To the chief Musician on Neginoth upon Sheminitha, A Psalm of David
1 O LORD, rebuke me not in Thine anger, neither chasten me in Thy hot displeasure.
2 Have mercy upon me, O LORD: for I am weak: O LORD, heal me: for my bones are vexed.
3 My soul is also sore vexed: but Thou, O LORD, how long?
4 Return, O LORD, deliver my soul: oh save me for Thy mercies’ sake.
5 For in death there is no remembrance of Thee: in the grave who shall give Thee thanks?
6 I am weary with my groaning: all the night I make my bed to swim: I water my couch with my tears.
7 Mine eye is consumed because of grief: it waxeth old because of all mine enemies.
8 Depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity: for the LORD hath heard the voice of my weeping.
9 The LORD hath heard my supplication: the LORD will receive my prayer.
10 Let all mine enemies be ashamed and sore vexed: let them return and be ashamed suddenly.
In times of great pain and sadness we still cry out to God for salvation.
Sadness. You know what it feels like when your body aches from the flu. But do you know what it is when your soul aches? When we are ill or emotionally pained, we are more sensitive towards our pitiable condition of weakness. In this psalm, we cry out to God from our weakness. We weep before God as we experience oppression coming from our enemies of sin, death, and the sinful world around us. Reaching the very edge of despair, we cry out for God’s return. Finally, the psalm ends with a growing confidence in the favor of God towards us.
Verses 1–3. First, David recognizes the chastening hand of God behind his troubles. Indeed, all of our troubles are under the sovereign control of God and He uses these trials to correct us, even as a father corrects his children. But in the midst of his pain and anguish, David cries out to God to withhold His chastisement.
Certainly this applies well to every believer who has ever lived, for all of us go through periods when we suffer both physically and emotionally in the trials of our lives. Evidently, the Psalmist here has contracted a bodily illness, attended with spiritual or emotional struggles. At times like these we do not spend our time cursing our “luck” or plotting the destruction of our enemies. We turn to God, the source of our trials, and we say with David, “But Thou, O LORD, how long?”
As a son relays his sufferings to a tender, loving father, David talks of the pain he feels with Yahweh. Do you think that God may be affected by such language? Some have suggested that such a notion might contradict the biblical doctrine of God’s changelessness. Of course, God’s nature does not change, and neither does His standard of righteousness and His eternal purpose. Nevertheless, it would be wrong to consider God as some kind of a heartless robot or a computer program, without emotion or sentiment towards His children. The Bible itself speaks of God’s heart or perspective in relation to His children as hardening or softening (Ps. 103:13: Gen. 6:6). Therefore, when we pray to God for His favor in the day of trouble, we must believe that such prayers do avail much in obtaining that favor.
Verses 4–7. In his soul struggles, the saint is most concerned with the perceived distance of God. Even as a son falls out of fellowship with a father for a time as he is disciplined, occasionally he senses an abandonment of God. Thus, David cries out, “Return, O Yahweh, deliver my soul!” Throughout this psalm David makes exclusive use of the covenantal, relational name for God (translated into the King James Version in the capitalized form “LORD”). This indicates the deeply personal nature of the psalm.
David applies both emotional and logical persuasive arguments in the following verses. First, he bases his appeal on God’s loving kindnesses and His merciful covenant. Then, he points out that if he is taken to the grave, that is, if the trial is without end and there is no final resurrection, then he will not live to praise God. In these words David is appealing to God’s purpose for man, which is to glorify and enjoy God forever. This will not happen if he is taken down to the grave without the benefit of the resurrection. In verse 6, he returns to a more emotional appeal by describing his present state. His bed is drenched with tears and this grief is physically draining. There is nothing in life that drains a godly man of purpose and vision more than emotional grief.
Verses 8–10. Resolution and clarity begin to return in the final verses. Whereas in verse 4 he has called for God’s return, here he calls for the departure of his enemies and all workers of iniquity. Though we may rightly refer to God as the source of our trials, He is by no means the source of our grief. David identifies the source of his grief as his arch enemies, which we take from Scripture to be the world, the flesh, and the Devil. The saint takes his position against iniquity and all workers of iniquity. In fact, all suffering is directly linked to sin that has come into the world by Adam’s fall.
Now the fog begins to dissipate, and he can see clearly that God is his salvation, and he boldly proclaims this in verses 8 and 9. A warm and comforting assurance sweeps over his soul as he rebukes his enemies, repudiates his sin, and boldly asserts that God has heard his prayer. Then he prays for sudden judgment and great trouble on the enemies of the kingdom of God.
As Christians, we deal with grief by praying such prayers and in the process, we are strengthened in faith. Such conviction drives us to a hatred of sin and temptation, and a love for God and a confidence in His salvation. Let us never waste a good trial. Indeed, we should use such moments to commit ourselves more to God and set ourselves against the arch enemies of God’s righteous kingdom.
Worship includes confession of sin. That is why we confess sin in our family worship and in the congregational worship on Sundays. Deep conviction of sin—that may even cause us to weep—is a beautiful thing, because it forces us to turn to God with urgent, vehement faith in His salvation.
1. Which Psalm says, “Thou hatest all workers of iniquity”?
2. Give an example of a Penitence psalm.
3. Give an example of a Messianic psalm.
4. From David’s testimony in this psalm, can you name the two parts of his being that feel pain?
5. Who is the source of our trials?
6. What is the source of our grief?
7. Why is conviction of sin a good thing?
1. Think about the last time that you were sick. What did you spend your time doing? Were you complaining about the illness or confessing your sins and asking God for healing?
2. Do we confess our sins on a regular basis in our private worship? In our public worship? How could we be more careful to incorporate confession of sin in our family prayers?