Psalms 109:1-31

Psalms 107:150

Gordon Churchyard

A Man With Trouble

Psalms 109

Jesus said, "You will be happy when people are not kind to you and do bad things to you. You will be happy because you love me, even when they say many bad things about you that are not true" (Matthew 5:11).

Psalms 109

(This is) a psalm of David for the (music) leader.

v1 (You are) the God that I *praise.
Let me hear you speak!

v2 (Do something) because bad men and *liars say bad things about me.
They say things about me that are not true.

v3 Their words of *hate are all round me.
Also, they attack me without a reason.

v4 I love them and pray for them.
But they *accuse me.

v5 I do good things for them, but they pay me back with bad things.
I love them, but they hate me.

v6 Put an *evil man against (my enemy).
Also, make somebody stand by his right hand (side) to *accuse him.

v7 Make him be *guilty at his *trial.
And make his words show that he has done wrong things.

v8 Make his life a short one
and let somebody else be leader (instead of him).

v9 Make his children have no father
and make his wife a *widow.

v10 Make his children go from place to place, asking for money.
Destroy their home and send them away (from it).

v11 Make the lender of money take everything that he had.
And let strangers get everything that he worked for.

v12 Do not let anybody be kind to him.
Do not let anybody be kind to the children that he has left without a father.

v13 I pray that you will destroy everyone in his family after him.
I want people that live later never to know the names (of his family)!

v14 I want the *LORD to remember the bad things that his *fathers did.
I do not want the *LORD to clean away his mother’s *sins.

v15 I want the *LORD always to remember these (bad things)
and people on earth never to remember his family.

v16 (Do this, Lord)
because he (my enemy) did not remember to be kind (to people).
Instead, he was not kind to them.
He killed people that were poor.
(He killed) people that needed (many things).
(He killed) people that had nobody to give them help.

v17 He loved to say bad things about people;
(so I want) bad things to happen to him!
He did not like to say good things about people;
(so I want) nobody to say good things about him!

v18 He said bad things (about people) as often as he put on clothes.
(I want these bad things) to go into his body as the water (that he drinks).
(I want them) to go into his bones like oil.

v19 Then (the bad things that he says) will cover him like his clothes.
They will cover him like the belt that he wears every day.

v20 This is how (I want) the *LORD to pay the people that *accuse me.
(They are) the people that say bad things about me.

v21 But you are my *LORD and master.
Give me help, because of your name!
Save me, because you are good and you love me.

v22 Save me because I am poor and need (many things).
My *heart inside me is hurting.

v23 I am dying, as a shadow at evening.
I am like an insect that (the wind) blows away.

v24 My knees are weak because I am not eating (food).
My body is thin and not fat (as it was).

v25 The people that see me just laugh at me!
They *shake their heads (at me).

v26 My *LORD and Master, send me help!
Because of your kind love, save me!

v27 Make everybody know, *LORD, that you have done something!

v28 When they say bad things (about me), you will say good things (about me).
When they attack me, they will be ashamed.
Then your servant will be very happy!

v29 The people that *accuse me will have *shame all round them.
It will be all round them as their clothes are all round them.
It will be all round them like a coat.

v30 My mouth will say that the *LORD is very great!
I will *praise him in front of a big crowd of people.

v31 He stands at the right hand (side) of the people that need (help).
He saves the life of (the man) that people are attacking.
(That is why I will *praise him.)

The Story of Psalms 109

This is one of the Psalms of Imprecation. You say an imprecation when you ask God for something bad to happen to your enemies. Other Psalms of Imprecation include Psalms 35 and 69. Read the notes in Psalms 69 for help to understand them.

Perhaps David wrote Psalms 109. Perhaps someone else was the *psalmist (the person that wrote the psalm). Then the *psalmist put it with David’s psalms. Whoever wrote it, the *psalmist had trouble. People were saying bad things about him, and attacking him. They did this by saying bad things about him. The *psalmist loved them and prayed for them, (verses 1-5). But they still said these bad things. Then, in verses 6-20, the *psalmist prays for bad things to happen to the leader of these people. Perhaps he meant all of his enemies, not just their leader. In verses 21-31, the *psalmist prays to God for help.

