Psalm 71

Psalms 71:1

“In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust,.... The Targum is, "in thy Word;'' See Gill on Psa 31:1; let me never be put to confusion; or "be ashamed"; see the note as before.”

Psalms 71:2-3

"Deliver me in your righteousness and rescue me; incline your ear to me and deliver me." When he says "in your righteousness," he seeks divine mercy. In other words it pertains to his righteousness to spare a suppliant. For thus it pleased his righteousness to …

Psalms 71:2

“Deliver me in thy righteousness,.... By it, or "for the sake of it" (q); See Gill on Psa 31:1; and cause me to escape; present danger, and out of the hands of enemies, as well as wrath to come, and eternal death; which nothing but the righteousness of God can deliver from, or cause to escape; incline thine ear unto me; or "bow it"; See Gill on Psa 31:2; and save me; out of all troubles and afflictions, and from wicked and unreasonable men. (q) בצדקתך "propter justitiam tuam", Pagninus, Piscator; so Schmidt.”

Psalms 71:3

“Be thou my strong habitation,.... This is very appropiately said, when David was driven out of his dwelling place, and palace at Jerusalem, by his son, as Kimchi observes.”

Psalms 71:3

“DAVID, in his younger days, had been obliged to hide himself away with his followers in the great caverns and rocks of his native land. In the cave of Adullam, by the rocks of the wild goats, he had dwelt amid the most stern surroundings of Nature. No doubt he had climbed aloft upon the mountain's side and then had penetrated into one cave after another and treated them as chambers of his house of rock.”

Psalms 71:4

“Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked. God is on the same side with us, and those who are our enemies are also his, for they are wicked; therefore will the Lord surely rescue his own confederates, and he will not suffer the evil to triumph over the just. He who addresses such a prayer as this to heaven, does more injury to his enemies than if he had turned a battery of Armstrongs upon them. Out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.”

Psalms 71:5

“For thou art my hope, O Lord God,.... The object, ground, and foundation of it, even of present deliverance, and of future and eternal salvation; thou art my trust from my youth; in whom he trusted in his youthful days, of which there is an eminent instance in 1Sa 17:33.”

Psalms 71:5

“For thou art my hope, O Lord God. God who gives us grace to hope in him, will assuredly fulfil our hope, and, therefore, we may plead it in prayer. His name is "Jehovah, the hope of Israel" (Jer 17:13); and, as he cannot be a false or failing hope, we may expect to see our confidence justified. Thou art my trust from my youth.”

Psalms 71:6

“By thee have I been holden up from the womb. Before he was able to understand the power which preserved him, he was sustained by it. God knows us before we know anything. The elect of old lay in the bosom of God before they were laid on their mothers' bosoms; and when their infantile weakness had no feet strong enough to carry it, the Lord upheld it. We do well to reflect upon divine goodness to us in childhood, for it is full of food for gratitude. Thou art he that took me out of my mother's bowels.”

Psalms 71:7

“I am as a wonder unto many. "To thousand eyes a mark and gaze am I." The saints are men wondered at; often their dark side is gloomy even to amazement, while their bright side is glorious even to astonishment. The believer is a riddle, an enigma puzzling the unspiritual; he is a monster warring with those delights of the flesh, which are the all in all of other men; he is a prodigy, unaccountable to the judgments of ungodly men; a wonder gazed at, feared, and, by and by, contemptuously derided. Few understand us, many are surprised at us.”

Psalms 71:9

“The fourth judgment of God is the judgment of abandonment, namely when God abandons man and exposes him to every temptation and sin. "When my strength shall fail, do not forsake me, O Lord. Depart not from me." It is a great peril when a …”

Psalms 71:9

“Cast me not off in the time of old age. David was not tired of his Master, and his only fear was lest his Master should be tired of him. The Amalekite in the Bible history left his Egyptian servant to famish when he grew old and sick, but not so the Lord of saints; even to hoar hairs he bears and carries us. Alas for us, if we were abandoned by our God, as many a courtier has been by his prince!”

