Title. - To the Chief Musician upon Shoshannim. Thus for the second time we have a Psalm entitled "upon the lilies." In the forty-first they were golden lilies, dropping sweet-smelling myrrh, and blooming in the fair gardens which skirt the ivory palaces: in this we have the lily among thorns, the lily of the valley, fair and beautiful, blooming in the garden of Gethsemane. A Psalm of David. If any enquire, "of whom speaketh the Psalmist this? of himself, or of some other man?" we would reply, "of himself, and of some other man." Who the other is, we need not be long in discovering; it is the Crucified alone who can say, "In my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink." His footprints all through this sorrowful song have been pointed out by the Holy Spirit in the New Testament, and therefore we believe, and are sure, that the Son of Man is here. Yet it seems to be the intention of the Spirit, while he gives us personal types, and so shows the likeness to the firstborn which exists in the heirs of salvation, to set forth also disparities between the best of the sons of men, and the Son of God, for there are verses here which we dare not apply to our Lord; we almost shudder when we see our brethren attempting to do so, as for instance Psalm 69:5. Especially do we note the difference between David and the Son of David in the imprecations of the one against his enemies, and the prayers of the other for them. We commence our exposition of this Psalm with much trembling, for we feel that we are entering with our Great High Priest into the most holy place.

Divisions. - - This Psalm consists of two portions of 18 verses each. These again may each be sub-divided into three parts. Under the first head, from Psalm 69:1-4, the sufferer spreads his complaint before God; then he pleads that his zeal for God is the cause of his sufferings, in Psalm 69:5-12 : and this encourages him to plead for help and deliverance, from Psalm 69:13-18. In the second half of the Psalm he details the injurious conduct of his adversaries, from Psalm 69:19-21; calls for their punishment, Psalm 69:1-4, and then returns to prayer, and to a joyful anticipation of divine interposition and its results, Psalm 69:29-36.

Hints to Preachers

Psalm 69:1. - Our trials like waters.

I. They should be kept out of the heart.

II. There are, however, leaks which admit them.

III. Take note when the hold is filling.

IV. Use the pumps, and cry for help.

Psalm 69:2, Psalm 69:3. - The sinner aware of his position, unable to hope, overwhelmed with fear, finding no comfort in prayer, unvisited with divine consolation. Direct and console him.

Psalm 69:3. -

I. Here is faith in the midst of trouble: "My God."

II. Hope in the midst of disappointment: "Mine eyes fail," etc.

III. Prayer in the midst of discouragement: "I am weary," etc.; "My throat," etc.

Or,

I. There is praying beyond prayer: "I am weary," etc.

II. Hoping beyond hope, "Mine eyes," etc. G.R.

Psalm 69:4. - Jesus as the Restorer, the Christian imitating him in the same office; Christianity a power which will do this for the whole race in due season.

Psalm 69:5. - Our foolishness. Wherein it appears generally, how it may display itself in individuals, what it occasions, and what are the divine provisions to meet it.

Psalm 69:5. -

I. God's knowledge of sin is an inducement to repent,

1. Because it is foolish to endeavour to hide any sin from him.

2. Because it is impossible to confess all our sin to him.

II. It is an encouragement to hope for pardon.

1. Because, in the full knowledge of sin, he has declared himself to be merciful and ready to forgive.

2. Because he has made provision for pardon, not according to our knowledge of sin, but his own. - G. R.

Psalm 69:8, Psalm 69:9. -

I. A grievous trial.

II. An honourable reason for it: for Christ's sake.

III. Consoling supports under it.

Psalm 69:9. -

I. The object of zeal, "thy house;" thy Zion; thy Church.

II. The degree of zeal: "hath eaten me up." Our Lord was consumed by his own zeal. So Paul: "And I if I be offered up," etc.

III. The manifestation of zeal "The reproaches," etc.; of thy justice; of thy law; of thy moral government; of thy lovingkindness. "Who himself bare our sins," etc. - G. H.

Psalm 69:10-12. - A prophecy.