If David wrote Psalms 109, maybe other people changed it later. They did this when new enemies and problems came. Perhaps the last changes happened to the psalm 500 years after David died!

What Psalms 109 means

The *psalmist is speaking to "the God that I *praise", (verse 1). "*Praise God" means "tell God that he is great". But the *psalmist wants God to answer him. He means that he wants God to do something about his, the *psalmist's, troubles. These include:

• liars (people who say things that are not true). See verse 2.

• people that hate him; "hate" means the opposite of "love". See verse 3.

• people that attack him without a reason, (verse 3).

• people that *accuse him; "*accuse" means "say that he did something wrong".

The word "*accuse" is important. It comes 4 times in Psalms 109, in verses 4, 6, 20 and 29. Verse 6 starts the second part of the psalm. It ends at verse 20. In his mind, the *psalmist sees a picture. He sees a Court of Law. This is a place where a trial happens. A trial happens after the police catch someone. They ask a *judge to decide if that person did something wrong. If they did wrong, then they are guilty. They have not obeyed the rules of their country, or they have "broken the law". Then the *judge punishes them. They may pay a fine (money). Or they go to prison, or someone with authority executes (kills) them.

In verse 6, the *psalmist prays that an *evil (very bad) man is the *judge. Someone must stand at the right hand side of the *psalmist’s enemy to *accuse him. What he (the man that accuses) says will show that he (the *psalmist's enemy) has done wrong, (verse 7). Then the *judge will *punish him, (verses 8-19). The *judge decides that someone must kill him. So his life is short, (verse 8). This means that his children have no father and his wife is a widow, (has no husband), (verse 9).

The *psalmist prays that nobody will remember his enemy’s family. This includes the people that came after him, (verse 13). And it includes everybody that lived before him, (verse 14). "Fathers" in this verse means "grandfathers" and "father’s grandfathers" and so on. "*Sins" are when we do not obey God’s rules.

In verse 14, and 5 other verses in the psalm, there is the word *LORD. This translates the Hebrew word "Yahweh". Hebrew is the language that the *psalmist spoke. Yahweh is a special name for God. God has agreed to give his people kind love if they love and obey him. That is what Yahweh means. When people agree like this, we call it a "*covenant". So, *LORD is the *covenant name for God.

We may think that what the *psalmist wanted for his enemy was bad. Maybe we are right. But verses 16-18 tell us that this enemy was a really bad, or *evil, man. One day, God will *punish (or hurt) people that are really bad. Read 2 Thessalonians 2 to find out what Paul says about this! The important thing to remember is this: God will *punish bad people; we do not *punish them. The *psalmist prays that the bad things that his enemy does will also happen to him. The oil in verse 18 is not motor oil, but the oil from a fruit called the *olive. People use it today to cook with.

But the word "*accuse" is interesting. In Hebrew it is "*satan". That is why we call the *Devil "*Satan". He accuses us to God. He tells God about the bad things that we do. Then he hopes that God will *punish us. There is a picture of this in Zechariah 3. But the last part of the psalm, (verses 21-31), tells us something else. There is someone else who will stand by our right hand. It is the *LORD, (verses 30-31). In the *New Testament, we call the *LORD by the name "Jesus". We should pray the words of verse 21. Then Jesus will save us when *Satan accuses us! "Because of your name" means "because of what people believe that you can do".

Verses 22-25 tell us that the *psalmist is ill. He is hurting inside, (verse 22). He thinks that he is dying. He thinks that he is like a shadow that goes when the sun goes down. He is like an insect called a locust. People just blow them away as the wind does. He does not eat. So he is weak and he becomes thin, (verse 24). Maybe this means he is "fasting" (not eating to make God answer him when he prays). People just laugh and shake their heads (or "move their heads from side to side"), (verse 25).

