1 Save me, O God!
For the waters have come up to my neck.
2 I sink in deep mire,
Where there is no standing;
I have come into deep waters,
Where the floods overflow me.
3 I am weary with my crying;
My throat is dry;
My eyes fail while I wait for my God.
4 Those who hate me without a cause
Are more than the hairs of my head;
They are mighty who would destroy me,
Being my enemies wrongfully;
Though I have stolen nothing,
I still must restore it.
5 O God, You know my foolishness;
And my sins are not hidden from You.
6 Let not those who wait for You, O Lord GOD of hosts, be ashamed because of me;
Let not those who seek You be confounded because of me, O God of Israel.
7 Because for Your sake I have borne reproach;
Shame has covered my face.
8 I have become a stranger to my brothers,
And an alien to my mother's children;
9 Because zeal for Your house has eaten me up,
And the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.
10 When I wept and chastened my soul with fasting,
That became my reproach.
11 I also made sackcloth my garment;
I became a byword to them.
12 Those who sit in the gate speak against me,
And I am the song of the drunkards.
13 But as for me, my prayer is to You,
O LORD, in the acceptable time;
O God, in the multitude of Your mercy,
Hear me in the truth of Your salvation.
14 Deliver me out of the mire,
And let me not sink;
Let me be delivered from those who hate me,
And out of the deep waters.
15 Let not the floodwater overflow me,
Nor let the deep swallow me up;
And let not the pit shut its mouth on me.
16 Hear me, O LORD, for Your lovingkindness is good;
Turn to me according to the multitude of Your tender mercies.
17 And do not hide Your face from Your servant,
For I am in trouble;
Hear me speedily.
18 Draw near to my soul, and redeem it;
Deliver me because of my enemies.
19 You know my reproach, my shame, and my dishonor;
My adversaries are all before You.
20 Reproach has broken my heart,
And I am full of heaviness;
I looked for someone to take pity, but there was none;
And for comforters, but I found none.
21 They also gave me gall for my food,
And for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
22 Let their table become a snare before them,
And their well-being a trap.
23 Let their eyes be darkened, so that they do not see;
And make their loins shake continually.
24 Pour out Your indignation upon them,
And let Your wrathful anger take hold of them.
25 Let their dwelling place be desolate;
Let no one live in their tents.
26 For they persecute the ones You have struck,
And talk of the grief of those You have wounded.
27 Add iniquity to their iniquity,
And let them not come into Your righteousness.
28 Let them be blotted out of the book of the living,
And not be written with the righteous.
29 But I am poor and sorrowful;
Let Your 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 bull,
Which has horns and hooves.
32 The humble shall see this and be glad;
And you who seek God, your hearts shall live.
33 For the LORD hears the poor,
And does not despise His prisoners.
34 Let heaven and earth praise Him,
The seas and everything that moves in them.
35 For God will save Zion
And build the cities of Judah,
That they may dwell there and possess it.
36 Also, the descendants of His servants shall inherit it,
And those who love His name shall dwell in it.—Psalm 69
Psalm 69 is a messianic Psalm. Many of its passages are applied to Christ in the New Testament and are said to have their fulfillment in Him.
As I read this Psalm last night my eyes filled with tears. When I read it through again, the same thing happened. In fact, with each subsequent read through, the inspired words of David became more and more precious to my heart. I asked myself why. The answer of my heart was that in David’s inspired words was the comfort of knowing that my God KNOWS my own reproach, shame and dishonor.
If you have ever suffered in any way for righteousness sake…then you can understand a little of what Jesus (via David) is feeling here in this psalm. More importantly you can know that Jesus knows what you are facing and feeling. And THAT, makes every difference in the world. You can turn a deaf ear to the rejections and taunting of men, because Jesus sees and understands in a way that no one else can what you are going through because He has experienced it. Jesus is the epitome of suffering for righteousness sake.
Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.—Hebrews 4:14-16
I can pray as David did…as Jesus did…even when I am in the midst of mocking, reproach and dishonor.
13 But as for me, my prayer is to You,
O LORD, in the acceptable time;
O God, in the multitude of Your mercy,
Hear me in the truth of Your salvation.
I can trust in His steadfast love. In my own distress, My God WILL hear me, answer me, comfort me and deliver me. Why? Because my Jesus, despite His prayers for deliverance in the Garden of Gethsemane, still faced the cross and endured separation from God on my behalf…because of my sin. He suffered in my stead, and endured my punishment, so I would not have to. He suffered so that I would never need to face the abject horror of being separated from my Father in Heaven.
I have received what David prays for in verse 18…I have been ransomed. I have been redeemed from the grave by His grace through the completed work of Christ on the cross. My God will not be silent when I cry. He will not reject me. I can pray with confidence. I can hope in His unfailing love and compassion. He is merciful and His truth endures forever.
