loved to the end and was repaid with betrayal, and yet "when he was reviled, reviled not again... but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously" (1 Peter 2:23). He did not avenge Himself; He gave Himself to prayer, even praying for His murderers, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34). And this psalm speaks of Him in another way, for verse 8, "let another take his office," is applied by the apostles to Judas, the friend who betrayed Him: "his bishoprick let another take" (Acts 1:20). So Psalm 109 is, at its depth, the cry of the betrayed Messiah. And it shows His people the way through betrayal: not revenge, but prayer; not returning evil for evil, but committing our cause to the God who judges rightly, as our Lord Himself did.

Word Study

"do thou for me," Hebrew attah... aseh itti (אַתָּה עֲשֵׂה אִתִּי). After handing his enemies over to God, David turns with a great "But" to plead for himself. The emphasis falls on the "thou": God is to act, and David is to wait.

"for thy name's sake," lema'an shemekha (לְמַעַן שְׁמֶךָ). He does not say, "deliver me because I deserve it," or "because my cause is just," though it was. His whole appeal rests on God's honour. This is the humility of true prayer: it asks God to act for His own name.

"thy mercy is good," tov chasdekha (טוֹב חַסְדֶּךָ). The second ground of his plea is God's own goodness, not his own worth: "because thy mercy is good, deliver thou me."

"poor and needy," ani ve'evyon (עָנִי וְאֶבְיוֹן). See what kind of man is praying, for it corrects any picture of a triumphant avenger. He is "gone like the shadow when it declineth," fading and frail, his knees weak, mocked and shaken at by his enemies.

"my heart is wounded," libbi chalal (לִבִּי חָלַל), pierced within me. The man who spoke those hard words against his persecutors is himself a broken, hurting man at the end of his strength, not gloating but bleeding.

Explanation

After handing his enemies over to God, David turns, with a great "But," to plead for himself, and notice carefully the ground he pleads. He does not say, "deliver me because I deserve it," or "because my cause is just," though it was. He says, "But do thou for me, O GOD the Lord, for thy name's sake: because thy mercy is good, deliver thou me." His whole appeal rests on God, on God's name and God's mercy, not on his own worth. This is the humility of true prayer: it asks God to act for His own honour and out of His own goodness. And see what kind of man is praying, for it corrects any picture of a triumphant avenger. He is "poor and needy," his "heart is wounded within me," he is "gone like the shadow when it declineth," fading and frail, his knees weak, mocked and shaken at by his enemies. The man who spoke those hard words against his persecutors is himself a broken, hurting man at the end of his strength, not gloating but bleeding. And mark the aim of his plea in verse 27: "That they may know that this is thy hand; that thou, LORD, hast done it." He does not want a deliverance he could boast in; he wants a rescue so plainly God's doing that everyone will see God's hand in it. His desire, even here, is that God be glorified. So the imprecation is bracketed on both sides by godliness: prayer instead of revenge before it, and a longing for God's glory after it.

Gospel Focus

"But do thou for me, O GOD the Lord, for thy name's sake: because thy mercy is good", this is the very ground on which the gospel saves us, for God delivers His people "for his name's sake" and "according to his mercy" (Titus 3:5), not for any worthiness of ours. And the portrait of the sufferer, "poor and needy," his "heart wounded," a "reproach" at whom men "shaked their heads", is a portrait of the Lord Jesus in His passion, "wounded for our transgressions" (Isaiah 53:5), despised and rejected, mocked on the cross as those who passed by "wagging their heads" (Matthew 27:39). He was the poor and needy One who cast Himself wholly on the Father. And the prayer "that they may know that this is thy hand" was answered in His resurrection, the great deliverance so plainly God's doing that it could only be said, "This is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes" (Matthew 21:42). So bring your wounds to God as David did: plead not your merit but His name and His good mercy, and long that your rescue would show His hand, all secured in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Word Study

"let them curse, but bless thou," Hebrew yeqalelu-hemmah ve'attah tevarekh (יְקַלְלוּ־הֵמָּה וְאַתָּה תְבָרֵךְ). David releases the cursing entirely to his enemies and asks God only for His blessing. He would rather have God's blessing than escape man's cursing, for what does a man's curse matter where God has blessed? This is faith at rest.

"clothed with shame," yilbeshu... kelimmah (יִלְבְּשׁוּ כְּלִמָּה). The adversaries are pictured wearing their own confusion "as with a mantle." What they meant to wrap around David settles instead upon themselves, while "let thy servant rejoice."

"I will greatly praise the LORD," odeh YHWH me'od (אוֹדֶה יְהוָה מְאֹד). A psalm that opened with a cry of distress, "hold not thy peace," closes in confident praise, and public praise at that: "yea, I will praise him among the multitude."

"he shall stand at the right hand of the poor," ya'amod limin evyon (יַעֲמֹד לִימִין אֶבְיוֹן). This final image quietly reverses everything. Back in verse 6 the wicked wanted an accuser to stand at the right hand to condemn; now God Himself takes the place at the right hand of the needy, not to accuse, but to defend and to save. The wicked have an accuser at their side; the poor believer has the LORD Himself standing beside him.

Explanation

The psalm ends with two beautiful turns. First, look at verse 28: "Let them curse, but bless thou." David releases the cursing entirely to his enemies and asks God only for His blessing. He would rather have God's blessing than escape man's cursing, for what does a man's curse matter where God has blessed? This is faith at rest: let them say what they will; God's blessing outweighs it all, and "let thy servant rejoice." Second, and most striking of all, is the final image of the psalm, which quietly reverses everything. Back in verse 6, the wicked wanted an accuser to "stand at his right hand" to condemn. Now the psalm ends: "For he (the LORD) shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save him from those that condemn his soul." Where the enemy sought an accuser at the right hand, God Himself takes the place at the right hand of the needy, not to accuse, but to defend and to save. That is the difference between the wicked and the righteous: the wicked have an accuser at their side; the poor believer has the LORD Himself standing beside him. And so a psalm that opened with a cry of distress, "hold not thy peace," closes in confident praise, "I will greatly praise the LORD," because the God of his praise stands at his right hand.

Gospel Focus

"He shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save him from those that condemn his soul", this is the gospel's answer to every accusation, fulfilled in Jesus Christ our Advocate. Satan is "the accuser of our brethren" (Revelation 12:10), the one who would stand at our right hand to condemn; but "we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous" (1 John 2:1), who stands at the right hand of the poor to save. Paul asks the very question this verse settles: "Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died" (Romans 8:33-34). No accusation can stand against the soul beside whom Christ stands. And "let them curse, but bless thou" is the very way of Christ, who taught, "Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not" (Romans 12:14), and whose people, "being reviled, we bless" (1 Corinthians 4:12). So when you are cursed and condemned by men, do as this psalm ends: leave the cursing to them, seek only God's blessing, and rest in the Lord Jesus, who stands at your right hand against every charge.