But the *psalmist prays for help, (verse 26). He wants everybody to know that God has done something, (verse 27). God will do good things for the *psalmist, verse 28 and make his enemies feel ashamed. Their "shame" in verse 29 is when they "feel ashamed". They cannot get away from this feeling. It is all round them like their clothes are all round them! But the *psalmist ("your servant") feels very happy, verse 28. He will say that the *LORD is very great. He will *praise him, (verse 30).

Something to do

1. Study the notes on Psalms of Imprecation in Psalms 69 of this set of psalms.

2. Read Zechariah 3. Zechariah was a *prophet that lived in 500 BC (500 years before Jesus came to the earth). Maybe the *psalmist finished Psalms 109 while Zechariah prophesied. A *prophet tells people what God is saying. We say that he ‘prophesies’ while he does this. Zechariah 3 is at the end of these notes.

3. Peter repeats words from Psalms 109 in Acts 1:20. Which verse of Psalms 109 does Peter repeat?

4. Learn to say verse 21 of Psalms 109 by *heart. This means that you can say them without looking at the words. Pray them to God. Really mean what you say!

Zechariah Chapter 3

v​1 *He showed me Joshua, the leader of God’s servants. He was standing before the *angel of the *LORD. *Satan was standing at his right hand (side) to attack him.

v​2 And the *LORD said to *Satan, "The *LORD says that you are wrong, *Satan. The *LORD that chose Jerusalem says that you are wrong. Is not this a piece of wood saved from burning?"

v​3 Now Joshua wore *filthy clothes. He stood in front of the *angel.

v​4 And he answered. He spoke to the people who were standing in front of him.

"Take away his *filthy clothes", he said.

And he spoke to him (Joshua).

"Look, I have made all your *sins to go away from you. And I will change all your clothes for you", he said.

v​5 I spoke. "Make them put a clean hat on his head. Make them put (clean) clothes on him", I said.

And the *angel of the *LORD stood near (me).

v​6 The *angel of the *LORD spoke to Joshua:

v​7 "The *LORD of the armies (of *heaven) speaks to you. 'If you will walk in my ways, and do what I tell you to do, then you will be a *judge in my *house', he says. 'You will be a leader in my *courts. And I will give you a place to walk by those that stand (near me).

v​8 Listen now, Joshua the leader of God's servants. And listen, the people that are with you. All of you are asking what I will do. I will send my servant (called) the *BRANCH.

v​9 Look at the *stone that I have put in front of Joshua. That stone will have seven eyes. I will write words on it', says the *LORD of the armies (of *heaven). 'I will take away the *sin of that land in one day.

v​10 In that day', says the *LORD of the armies (of *heaven) 'you will call every man (a friend) that lives near you. (They will sit) under your trees that grow *grapes and *figs'."

Notes:

Verse 1: "He" is maybe an *angel. An *angel is a special servant of God that lives with God in *heaven.

Verse 3: "*Filthy" means "very, very dirty".

Verse 5: "I" is Zechariah.

Verse 7: "*Heaven" is the home of God. We do not know where it is. "My house" is the *temple of God in Jerusalem. A *temple is a large building. The courts are not courts of law, as in psalm 109. They are places round the *temple in Jerusalem where people could go. Only God’s special servants called "*priests" could go into the *temple itself. Joshua was the most important *priest.

Verses 8 and 9: The BRANCH and the stone are names for God’s *Messiah. We call him Jesus.

Verse 10: Grapes and figs are fruits. They grow on trees.

