Psalms 69:1

The Bible says in Psalm 69:1-4, “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.” King David spoke of “waters,” “deep mire,” and “floods.” In other words, he was in trouble and he knew that only God could rescue him. One of the benefits of being a believer in Jesus is that we always have the Lord as a resource, and the Lord can do anything. Verse three tells us that David was crying out to the Lord for quite a while. God always answers our prayer, but He does so in His time, and He is not always in a hurry. He has eternity to work things out. Notice in verse four that David said, “They that hate me without a cause.” That is Messianic. They hated Jesus without a cause. David’s enemies wanted to destroy him and that was symbolic of what would happen to Jesus. David’s enemies were in the wrong, and David’s enemies were many and mighty. With that amount of opposition, it was a good idea to turn to the Lord.

The Bible says in Psalm 69:5, “O God, thou knowest my foolishness; and my sins are not hid from thee.” Any time that we ask God for help we want to be mindful of our own sins and failures. We are always asking God for mercy and forgiveness. We are asking for God’s grace and kindness through Jesus Christ. Daily confession of sin is very important if you want to stay in fellowship with Jesus and with other believers.

The Bible says in Psalm 69:6-8, “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 my face.[8] I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother's children.” David knows that one of his greatest responsibilities is to other believers. David prays to God that none of the believers would be “ashamed” or “confounded” because of any of David’s sins. We can either help people grow in their faith or we can hurt their faith. That is why Paul wrote to Timothy in First Timothy 4:12, “Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.”

In verse eight David speaks of being alienated from family. The family unit should be strong and united and loving to one another. Sadly, it often is not. For David, contention in his family was a source of sorrow and a subject of prayer.

The Bible says in Psalm 69:9, “For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.” This is another Messianic verse. Zeal to serve God is one of the things that is sorely missing on this earth. Jesus had it. Jesus came to do the will of the Father. Why do some people hate believers? Here is the answer: because they hate God. The judgment is coming.

The Bible says in Psalm 69:10-12, “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.” When people hate you, no matter what you do, they will find a reason to keep on criticizing you. But we are going to do what David did: keep praying for them, and praying about them, and leaving them in God’s hands. We are not going to use the methods of the world. We are going to use the methods that God give us: prayer.

The Bible says in Psalm 69:13, “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.” That is exactly what David said: he was going to keep praying to the Lord. David knew that God would give him answers to prayer, would give him truth, and would give him salvation. The most important things in life are free and they come from God. The wise person will keep praying to God no matter what happens.

The Bible says in Psalm 69:14-15, “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.” David describes his situation with several words and phrases that show how terrible and difficult his situation was: “mire,” “sink,” “deep waters,” “waterflood,” and “the pit.” What caused this terrible situation for David? The answer to that question is the phrase in verse fourteen “them that hate me.” Hatred is a terrible thing. It can cause great suffering to those that are the object of it. But David knew what every believer should know: just pray to the Lord about it and the Lord can deliver us from any trouble, even from hatred.

The Bible says in Psalm 69:16, “Hear me, O LORD; for thy lovingkindness is good: turn unto me according to the multitude of thy tender mercies.” David knew God. David knew what God was really like. And so David spoke of God’s “lovingkindness” and “tender mercies.” If you believe these things about Jesus, it will be much easier to take your prayer requests to Him knowing that He will help and intervene and rescue you. “Lovingkindness” is a great word. Kindness generated by love for you. The words “tender mercies” are great also. God is the most powerful of all beings, and yet He is the most gentle of all. There is so much to learn and enjoy about the great eternal God.

The Bible says in Psalm 69:17-19, “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.[19] Thou hast known my reproach, and my shame, and my dishonour: mine adversaries are all before thee.” God is a God who hides Himself. He is invisible. We do not see Him, and so like David we ask that He would make Himself known by intervening in the times of trouble. David was in trouble because of his enemies. We have spiritual enemies. Instead of taking things into our own hands, we turn to the Lord and ask for His help. That is the best way to handle enemies. Jesus knows what they need, we do not. Also, our enemies are too powerful for us. We are weak. We need what only God can do. God sees them and knows them: God knows how He wants to use them to glorify His name. Some of these enemies might get saved, some will wait unto the judgment when they will be brought on their knees before Christ, and some will have a swift judgment now. Only God knows what is His will for each one.

The Bible says in Psalm 69:20-21, “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.” This what Jesus suffered when He died on the cross. It says in Matthew 27:33-35, “And when they were come unto a place called Golgotha, that is to say, a place of a skull,[34] They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink.[35] And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots.” According to verse twenty, you could say that Jesus died of a broken heart. He was paying the price for every single sin of every person who has ever lived in the world. He was deserted and alone in His sufferings. The Father in Heaven also had to condemn Him because of all the sins that were on Jesus. Jesus said in verse twenty that there was “none” to comfort him or take pity on him. Jesus suffered for you.