I. Of the Saviour's tears: "When Iwept."

II. Of his fasting.

III. Of reproach.

IV. Of his humiliation: "I made sackcloth," etc.

V. Of the perversion of his words: as, "I will destroy this temple," etc.

VI. Of the opposition of the Pharisees and rulers: "They that sit in the gate," etc.

VII. Of the contempt of the lowest of the people: "I was the song," etc. - G. R.

Psalm 69:11. - Proverbial sayings of a scoffing character.

Psalm 69:13. - "An acceptable time." While life lasts usually, and especially when we are repentant, feel our need, are importunate, give all glory to God, have faith in his promise, and expect a gracious reply.

Psalm 69:13. - "Multitude of thy mercy." Seen in many forbearances before conversion, countless pardons, innumerable gifts, many promises, frequent visits, and abundant deliverances. Of all these who can count the thousandth part?

Psalm 69:13. - "The truth of thy salvation." An instructive topic. Its reality, certainty, completeness, eternity, etc., all illustrate its truth under various aspects.

Psalm 69:14-16. -

I. The depth from which prayer may rise.

II. The height to which it may ascend. Thus Jonah, when at the bottom of the sea, says, "My prayer came up," etc. - G. R.

Psalm 69:15 (last clause). - A tremendous evil, our desert of it, our hope against it, our fear of it, and the reasons which secure us against it.

Psalm 69:17. -

I.:Prayer: "Hide not thy face."

II.:Person: "Thy servant."

III.:Plea: "For I am in trouble."

IV. Pressure: "Hear me speedily."

Psalm 69:19. -

I. God knows what his people suffer: how much, how long, from whom, for what.

II. His people should find consolation in this knowledge.

1. That trial is permitted by him.

2. That it is apportioned by him.

3. That it has its design from him.

4. That when the design is accomplished, it will be removed by him. - G. R.

Psalm 69:20. - The Saviour's broken heart.

Broken hearts, such as are sentimental, caused by disappointed pride, penitence, persecution, sympathy, etc.

Psalm 69:21. - The conduct of men to Jesus throughout his entire life, rendering to him evil for all his good, and where good would have seemed to be the inevitable return.

Psalm 69:22. - The table a snare. Excess in feasting; looseness in conversation; want of principle in confederate councils; superstition in religion.

Psalm 69:23. - The judicial curse which falls on some despisers of Christ; their understandings fail to perceive the truth; and they tremble, because they are unable to receive strengthening comforts.

Psalm 69:29. -

I. The humiliation that precedes exaltation.

1.:Deep: "I am poor and sorrowful."

2.:Confessed: "I am poor," etc.

II. The exaltation that follows humiliation.

1.:Divine: "Thy salvation, O Lord." "Though the Lord be high," etc.

2.:Complete: God does nothing by halves.

3.-Pre-eminent: "Set me up on high." - G. R.

Psalm 69:30, Psalm 69:31. -

I. The effect of deliverance upon the people of God. It fills them with praise and thanksgiving.

II. The effect in relation to God. He is more pleased with it than with any other offerings: "Whoso offereth praise," etc. - G.R.

Psalm 69:32. -

I. The joy of a good man's heart is in the experience of others.

II. The life of his heart is in God.

Psalm 69:33. -

I. What the people of God are in their own esteem: "poor" and "prisoners."

II. What they are in the divine esteem: not unnoticed; not unheard; not despised.

Psalm 69:34. - "The sea," etc. How God is, should be, and shall be praised by the sea.

Psalm 69:35. - Salvation, edification, preservation, peace, full assurance.

Psalm 69:35, Psalm 69:36. - Observe the sequence: - "Save," "build," "dwell and have," "inherit," "love and dwell."

Psalm 69:36. -

I. The sure evidence of grace: "love his name."

II. The blessing given.

III. The enduring character of it: "shall dwell."

Psalm 69:36. -

I. The inheritance: "Inherit it;" we reign with Christ on earth, then in heaven.

II. The title.

1.:Legal: "Seed of his servants" - Abraham. Jacob, David - David's Lord and Son.

2.:Moral: "They that love his name." - G. R.

