Psalms 69
Psalms 69 is part of “Book II: The Exodus Book” (42–72) in the outline of Psalms.
Psalms 69 summary
David penned this psalm when he was in affliction; and in it, I. He complains of the great distress and trouble he was in and earnestly begs of God to relieve and succour him (v. 1-21). II. He imprecates the judgments of God upon his persecutors (Psa 69:22-29).
Read the full introduction
David penned this psalm when he was in affliction; and in it, I. He complains of the great distress and trouble he was in and earnestly begs of God to relieve and succour him (v. 1-21). II. He imprecates the judgments of God upon his persecutors (Psa 69:22-29). III. He concludes with the voice of joy and praise, in an assurance that God would help and succour him, and would do well for the church (Psa 69:30-36). Now, in this, David was a type of Christ, and divers passages in this psalm are applied to Christ in the new Testament and are said to have their accomplishment in him (Psa 69:4, Psa 69:9, Psa 69:21), and Psa 69:22 refers to the enemies of Christ. So that (like the twenty-second psalm) it begins with the humiliation and ends with the exaltation of Christ, one branch of which was the destruction of the Jewish nation for persecuting him, which the imprecations here are predictions of. In singing this psalm we must have an eye to the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that followed, not forgetting the sufferings of Christians too, and the glory that shall follow them; for it may lead us to think of the ruin reserved for the persecutors and the rest reserved for the persecuted. To the chief musician upon Shoshannim. A psalm of David.
Source: Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible (1706–21; Romans–Revelation completed by Nonconformist ministers). Public domain. Digital text: Free Use Bible API (bible.helloao.org).
Psalms 69 (ASV)
American Standard Version (public domain)
Save Me, O God
1For the Chief Musician; set to Shoshannim. [A Psalm] of David. Save me, O God; For the waters are come in unto my soul. 2I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing: I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me. 3I am weary with my crying; my throat is dried: Mine eyes fail while I wait for my God. 4They that hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head: They that would cut me off, being mine enemies wrongfully, are mighty: That which I took not away I have to restore. 5O God, thou knowest my foolishness; And my sins are not hid from thee. 6Let not them that wait for thee be put to shame through me, O Lord Jehovah of hosts: Let not those that seek thee be brought to dishonor through me, O God of Israel. 7Because for thy sake I have borne reproach; Shame hath covered my face. 8I am become a stranger unto my brethren, And an alien unto my mother’s children. 9For the zeal of thy house hath eaten me up; And the reproaches of them that reproach thee are fallen upon me. 10When I wept, [and chastened] my soul with fasting, That was to my reproach. 11When I made sackcloth my clothing, I became a byword unto them. 12They that sit in the gate talk of me; And [I am] the song of the drunkards. 13But as for me, my prayer is unto thee, O Jehovah, in an acceptable time: O God, in the abundance of thy lovingkindness, Answer me in the truth of thy salvation. 14Deliver 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. 15Let not the waterflood overwhelm me, Neither let the deep swallow me up; And let not the pit shut its mouth upon me. 16Answer me, O Jehovah; for thy lovingkindness is good: According to the multitude of thy tender mercies turn thou unto me. 17And hide not thy face from thy servant; For I am in distress; answer me speedily. 18Draw nigh unto my soul, and redeem it: Ransom me because of mine enemies. 19Thou knowest my reproach, and my shame, and my dishonor: Mine adversaries are all before thee. 20Reproach 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. 21They gave me also gall for my food; And in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink. 22Let their table before them become a snare; And when they are in peace, [let it become] a trap. 23Let their eyes be darkened, so that they cannot see; And make their loins continually to shake. 24Pour out thine indignation upon them, And let the fierceness of thine anger overtake them. 25Let their habitation be desolate; Let none dwell in their tents. 26For they persecute him whom thou hast smitten; And they tell of the sorrow of those whom thou hast wounded. 27Add iniquity unto their iniquity; And let them not come into thy righteousness. 28Let them be blotted out of the book of life, And not be written with the righteous. 29But I am poor and sorrowful: Let thy salvation, O God, set me up on high. 30I will praise the name of God with a song, And will magnify him with thanksgiving. 31And it will please Jehovah better than an ox, [Or] a bullock that hath horns and hoofs. 32The meek have seen it, and are glad: Ye that seek after God, let your heart live. 33For Jehovah heareth the needy, And despiseth not his prisoners. 34Let heaven and earth praise him, The seas, and everything that moveth therein. 35For God will save Zion, and build the cities of Judah; And they shall abide there, and have it in possession. 36The seed also of his servants shall inherit it; And they that love his name shall dwell therein.