Psalm 69
This is a messianic psalm, an imprecatory psalm, and after 22 and 110, the most frequently quoted psalm in
Psalm 69—70
His third argument for deliverance is based on the character of God (vv. 13–18). What the Lord said to Moses in Exodus 34:5–9 is reflected here. In verses 14–15, David repeats the metaphor from verses 1–2, but he sees hope in God's lovingkindness and compassion, for the Lord is merciful and gracious. His truth endures and He will always keep His promises.
the New Testament. It is attributed to David and has definite affinities with 35, 40, and 109, which are also Davidic psalms. But what about verses 35–36? When during David's reign did the cities of Judah need to be rebuilt and the people brought back home? When were the drunkards singing about him in the gates (v. 12) and his enemies about to destroy him (vv. 4, 18–19)? Selected data from the psalm fits the times of both Jeremiah and Hezekiah, but it is difficult to fit everything into the times of David. Perhaps David's original psalm ended at verse 29 and the Holy Spirit directed the prophet Jeremiah to add verses 30–36 after the fall of Judah and Jerusalem to the Babylonians. The collection of psalms was a "living heritage," and some of the psalms were adapted to new occasions. Whatever the answer, when you read the psalm, you find the author confronting the Lord with three important concerns.
Vindication: "Judge My Enemies!" (vv. 19–29) David told the Lord that his foes had dishonored and insulted him to the point that he was physically ill (vv. 19–21). When he looked for sympathy, none was to be found (Matt. 26:37), and his food and drink were unfit for human consumption (v. 21; Matt. 27:34, 48; Mark 15:23, 36; Luke 23:36; John 19:29). Then David prayed that the Lord would judge his enemies and give them what they deserved (vv. 22–29). (For a discussion of this type of prayer, see the comments on Ps. 5.) The enemy had put gall and vinegar on David's table, so he prayed that their tables would turn into traps. This meant that judgment would catch them unprepared in their careless hours of feasting (1 Thess. 5:3). It could also apply to the feasts associated with the sacrifices. While rejoicing after worship, they would experience God's judgment. In Romans 11:9–10, Paul applied verses 22–23 to Israel whose religious complacency ("We just sacrificed to the Lord!") only led to spiritual blindness. In verses 22–25, David prayed that some of the basic blessings of life would be taken away from his enemies—eating, seeing, walking, and having descendants—and then that life itself would be snatched from them (vv. 27–28)! In Acts 1:20, Peter applied verse 25 to Judas.
Deliverance: "Save Me!" (vv. 1–18) He begins by asking for deliverance for his own sake (vv. 1–5) and describes his dangerous situation with the metaphor of a drowning man. (See 18:4–6; 30:1; 32:6; 42:7; 88:7, 17; 130:1–2.) His cries to God show how desperate the situation was: "Save me" (v. 1); "deliver me" (v. 14); "hear [answer] me" (vv. 16–17); "redeem [rescue] me" (v. 18); "set me up on high [protect me]" (v. 29). He had prayed to the Lord, but the Lord had not yet answered (v. 3), and he wanted an answer now (v. 17)! Though he was not sinless (v. 5), he was innocent of the charges his enemies were making, and yet he was being treated as though he were guilty (v. 4). This reminds us of our Savior, who was sinless yet treated like a transgressor (Isa. 53:5–6, 9, 12). (See also 35:11–19; 38:19; 109:3; 119:78, 86, 161.) Jesus quoted verse 4 in the Upper Room Discourse (John 15:25). Referring to verses 1–2, Amy Carmichael wrote, "Our waters are shallow because His were deep." How true!
David asked in verse 28 that his enemies be slain, blotted out of the book of the living. Even more, he didn't want them identified with the righteous after they died, which meant they were destined for eternal judgment. While this kind of prayer is hardly an example for God's people today (Matt. 6:12; Luke 23:34), we can understand David's hatred of their sins and his desire to protect Israel and its mission in the world.
His second reason for praying for deliverance was for the Lord's sake (vv. 6–12), because those who lied about David were blaspheming the name of the Lord. David did not want God's people to suffer shame because of him (v. 6; see 25:3; 38:15–16). The word reproach (scorn, insults) is used six times in the psalm (vv. 7, 9, 10, 19,20). He was scorned because he stood up for the Lord (v. 7) and because he was zealous for God's house (v. 9). He even alienated his own family (v. 8; see John 7:5; Mark 3:31–35), and the insults that people threw at the Lord also fell on him (v. 9; John 2:17; Rom. 15:3; and see Isa. 56:7; Jer. 7:11). When they blasphemed God, they blasphemed David, and their attacks against David were attacks against God, and David felt them. David had a great zeal for God's house and received the plans for the temple from the Lord and gathered the materials for its construction. It takes no special gift to discover Jesus in this psalm and to see the way people treated Him when He was ministering on earth.
Praise: "Be Glorified, O Lord!" (vv. 30–36) Perhaps this is a promise David made to the Lord, and no doubt he fulfilled it. He wanted the Lord to be glorified in his worship (vv. 30–31), his witness to the needy (vv. 32–33), in all of creation (v. 34), and in all of Israel (vv. 35–36). He asked the Lord to protect and provide for the poor whom the sinners were abusing and exploiting. He saw a day coming when the land would be united and healed and the cities populated again. "Pray for the peace of Jerusalem" (122:6). "Even so, come, Lord Jesus!" (Rev. 22:21).