From Sorrow to Salvation (Psalm 69)
From David to God Above: Psalm 69 in Its Original Setting
Sorrows overwhelm us from time to time—so many, that they seem to be a sea. David was almost drowning in them when he wrote Psalm 69, his lifeline to heaven to pull him safely back up? (cf. Ps 69:29).
He startles us with an immediate cry, “Save me, O God!” (Ps 69:1). He then points out the waters, the mire, the deep, and the flood that are at his neck and sometimes over his head (Ps 69:1b–2). This cry is not his first—he is weary with a parched throat and tired eyes, watching and waiting for God (Ps 69:3). Making his metaphor clear, David gives detail to his dilemma: a vast number of enemies seek to destroy, deceive, and defraud him (Ps 69:4). What will David do?
David pleads his innocence—these troubles are not deserved. He calls to God who knows his every sin (Ps 69:5). If David had sinned, God’s people would suffer at large (69:6). It is for God’s sake that David knows shame, dishonor, and reproach, even from his family (Ps 69:7). His reproach is not for his own ambitions but his zeal for the temple, his Father’s house (Ps 69:9). Drunkards and others turned David’s weeping, fasting, sackcloth, and other habits involved in his temple worship into insults and sinful songs (Ps 69:10–12).
But as for David, he cries out to God again—“answer me” (Ps 69:13, 16, 17). In God’s time, according to His character, David knew salvation would come (Ps 69:13). David would see deliverance from the mire, the waters, the flood, the deep, the pit, distress, and foes (Ps 69:13–18). The Lord would draw near, redeem, and ransom David and rescue him from the flood.
David then lists what God already knew—the several sins of his foes. Not only had they broken his heart and plunged him into despair, they had also given him poison and sour wine when he asked for pity and comfort (Ps 69:19–21). They had rejected their chance to redeem themselves, and David could only hand them over to God. David prayed for God’s utter destruction of his enemies, ending with them in hell (Ps 69:22–28).
As for David, his final cry captures all that has gone before: “But I am afflicted and in pain; let your salvation, O God, set me on high!” (Ps 69:29). Knowing salvation will come, David plans to worship again (Ps 69:30–33). He will sing and give thanks in the presence of those who seek God. Better than a sacrifice of an ox or a bull, the king’s praise will revive and make glad the humble and needy as they know that God hears His own. In David’s day or another after Judah had been torn down, all could praise God above for their deliverance and dwelling with Him (Ps 69:34–36).
From David to Christ in the New Testament: Quotations of Psalm 69
David’s experience in Psalm 69 would be lived out by Christ (though not every detail; cf. Ps 69:5). The New Testament quotes Psalm 69 time and again with reference to His life.
Jesus had zeal for His Father’s house and therefore cleared the temple (John 2:18; cf. Ps 69:9a). Jesus was hated without a cause (John 15:25; cf. Ps 69:4). Jesus bore our reproaches in pleasing the Father above (Rom 15:3; cf. Ps 69:9b). Jesus thirsted and was given sour wine (John 19:28–29; cf. Ps 69:21). Jesus had an enemy in Judas whose resting place became desolate, a field of blood for the dead (Acts 1:20; cf. Ps 69:25; Matt 27:5–8). Jesus had an enemy in Israel whose trust in the law was a snare and trap, leading to retribution (Rom 11:9–10; cf. Ps 69:22–23).
But whereas David found deliverance before his death (cf. Ps 69:30–33), Christ knew His deliverance would be thereafter—His resurrection from the grave and final victory one day. He bore our reproaches in full so that we could have life with him. He has prepared for us a heavenly city in which we shall dwell forever (Heb 11:16; Rev 21–22; cf. Ps 69:34–36).
From Christ to You and Me: Applying Psalm 69 to Today
We, too, drown in sorrows from time to time and cry out with David, “Save me, O God!” (Ps 69:1). Knowing that Jesus Himself faced these sorrows and cried out to the Father as well (cf. Heb 5:7–10), we can also know He sympathizes with us and gives us mercy and grace for our needs (Heb 4:14–16). Our greatest need is salvation, and Christ bore the reproach for our sins, knowing every one (Ps 69:5, 7; Rom 15:3).
Sometimes our sorrows come from enemies at large, or like David and Jesus, among our own and in our homes (Ps 69:9; John 1:11; 7:5). We should love them still and be ready to forgive them (Matt 5:43–45; Luke 23:34; Rom 12:14–21). If they are fixed on a path to destruction, we pray that God (not us) would bring vengeance to uphold the honor of His name (Rom 12:19; cf. Gal 1:8–9).
However much we drown in our sorrows, God can save us from them all. Even in the midst of pain, deliverance will come. Cry out with David, “I am afflicted and in pain; let your salvation, God, set me on high!” (Ps 69:29). And when salvation comes, praise God in song and magnify Him with thanks—the humble will be glad, and those who seek Him will be revived (Ps 69:30, 32). God has heard you, and you will dwell with Him forever (Ps 69:33–36; Rev 21–22).
David Huffstutler is the pastor of First Baptist Church in Rockford, IL. He blogs here, where this article first appeared. It is republished here by permission.