Psalms 86:1-17

Psalms 86

DESCRIPTIVE TITLE

Prayer of a Tried and Faithful Servant of Jehovah.

ANALYSIS

The Psalmist prays to be Heard and Answered and for his Life to be Preserved because of his Need (Psalms 86:1), his Devotion and Trust (Psalms 86:2), his Pleading (Psalms 86:3-4), Adonai's Goodness (Psalms 86:5-6), and Incomparable Character and Doings (Psalms 86:8); which are So Great that All Nations will Come and Worship (Psalms 86:9-10). Pleading for Guidance, he Promises Praise (Psalms 86:11-12) and Bethinks him of a Past Rescue of His Life (Psalms 86:13), which (life) seems to be Again in Danger from Insolent Foes (Psalms 86:14): in view of whom he Pleads the Character of Jehovah as set forth in THE REFRAIN of the Bible (Psalms 86:15). He prays for Favour, Strength and Salvation, in view of his own Devotion and that of his Mother (Psalms 86:16); asking for Such a Token as shall Shame his Enemies (Psalms 86:17).

(Lm.) PrayerBy David.

1

Incline Jehovah thine ear, answer me;

for humbled and needy am I.[202]

[202] Cp. Psalms 40:17, Psalms 70:5, Psalms 109:22: all ascribed, To David.

2

Oh guard thou my life,[203] for a man of kindness[204] am I,

[203] U.: soul.
[204] Heb. hasidh=receiving and reflecting kindness. One whom thou lovestKp., Per.; GodlyDr., Del.; PiousBr., Leeser, P.B.; Devoted to theeCarter. N.B., no psalmist elsewhere makes this claim. Cp. Intro, Chap. III., Kindness.

save thy servant thou my Godwho turneth his trust unto thee.

3

Shew me favour Sovereign Lord,[205]

[205] Heb. adonai; and sorendered Sovereign Lordseven times in this psalm; Jehovah occurs four times. But here some cod. (w. 5 ear. pr. edns.): thee JehovahGn.

for unto thee do I cry all the day:

4

Rejoice the soul of thy servant,

for unto thee Sovereign Lord my soul do I lift.

5

For thou Sovereign Lord[206] art good and ready to pardon,

[206] Some cod.: thou JehovahGn.

and abundant in kindness to all who cry unto thee.

6

O give ear Jehovah unto my prayer,

and oh attend unto the voice of my supplications.

7

In my day of distress I cry unto thee,

surely thou wilt answer me.

8

There is none like unto thee among messengers divine[207] Sovereign Lord,

[207] Or: gods. But see Psalms 8:5. Heb. -'elohim.

and there are none like thy works.[208]

[208] Or: doings.

9

All nations which thou hast made

will come in and bow down before thee Sovereign Lord,[209]

[209] Cp. Psalms 22:27.

and give glory to thy name;

10

For great art thou and a doer of wondrous things,

thou art God alone.

11

Shew me Jehovah thy way, I would walk in thy truth:

let my heart rejoice[210] to revere thy name:

[210] So it shd. be (w. Sep., Syr., Vul.)Gn. Cp. O.G. 402. M.T.: Unite my heart: i.e., concentrate its energies. But Sep., Syr., with other vowels, have, Let my heart rejoiceDr.

12

I would thank thee Sovereign Lord my God with all my heart,

and would fain glorify thy name to the ages.

13

For thy kindness is great over me,

and thou hast rescued my soul from the lower hades.[211]

[211] The lowest part of the interior of the earthDel. The nether SheolDr. The nethermost SheolKp.

14

O God, insolent men have risen up against me,

and a congregation of ruthless men[212] have sought my soul,[213]

[212] Cp. Psalms 54:3.

[213] Or: life; but the word is nephesh, as in Psalms 86:13.

and have not set thee before them.

15

But thou Sovereign Lord art a God compassionate and gracious,

slow to anger and abundant in kindness and truth.[214]

[214] Cp. Exodus 34:6-7. The Refrain of the BibleEmp. Bible.

16

Turn thou unto me and be gracious unto me:

oh give thy strength unto thy servant,

and oh bring salvation to the son of thy handmaid.[215]

[215] Cp. Psalms 116:16.

17

Work with me a token[216] for good,

[216] Or: sign.

that they who hate me may see and be put to shame,
in that thou Jehovah hast helped me and consoled me.

(CMm.) For the sons of korah.[217]

[217] Intro., Chap. II., 3.

PARAPHRASE

Psalms 86

Bend down and hear my prayer, O Lord, and answer me, for I am deep in trouble.
2 Protect me from death, for I try to follow all Your laws. Save me, for I am serving You and trusting You.
3 Be merciful, O Lord, for I am looking up to You in constant hope.
4 Give me happiness, O Lord, for I worship only You.
5 O Lord, You are so good and kind, so ready to forgive; so full of mercy for all who ask Your aid.
6 Listen closely to my prayer, O God. Hear my urgent cry.
7 I will call to You whenever trouble strikes, and You will help me.
8 Where among the heathen gods is there a God like You? Where are their miracles?
9 All the nationsand You made each onewill come and bow before You, Lord, and praise Your great and holy name.
10 For You are great, and do great miracles. You alone are God.
11 Tell me where You want me to go and I will go there. May every fiber of my being unite in reverence to Your name.
12 With all my heart I will praise You. I will give glory to Your name forever,
13 For You love me so much! And You are constantly so kind! And You have rescued me from deepest hell.
14 O God, proud and insolent men defy me; violent, godless men are trying to kill me.
15 But You are merciful and gentle, Lord, slow in getting angry, full of constant lovingkindness and of truth;
16 So look down in pity and grant strength to Your servant and save me.
17 Send me a sign of Your favor. When those who hate me see it they will lose face because You help and comfort me.

EXPOSITION

By the general consent of critics, this psalm is composite to such a degree as nearly to resolve itself into a mosaic, consisting of extracts from other scriptures; yet even this psalm is not without a significance and beauty of its ownDel. The psalmist is in a situation bearing considerable resemblance to that of David when persecuted by Saul. In other respects his position is like that of Hezekiah. The psalm is peculiar in having in it no fewer than seven occurrences of the Divine name Adonai, here rendered Sovereign Lord (as in Psalms 8:1; Psalms 8:9). It is notably distinguished by containing a prophecy of the gathering of all nations to worship. Although it takes note of mortal perils past and to come, there is a complete absence from it of pleadings for vengeance: the worst thing this wronged saint desires for his enemies is that they may be put to shame.

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

1.

Please notice the number of references to other psalms: twenty psalms are laid under contribution in the formation of this psalmalso references from Exodus, Deuteronomy, Isaiah, and Jeremiah. This is a prayer. What does it teach us as to the wording of our prayers?

2.

Consider this prayer as divided into four parts; (1) Psalms 86:1-5; (2) Psalms 86:6-10; (3) Psalms 86:11-13; (4) Psalms 86:15-17. Each is a petition: following the petition is a reason for answer based on a tribute of God. Find them and incorporate them into life and prayer.

3.

This prayer is full of the Lord; He is mentioned 16 times. It is also full of the psalmist or Davidhe mentions himself 35 times. How shall we reconcile this thought?

4.

Unite my heart to fear thy name(Psalms 86:11). What a tragic loss is a divided heart. The heart is: will, conscience, emotions and intellect.