Psalm 69:36. -

I. The covenant inheritance.

II. To whom it belongs.

III. The certainty of their obtaining; and,

IV. The perpetuity of their possessing it.

Explanatory Notes and Quaint Sayings

Title

"To the Chief Musician, on the lilies, of David." "On the lilies," points to the beauty of the subject treated of. - E. W. Hengstenberg.

Whole Psalm

The subject of the Psalm is an ideal person, representing the whole class of religious sufferers. The only individual in whom the various traits meet is Christ. That he is not, however, the exclusive, or even the immediate subject, is clear from the confession in Psalm 69:5. There is no Psalm, except the twenty-second, more distinctly applied to him in the New Testament. - Joseph Addison Alexander.

1 Save me, O God; for the waters are come in unto my soul.

2 I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing; I am come into deep waters, Where the floods overflow me.

3 I am weary of my crying; my throat is dried: mine eyes fail while I wait for my God.

4 They that hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of mine head: they that would destroy me, being mine enemies wrongfully, are mighty: then I restored that which I took not away.

Psalm 69:1

"Save me, O God." "He saved others, himself he cannot save." With strong cryings and tears he offered up prayers and supplications unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared (Hebrews 5:7). Thus David had prayed, and here his Son and Lord utters the same cry. This is the second Psalm which begins with a "Save me, O God," and the former (Psalm 54:1-7) is but a short summary of this more lengthened complaint. It is remarkable that such a scene of woe should be presented to us immediately after the jubilant ascension hymn of the last Psalm, but this only shows how interwoven are the glories and the sorrows of our ever-blessed Redeemer. The head which now is crowned with glory is the same which wore the thorns; he to whom we pray, "Save us, O God," is the selfsame person who cried, "Save me, O God." "For the waters are come in unto my soul." Sorrows, deep, abounding, deadly, had penetrated his inner nature. Bodily anguish is not his first complaint; he begins not with the gall which embittered his lips, but with the mighty griefs which broke into his heart. All the sea outside a vessel is less to be feared than that which finds its way into the hold. A wounded spirit who can bear. Our Lord in this verse is seen before us as a Jonah, crying, "The waters compassed me about, even to the soul." He was doing business for us on the great waters, at his Father's command; the stormy wind was lifting up the waves thereof, and he went down to the depths till his soul was melted because of trouble. In all this he has sympathy with us, and is able to succour us when we, like Peter, beginning to sink, cry to him, "Lord, save, or we perish."

Psalm 69:2

"I sink in deep mire." In water one might swim, but in mud and mire all struggling is hopeless; the mire sucks down its victim. "Where there is no standing." Everything gave way under the Sufferer; he could not get foothold for support - this is a worse fate than drowning. Here our Lord pictures the close, clinging nature of his heart's woes. "He began to be sorrowful, and very heavy." Sin is as mire for its filthiness, and the holy soul of the Saviour must have loathed even that connection with it which was necessary for its expiation. His pure and sensitive nature seemed to sink in it, for it was not his element, he was not like us born and acclimatised to this great dismal swamp. Here our Redeemer became another Jeremiah, of whom it is recorded (Jer.' Jeremiah 38:6) that his enemies cast him into a dungeon wherein "was no water, but mire: so Jeremiah sunk in the mire." Let our hearts feel the emotions, both of contrition and gratitude, as we see in this simile the deep humiliation of our Lord. "I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me." The sorrow gathers even greater force; he is as one cast into the sea, the waters cover his head. His sorrows were first within, then around, and now above him. Our lord was no faint-hearted sentimentalist; his were real woes, and though he bore them heroically, yet were they terrible even to him. His sufferings were unlike all others in degree, the waters were such as soaked into the soul; the mire was the mire of the abyss itself, and the floods Were deep and overflowing. To us the promise is, "the rivers shall not overflow thee," but no such word of consolation was vouchsafed to him. My soul, thy Well-beloved endured all this for thee many waters could not quench his love, neither could the floods drown it; and, because of this, thou hast the rich benefit of that covenant assurance, "as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee." He stemmed the torrent of almighty wrath, that we might for ever rest in Jehovah's love.