The Bible says in Psalm 69:22-28, “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.” What is described in these verses is the fate of all those who reject Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Verse twenty-two speaks of failure for the unbelievers. Their daily plans will not work ultimately. When you realize that hell awaits them, then surely that means things will not end well.

Verse twenty-three says that their eyes will “be darkened.” It is a blessing to have the light of Christ shine into your soul. Those who do not turn to Christ will stay in darkness forever.

Verse twenty-four speaks of the “wrathful anger” of God. God is angry with the wicked every day. It says in Romans 1:18, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;” There is only one escape from the wrath of the holy God: Jesus the Savior.

But God does not want anyone to perish. Jesus wants everyone to be saved and to dwell in paradise with Him forever. That fact can be seen in the statement in verse twenty-eight: “Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous.” Something similar is mentioned concerning the last judgment that says in Revelation 3:5, “He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.” It also says in Revelation 22:19, “And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.” And so it appears that God puts everyone’s name in the book of life when they are conceived, and their name only comes out of the book later if and when they totally and knowingly reject the Lord Jesus Christ. God wants people to be saved really badly. God does everything that He can to reserve a place in heaven for everyone. But God does give a free choice to everyone also. In the end if someone has hardened their heart and finally decided to reject Jesus the Son of God, their name will be taken out of the book of life, and they will not have eternal life, and they will not enter into heaven. That is why we hope and pray for everyone to make the right choice and turn to Jesus so that they will be saved and so that their names will stay in the book of life.

The Bible says in Psalm 69:29, “But I am poor and sorrowful: let thy salvation, O God, set me up on high.” When David said that he was “poor,” he was not talking about his financial condition. He was probably talking about the fact that at the moment he was not seeing any spiritual victories. Enemies were on every hand and they were afflicting him. That is why he was “sorrowful.” David’s prayer was that his “salvation” would set him “up on high.” God can do what we cannot do. God can give the victory in any situation if He chooses to save us from that situation.

The Bible says in Psalm 69:30-36, “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 everything 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.” In the previous verses David had prayed for help. Because David put everything in God’s hands, the burden was lifted from David’s shoulders, and he was able to “praise the name of God with a song” and David was able to be thankful. David praised God “with a song.” One of the values of going to a good church service is that you sing the songs of Zion there with the other believers. When you do sing a Christian song, make sure your heart is dedicating it to the Lord. You are singing to praise His name.

In verse thirty-one the message is very clear: praising God and being thankful to God is more important to Him than any sacrifice we could give Him. God wants our heart. It does not take money to serve God. It only takes our heart. That is why it says in Romans 10:9, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”

If you learn to praise God’s name and serve Him in your heart, you will be a testimony not only to the lost souls around you, but also to other believers who need to be encouraged and who need an example to follow. That is why it says in verse thirty-two: “The humble shall see this, and be glad.”

The last phrase of verse thirty-two says, “your heart shall live that seek God.” Once again this shows the importance of the “heart” which speaks of what is going on inside of you. You must “seek God.” Jesus said, “Seek and ye shall find.” Therefore, anyone who has not found Jesus is demonstrating one clear truth: they are not seeking God. Once you find God through faith in Christ, you will find out what true life really is. Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life…”

The first part of verse thirty-three says, “the LORD heareth the poor.” Jesus said something very similar. Jesus said in Matthew 5:3, “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for their’s is the kingdom of heaven.” This is talking about a spiritual poverty. You will come to Jesus if you realize that you are poor: that you are missing the Spirit and you need help in your soul. It is interesting that the last part of verse thirty-three says that God “despiseth not his prisoners.” God looks down from heaven at people and God sees a bunch of prisoners: prisoners to sin, prisoners to selfishness, prisoners to the ideas of the world, prisoners to false religion, prisoners to greed, prisoners to sex, prisoners to guilt, prisoners to their past, prisoners to fear. It is not just those in a jail cell who are prisoners. No wonder that Jesus said, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.”

Because God has such mercy and compassion and love for us all that He demonstrated by sending Jesus to die in our place so that we could go to heaven, it says in verse thirty-four of Psalm 69, “Let the heaven and earth praise him, the seas, and everything that moveth therein.” If we are thinking the things that we should think about God, then we will have every reason to always praise Him every moment of every day. It says in First Thessalonians 5:18, “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”

In Psalm 69:35-36 David looked to the future and was thankful about what he knew that God would do for Jerusalem and for Israel. How did David know that Israel would have a wonderful future? David knew what the Bible says regarding God’s promises. God promised Abraham that God would make a great nation from Abraham’s seed, and God always keeps His promises. God promises eternal life for those who have been born-again through faith in Christ. Every believer has a wonderful future. We will be happier if we think about that future.

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