Psalms 71:10

“For mine enemies speak against, me,.... Or "say unto me" (y) what is expressed in the following verse, "God hath forsaken him"; and so these words are a reason of the above petitions: or "mine enemies speak to me"; or "of me" (z); not good, but evil, and so the Targum paraphrases it, "for mine enemies speak evil against me;'' or concerning me.”

Psalms 71:10

“For mine enemies speak against me. Dogs howl over a dying lion. When David's arm was able to chastise his foes, they were yet impudent enough to slander him, and he fears that now they will take fresh license in the hour of his weakness. The text most properly means that his enemies had said that God would forsake him; and, therefore, he is the more earnest that the Lord's faithful dealings may give them the lie. And they that lay wait for my soul take counsel together.”

Psalms 71:11

“Saying, God hath forsaken him,.... Good men may seem to others to be forsaken of God; and they themselves may sometimes think they are; and they may be forsaken for a small moment, when God withdraws his gracious presence, or does not afford immediate help; but never finally and totally.”

Psalms 71:11

“Saying, God hath forsaken him. O bitter taunt! There is no worse arrow in all the quivers of hell. Our Lord felt this barbed shaft, and it is no marvel if his disciples feel the same. Were this exclamation the truth, it were indeed an ill day for us; but, glory be to God, it is a barefaced lie. Persecute and take him. Let loose the dogs of persecution upon him, seize him, worry him, for there is none to deliver him. Down with him, for he has no friends.”

Psalms 71:12

“O God, be not far from me. Nearness to God is our conscious security. A child in the dark is comforted by grasping its father's hand. O my God, make haste for my help. To call God ours, as having entered into covenant with us, is a mighty plea in prayer, and a great stay to our faith. The cry of "make haste" has occurred many times in this portion of the Psalms, and it was evoked by the sore pressure of affliction. Sharp sorrows soon put an end to procrastinating prayers.”

Psalms 71:13

“And very insolent they were in their deportment: They say, God has forsaken him; persecute and take him. Here their premises are utterly false, that because a good man was in great trouble and had continued long in it, and was not so soon delivered as perhaps he expected, therefore God had forsaken him and would have no more to do with him.”

Psalms 71:14

“The holy faith of the persecuted saint comes to the front in these three verses. But I will hope continually. When I cannot rejoice in what I have, I will look forward to what shall be mine, and will still rejoice. Hope will live on a bare common, and sing on a branch laden down with snow. No date and no place are unsuitable for hope. Hell alone excepted, hope is a dweller in all regions. We may always hope, for we always have grounds for it: we will always hope, for it is a never failing consolation.”

Psalms 71:15

“Then follows the clause "because I have not known business transactions." That part of the verse is recognized to create a problem unless it is well investigated. For if every person of business must be altogether condemned, not even those who are known to exercise …”

Psalms 71:15

“David the prophet sheweth that the mind which is remote from the cunning of human teachings is particularly able to comprehend the righteousness of God, and to possess courage of spirit and the confidence which will contend with all things, saying, "Because I know not …”

Psalms 71:15

“My mouth shall shew forth thy righteousness and thy salvation all the day. We are to bear testimony as experience enables us, and not withhold from others that which we have tasted and handled. The faithfulness of God in saving us, in delivering us out of the hand of our enemies, and in fulfilling his promises, is to be everywhere proclaimed by those who have proved it in their own history. How gloriously conspicuous is righteousness in the divine plan of redemption! It should be the theme of constant discourse.”

Psalms 71:16

“This is a Psalm of David's old age and we will carefully notice the characteristic feature of it. It is not addressed to men concerning God, but it is addressed to God Himself, for He was David's dearest Friend. Our Psalms and hymns are not for man's criticism, but for the Lord's acceptance. This is the tenor of the Psalm—David has been with his God and he is now ready for anything.”