Psalm 69:3

"I am weary of my crying." Not of it, but by it, with it. He had prayed till he sweat great drops of blood, and well might physical weariness intervene. "My throat is dried," parched, and inflamed. Long pleading with awful fervour had scorched his throat as with flames of fire. Few, very few, of his saints follow their Lord in prayer as far as this. We are, it is to be feared, more likely to be hoarse with talking frivolities to men than by pleading with God; yet our sinful nature demands more prayer than his perfect humanity might seem to need. His prayers should shame us into fervour. Our Lord's supplications were salted with fire, they were hot with agony; and hence they weakened his system, and made him "a weary man and full of woes." "Mine eyes Jail While I wait for my God." He wanted in his direst distress nothing more than his God; that would be all in all to him. Many 9f us know what watching and waiting mean; and we know something of the failing eye when hope is long deferred: but in all this Jesus bears the palm; no eyes ever failed as his did or for so deep a cause. No painter can ever depict those eyes; their pencils fail in every feature of his all fair but: all marred countenance, but most of all do they come short when they venture to pourtray those eyes which were fountains of tears. He knew how both to pray and to watch, and he would have us learn the like. There are times when we should pray till the throat is dry, and watch till the eyes grow dim. Only thus can we have fellowship with him in his sufferings. What! can we not watch with him one hour? Does the flesh shrink back? O cruel flesh to be so tender of thyself, and so ungenerous to thy Lord!

Psalm 69:4

"They that hate me." Surprising sin that men should hate the altogether lovely one, truly is it added, "without a cause," for reason there was none for this senseless enmity. He neither blasphemed God, nor injured man. As Samuel said: "Whose ox have I taken? or whose ass have I taken? or whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed?" Even so might Jesus enquire. Besides, he had not only done us no evil, but he had bestowed countless and priceless benefits. Well might he demand, "For which of these works do ye stone me?" Yet from his cradle to his cross, beginning with Herod and not ending with Judas, he had foes without number; and he justly said, they "are more than the hairs of mine head." was the unanimous resolve of all the keepers of the Jewish vineyard; while the Gentiles outside the walls of the garden furnished the instruments for his murder, and actually did the deed. The hosts of earth and hell, banded together, made up vast legions of antagonists, none of whom had any just ground for hating him. They that would destroy me, being mine enemies wrongfully, are mighty." It was bad that they were many, but worse that they were mighty. All the ecclesiastical and military powers of his country were arrayed against him. The might of the Sanhedrim, the mob, and the Roman legions were combined in one for his utter destruction, "Away with such a fellow from this earth; it is not fit that he should live," was the shout of his ferocious foes. David's adversaries were on the throne when he was hiding in caverns, and our Lord's enemies were the great ones of the earth; while he, of whom the world was not worthy, was reproached of men and despised of the people. "Then I restored that which I took not away." Though innocent, he was treated guilty. Though David had no share in plots against Saul, yet he was held accountable for them. In reference to our Lord, it may be truly said that he restores what he took not away; for he gives back to the injured honour of God a recompense, and to man his lost happiness, though the insult of the one and the fall of the other were neither of them, in any sense, his doings. Usually, when the ruler sins the people suffer, but here the proverb is reversed - the sheep go astray, and their wanderings are laid at the Shepherd's door.

5 O God, thou knowest my foolishness; and my sins axe not hid from thee.

6 Let not them that wait on thee, O Lord God of hosts, be ashamed for my sake: let not those that seek thee be confounded for my sake, O God of Israel.