Hebrew ~ the language that the Jews spoke; they wrote the Psalms in Hebrew.
praise ~ to say how great someone is; or, words that say how great someone is.
hate ~ the opposite of love.
accuse ~ suggest that someone has done something wrong.
evil ~ very, very bad.
guilty ~ done something wrong.
widow ~ woman whose husband is dead.
Lord ~ a name for God; it means he has authority, or "master"; It is the word "Adonai" in Hebrew. Look also at LORD below.
LORD ~ a special name for God that his people use. It is the covenant name of God. In Hebrew it is Yahweh or Jehovah. Look after Psalm 25 in Book 1 of the Psalms of David for more about the names of God.
lord ~ someone with authority.
LORD ~ the covenant name for God (in a covenant you agree with someone).
Hebrew ~ the language that the Jews spoke; they wrote the Psalms in Hebrew.
covenant ~ two people have agreed what each should do (here, God and his people). Look in Psalm 120 about the covenant.
Yahweh ~ the covenant name for God. Most Bibles translate it LORD with 4 capital letters. It means something like "I am" or "always alive".
Jehovah ~ how some languages say Yahweh, one of the names of God in Hebrew.
fathers ~ in the Old Testament it often means grandfathers and great-grandfathers and so on.
sin ~ not obeying God; or what you do when you do not obey God.
heart ~ (in Hebrew poems), "heart" means "mind", the part of us that thinks.
heart ~ part of the body. Jews believed that you thought in your heart.
poem ~ using words in a special (often very beautiful) way.
Jew ~ a person who is born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children; a person who has the faith of the Jews, called Judaism.
faith ~ belief in someone or something; in the Psalms, belief in God.
shake ~ move from one side to another and back again very fast many times.
shame ~ a bad feeling when we have done wrong.
psalmist ~ the person that wrote a psalm (or psalms).
praise ~ to say how great someone is; or, words that say how great someone is.
judge ~ a judge says who is right and who is wrong; or, to say who is right and who is wrong.
punish ~ hurt someone because they have not obeyed the rules.
sin ~ not obeying God; or what you do when you do not obey God.
covenant ~ two people have agreed what each should do (here, God and his people). Look in Psalm 120 about the covenant.
olive ~ a fruit.
Satan ~ the leader of the bad spirits. He is also called the Devil and Lucifer.
spirits ~ they are alive, but we cannot see them. Good spirits are usually called angels. Bad spirits do not live in heaven now, but in the air round us. Satan is their leader. They are also called evil spirits, or demons.
angel ~ spirit that lives in heaven with God.
heaven ~ the home of God.
spirit ~ this part of us lives when our body dies.
Devil ~ another name for Satan who is the worst evil spirit and the enemy of God.
Satan ~ the leader of the bad spirits. He is also called the Devil and Lucifer.
spirits ~ they are alive, but we cannot see them. Good spirits are usually called angels. Bad spirits do not live in heaven now, but in the air round us. Satan is their leader. They are also called evil spirits, or demons.
angel ~ spirit that lives in heaven with God.
heaven ~ the home of God.
spirit ~ this part of us lives when our body dies.'New Testament ~ the last part of the Bible, which the writers wrote after the life of Jesus. It is about the things that Jesus did and taught. It is also about what Christians believe and do.
prophet ~ someone who prophesies.
prophesy ~ tell people what God thinks and will do.
angel ~ spirit that lives in heaven with God.
spirit ~ this part of us lives when our body dies.
heaven ~ the home of God.
filthy ~ very, very dirty.
heaven ~ the home of God.
courts ~ places outside the temple.
temple ~ a place where people meet to worship God.
grapes ~ the fruit of a plant called the vine. People use them to make drink that has alcohol in it. The drink is wine.
filthy ~ very, very dirty.
heaven ~ the home of God.
temple ~ a place where people meet to worship God.
priest ~ a servant of God in his temple.
temple ~ a place where people meet to worship God.
Messiah ~ in the Old Testament, the anointed king. In the New Testament, Jesus. The word messiah is Hebrew for anointed.
anointed ~ with (olive) oil poured on.
Hebrew ~ the language that the Jews spoke; they wrote the Psalms in Hebrew.
olive ~ a fruit.