7 Because for thy sake I have borne reproach; shame hath covered face.

8 I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother's children.

9 For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.

10 When I wept, and chastened my soul with fasting, that was to my reproach.

11 I made sackcloth also my garment; and I became a proverb to them.

12 They that sit in the gate speak against me; and I was the song of the drunkards.

Psalm 69:5

"O God, thou knowest my foolishness." David might well say this, but not David's Lord; unless it be understood as an appeal to God as to his freedom from folly which men imputed to him when they said he was mad. That which was foolishness to men was superlative wisdom before God. How often might we use these words in their natural sense, and if we were not such fools as to be blind to our own folly, this confession would be frequently on our ips. When we feel that we have been foolish we are not, therefore, to cease from prayer, but rather to be more eager and fervent in it. Fools had good need consult with the infinitely wise. "And my sins are not hid from thee." They cannot be hid with any fig leaves of mine: only the covering which thou wilt bring me can conceal their nakedness and mine. It ought to render confession easy, when we are assured that all is known already. That prayer which has no confession in it may please a Pharisee's pride, but will never bring down justification. They who have never seen their sins in the light of God's omniscience are quite unable to appeal to that omniscience in proof of their piety. He who can say, "Thou knowest my foolishness," is the only man who can add, "But thou knowest that I love thee."

Psalm 69:6

"Let not them that wait on thee, O Lord God of hosts, be ashamed for my sake." If he were deserted, others who were walking in the same path of faith would be discouraged and disappointed. Unbelievers are ready enough to catch at anything which may turn humble faith into ridicule, therefore, O God of all the armies of Israel, let not my case cause the enemy to blaspheme - such is the spirit of this verse. Our blessed Lord ever had a tender concern for his people, and would not have his own oppression of spirit become a source of discouragement to them. "Let not those that seek thee be confounded for my sake, O God of Israel." He appealed to the Lord of hosts by his power to help him, and now to the God of Israel by his covenant faithfulness to come to the rescue. If the captain of the host fail, how will it fare with the rank and file? If David flee, what will his followers do? If the king of believers shall find his faith unrewarded, how will the feeble ones hold on their way? Our Lord's behaviour during his sharpest agonies is no cause of shame to us; he wept, for he was man, but he murmured not, for he was sinless man; he cried, "My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me;" for he was human, but he added, "Nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt," for his humanity was without taint of rebellion. In the depths of tribulation no repining word escaped him, for there was no repining in his heart. The Lord of martyrs Witnessed a good confession. He was strengthened in the hour of peril, and came off more than a conqueror, as we also shall do, if we hold fast our confidence even to the end.

Psalm 69:7

"Because for thy sake I have borne reproach." Because he undertook to do the Father's will, and teach his truth, the people were angry; because he declared himself to be the Son of God, the priesthood raved. They could find no real fault in him, but were forced to hatch up a lying accusation before they could commence their sham trial of him. The bottom of the quarrel was, that God was With him, and he with God, while the Scribes and Pharisees sought only their vhf own hour. Reproach is at all times very cutting to a man of integrity, and it must have come with acute force upon one of so unsullied a character as our Lord: yet see, how he turns to his God, and finds his consolation in the fact that he is enduring all for his Father's sake. The like comfort belongs to all misrepresented and persecuted saints. "Shame hath covered my face." Men condemned to die frequently had their faces covered as they were dragged away from the judge's seat, as was the case With the wicked Haman in Esther 7:8 : after this fashion they first covered our Lord with a veil of opprobious accusation, and then hurried him away to be crucified. Moreover, they passed him through the trial of cruel mockings, besmeared his face with spittle, and covered it with bruises, so that Pilate's "Ecce Homo" called the world's attention to an unexampled spectacle of woe and shame. The stripping on the cross must also have suffused the Redeemer's face With a modest blush, as he hung there exposed to the cruel gaze of a ribald multitude. Ah, blessed Lord, it was our shame which thou wast made to bear! Nothing more deserves to be reproached and despised than sin, and lo, when thou wast made sin for us thou wast called to endure abuse and scorn. Blessed be thy name, it is over now, but we owe thee more than heart can conceive for thine amazing stoop of love.

continued...

13 But as for me, my prayer is unto thee, O Lord, in an acceptable time: O God, in the multitude of thy mercy hear me, in the truth of thy salvation.

14 Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink: let me be delivered from them that hate me, and out of the deep waters.

15 Let not the waterflood overflow me, neither let the deep swallow me up, and let not the pit shut her mouth upon me.

16 Hear me, O Lord; for thy lovingkindness is good: turn unto me according to the multitude of thy tender mercies.

17 And hide not thy face from thy servant; for I am in trouble: hear me speedily.

18 Draw nigh unto my soul, and redeem it: deliver me because of mine enemies.

Psalm 69:13

"But as for me, my prayer is unto thee, O Lord." He turned to Jehovah in prayer as being the most natural things for the godly to do in their distress. To whom should a child turn but to his father. He did not answer them; like a sheep before her shearers he was dumb to them, but he opened his mouth unto the Lord his God, for he would hear and deliver. Prayer is never out of season, it stands us in good stead in every evil day. "In an acceptable time." It was a time of rejection with man, but of acceptance with God. Sin ruled on earth, but grace reigned in heaven. There is to each of us an accepted time, and woe be to us if we suffer it to glide away unimproved. God's time must be our time, or it will come to pass that, when time closes, we shall look in vain for space for repentance, Our Lord's prayers were well-timed, and always met with acceptance. "O God, in the multitude of thy mercy hear me." Even the perfect one makes his appeal to the rich mercy of God, much more should we. To misery no attribute is more sweet than mercy, and when sorrows multiply, the multitude of mercy is much prized. When enemies are more than the hairs of our head, they are yet to be numbered, but God's mercies are altogether innumerable, and let it never be forgotten that: every one of them is an available and powerful argument in the hand of faith. "In the truth of thy salvation." Jehovah's faithfulness is a further mighty plea. His salvation is no fiction, no mockery, no changeable thing, therefore he is asked to manifest it, and make all men see his fidelity to his promise. Our Lord teaches us here the sacred art of wrestling in prayer, and ordering our cause with arguments; and he also indicates to us that the nature of God is the great treasury of strong reasons, which shall be to us most prevalent in supplication.

Psalm 69:14

"Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink." He turns into prayer the very words of his complaint; and it is well, if, when we complain, we neither feel nor say anything which we should fear to utter before the Lord as a prayer. We are allowed to ask for deliverance from trouble as well as for support under it; both petitions are here combined. How strange it seems to hear such language from the Lord of glory. "Let me be delivered from them that hate me, and out of the deep waters." Both from his foes, and the griefs which they caused him, he seeks a rescue. God can help us in all ways, and we may, therefore, put up a variety of requests without fear of exceeding our liberty to ask, or his ability to answer.

Psalm 69:15

"Let not the waterflood overflow me." He continues to recapitulate the terms of his lament. He is willing to bear suffering, but entreats grace that it may not get the victory over him. He was heard in that he feared. "Neither let the deep swallow me up." As Jonah came forth again, so let me also arise from the abyss of woe: here also our Lord was heard, and so shall we be. Death itself must disgorge us. "Let not the pit shut her mouth upon me." When a great stone was rolled over the Well, or pit, used as a dungeon, the prisoner was altogether enclosed, and forgotten like one in the oubliettes of the Bastille; this is an apt picture of the state of a man buried alive in grief and left without remedy; against this the great sufferer pleaded and was heard. He was baptised in agony but not drowned in it; the grave, enclosed him, but before she could close her mouth he had burst his prison. It is said that truth lies in a well, but it is assuredly an open well, for it walks abroad in power; and so our great Substitute in the pit of woe and death was yet the Conqueror of death and hell. How appropriately may many of us use this prayer. We deserve to be swept away as with a flood, to be drowned in our sins, to be shut up in hell; let us, then, plead the merits of our Saviour, lest these things happen unto us.

Psalm 69:16

"Hear me, O Lord." Do not refuse thy suppliant Son. It is to the covenant God, the ever-living Jehovah, that he appeals with strong cryings. "For thy loving-kindness is good." By the greatness of thy love have pity upon thine afflicted. It is always a stay to the soul to dwell upon the pre-eminence and excellence of the Lord's mercy. It has furnished sad souls much good cheer to take to pieces that grand old Saxon word, which is here used in our version, "lovingkindness." Its composition is of two most sweet and fragrant things, fitted to inspire strength into the fainting, and make desolate hearts sing for joy. "Turn unto me according to the multitude of thy tender mercies." If the Lord do but turn the eye of pity, and the hand of power, the mourner's Spirit revives. It is the gall of bitterness to be without the comfortable smile of God; in our Lord's case his grief culminated in "Lama Sabachthani," and his bitterest cry was that in which he mourned an absent God. Observe how he dwells anew upon divine tenderness, and touches again that note of abundance, "The multitude of thy compassions."

continued...

19 Thou hast known my reproach, and my shame, and my dishonour: mine adversaries are all before thee.

20 Reproach hath broken my heart; and I am full of heaviness: and I looked for some to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none.

21 They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me Vinegar to drink.

Here we have a sad recapitulation of sorrows, with more especial reference to the persons concerned in their infliction.

Psalm 69:19

"Thou hast known my reproach, and my shame, and my dishonour." It is no novelty or secret, it has been long continued: thou, O God, hast seen it; and for thee to see the innocent suffer is an assurance of help. Here are three words piled up to express the Redeemer's keen sense of the contempt poured upon him; and his assurance that every form of malicious despite was observed of the Lord. "Mine adversaries are all before thee." The whole lewd and loud company is now present to thine eye: Judas and his treachery; Herod and his cunning; Caiaphas and his counsel; Pilate and his vacillation; Jews, priests, people, rulers, all, thou seest and wilt judge.

Psalm 69:20

"Reproach hath broken my heart:" There is no hammer like it. Our Lord died of a broken heart, and reproach had done the deed. Intense mental suffering arises from slander; and, in the cage of the sensitive nature of the immaculate Son of Man, it sufficed to lacerate the heart till it broke. "Then burst his mighty heart." "And I am full of heaviness." Calumny and insult bowed him to the dust; he was sick at heart. The heaviness of our Lord in the garden is expressed by many and forcible words in the four gospels, and each term goes to show that the agony was beyond measure great; he was filled with misery, like a vessel which is full to the brim. "And I looked for some to take pity, but there was none." "Deserted in his utmost need by those his former bounty fed." Not one to say him a kindly word, or drop a sympathetic tear. Amongst ten thousand foes there was not one who was touched by the spectacle of his misery; not one with a heart capable of humane feeling towards him. "And for comforters, but I found none." His dearest ones had sought their own safety, and left their Lord alone. A sick man needs comforters, and a persecuted man needs sympathy; but our blessed Surety found neither on that dark and doleful night when the powers of darkness had their hour. A spirit like that of our Lord feels acutely desertion by beloved and trusted friends, and yearns for real sympathy. This may be seen in the story of Gethsemane: -

"Backwards and forwards thrice he ran,

As if he sought some help from man;

Or wish'd, at least, they would condole -

'Twas all they could - his tortur'd soul.

Whate'er he sought for, there was none;

Our Captain fought the field alone.

continued...

22 Let their table become a snare before them: and that which should have been for their welfare, let it become a trap.

23 Let their eyes be darkened, that they see not; and make their loins continually to shake.

24 Pour out thine indignation upon them, and let thy wrathful anger take hold of them.

25 Let their habitation be desolate; and let none dwell in their tents.

26 For they persecute him whom thou hast smitten; and they talk to the grief of those whom thou hast wounded.

27 Add iniquity unto their iniquity: and let them not come into thy righteousness.

28 Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous.

From this point David and our Lord for awhile part company, if we accept the rendering of our version. The severe spirit of the law breathes out imprecations, while the tender heart of Jesus offers prayers for his murderers. The whole of these verses, however, may be viewed as predictions, and then they certainly refer to our Lord, for we find portions of them quoted in that manner by the apostle in Matthew 11:9, Matthew 11:10, and by Christ himself in Matthew 23:38.

Psalm 69:22

"Let their table become a snare before them." There they laid snares, and there they shall find them. From their feasts they would afford nothing but wormwood for their innocent victim, and now their banquets shall be their ruin. It is very easy for the daily provisions of mercy to become temptations to sin. As birds and beasts are taken in a trap by means of baits for the appetite, so are men snared full often by their meats and drinks. Those who despise the upper springs of grace, shall find the nether springs of worldly comfort prove their poison. The table is used, however, not alone for feeding, but for conversation, transacting business, counsel, amusement, and religious observance: to those who are the enemies of the Lord Jesus the table may, in all these respects, become a snare. This first plague is terrible, and the second is like unto it. "And that which should have been for their welfare, let it become a trap." This, if we follow the original closely, and the version of Paul in the Romans, is a repetition of the former phrase; but we shall not err if we say that, to the rejectors of Christ, even those things which are calculated to work their spiritual and eternal good, become occasions for yet greater sin. They reject Christ, and are condemned for not believing on him; they stumble on this stone, and are broken by it. Wretched are those men, who not only have a curse upon their common blessings, but also on the spiritual opportunities of salvation.

"Whom oils and balsams kill, what salve can cure?"

This second plague even exceeds the first.

Psalm 69:23

"Let their eyes be darkened, that they see not." They shall wander in a darkness that may be felt. They have loved darkness rather than light, and in darkness they shall abide. Judicial blindness fell upon Israel after our Lord's death and their persecution of his apostles; they were blinded by the light which they would not accept. Eyes which see no beauty in the Lord Jesus, but flash wrath upon him, may well grow yet more dim, till death spiritual leads to death eternal. "And make their loins continually to shake." Their conscience shall be so ill at ease that they shall continually quiver with fear; their backs shall bend to the earth (so some read it) with grovelling avarice, and their strength shall be utterly paralyzed, so that they cannot walk firmly, but shall totter at every step. See the terrifying, degrading, and enfeebling influence of unbelief. See also the retaliations of justice: those who will not see shall not see; those who would not walk in uprightness shall be unable to do so.

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29 But I am poor and sorrowful: let thy salvation, O God, set me up on high.

30 I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnify him with thanksgiving.

31 This also shall please the Lord better than an ox or bullock that hath horns and hoofs.

32 The humble shall see this, and be glad: and your heart shall live that seek God.

33 For the Lord heareth the poor, and despiseth not his prisoners.

34 Let the heaven and earth praise him, the seas, and every thing that moveth therein.

35 For God will save Zion, and will build the cities of Judah: that they may dwell there, and have it in possession.

36 The seed also of his servants shall inherit it: and they that love his name shall dwell therein.

Imprecations, prophecies, and complaints are ended, and prayer of a milder sort begins, intermingled with bursts of thankful song, and encouraging foresights of coming good.

Psalm 69:29

"But I am poor and sorrowful." The Psalmist was afflicted very much, but his faith was in God. The poor in spirit and mourners are both blessed under the gospel, so that here is a double reason for the Lord to smile on his suppliant. No man was ever poorer or more sorrowful than Jesus of Nazareth, yet his cry out of the depths was heard, and he was uplifted to the highest glory. "Let thy salvation, O God, set me up on high." How fully has this been answered in our great Master's case, for he not only escaped his foes personally, but he has become the author of eternal salvation to all Who obey him, and this continues to glorify him more and more. O ye poor and sorrowful ones, lift up your heads, for as with your Lord so shall it be with you. You are trodden down to-day as the mire of the Streets, but you shall ride upon the high places of the earth ere long; and even now ye are raised up together, and made to sit together in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus.

Psalm 69:30

"I will praise the name of God with a song." He who sang after the passover, sings yet more joyously after the resurrection and ascension. He is, in very truth, "the sweet singer of Israel." He leads the eternal melodies, and all his saints join in chorus. "And will magnify him with thanksgiving." How sure was our Redeemer of ultimate Victory, since he vows a song even while yet in the furnace. In us, also, faith foresees the happy issue of affliction, and makes us even now begin the music of gratitude which shall go on for ever increasing in volume, world without end. What clear shining after the rain we have in this and succeeding verses. The darkness is past, and the glory light shines forth as the sun. All the honour is rendered unto him to whom all the prayer was presented; he alone could deliver and did deliver, and therefore, to him only be the praise.

Psalm 69:31

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