Psalms 71:16

“I will go in the strength of the Lord God. Our translators give us a good sense, but not the sense in this place, which is on this wise, "I will come with the mighty deeds of the Lord Jehovah." He would enter into those deeds by admiring study, and then, wherever he went, he would continue to rehearse them. He should ever be a welcome guest who can tell us of the mighty acts of the Lord, and help us to put our trust in him.”

Psalms 71:17

And teaching those who are simple and innocent, and those who are wise and understanding, David saith, "Thou art my doctrine from my youth up, that I might shew Thy wonderful works."

Psalms 71:17

“You notice how much David is at home with God. He talks about Him. He does better, he talks to Him. He hears God speaking to him and he keeps up a dialog with God. Where did this holy familiarity come from? It sprang from long acquaintance! David as a boy had known God. He knew Him when he was old and gray-headed and, you know, old friends use language to one another which would not be tolerated in occasional acquaintances.”

Psalms 71:17-18

“It is a debt which the old disciples of Christ owe to the succeeding generations to leave behind them a solemn testimony to the power, pleasure, and advantage of religion, and the truth of God's promises.”

Psalms 71:18

Hear now also the Son's statements about the Father: "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor." He speaks of himself likewise to the Father in the psalm: "Forsake me not, until I have declared the might of your arm to all the generations that are to come." Also with the same substance in another psalm: "O Lord, how many are they that trouble me!"

Psalms 71:18

“Now also, when I am old and grayheaded, O God, forsake me not,.... A repetition of his request, Psa 71:9; with a reason annexed to it, suggested in the following words: until I have showed thy strength unto this generation; or, "thine arm" (e); which sometimes the Messiah, Isa 53:1; who is the power of by whom he made the worlds, and in whom all things consist; and who has wrought out the salvation people; and is the arm on which they lean, and they are upheld.”

Psalms 71:18

“Now also when I am old and grey headed, O God, forsake me not. There is something touching in the sight of hair whitened with the snows of many a winter: the old and faithful soldier receives consideration from his king, the venerable servant is beloved by his master. When our infirmities multiply, we may, with confidence, expect enlarged privileges in the world of grace, to make up for our narrowing range in the field of nature. Nothing shall make God forsake those who have not forsaken him.”

Psalms 71:19

“Thy righteousness also, O God, is very high,.... Or, "unto the place on high" (f); it reaches unto heaven, as the mercy, truth, and faithfulness of God, are said to do, Psa 36:”

Psalms 71:19

“The righteousness that is in God is very high; that which is done by him for his people is very great: put both together, and we shall say, O God! who is like unto thee?”

Psalms 71:20

“Thou, which hast shewed me great and sore troubles, shalt quicken me again. Here is faith's inference from the infinite greatness of the Lord. He has been strong to smite; he will be also strong to save. He has shown me many heavy and severe trials, and he will also show me many and precious mercies. He has almost killed me, he will speedily revive me; and though I have been almost dead and buried, he will give me a resurrection, and bring me up again from the depths of the earth.”

Psalms 71:20

“Are they dead? he can quicken them again. Are they buried, as dead men out of mind? he can bring them up again from the depths of the earth, can cheer the most drooping spirit and raise the most sinking interest. [4.] If we have a due regard to the hand of God in our troubles, we may promise ourselves, in due time, a deliverance out of them.”

Psalms 71:21

“Thou shalt increase my greatness. As a king, David grew in influence and power. God did great things for him, and by him, and this is all the greatness believers want. May we have faith in God, such as these words evince. And comfort me on every side. As we were surrounded with afflictions, so shall we be environed with consolations. From above, and from all around, light shall come to dispel our former gloom; the change shall be great, indeed, when the Lord returns to comfort us. Here is the final vow of praise.”

Psalms 71:21

“When our Lord Jesus was quickened again, and brought back from the depths of the earth, his greatness was increased, and he entered on the joy set before him.”

Psalms 71:22

“I will also praise thee with the psaltery. Love so amazing calls for sweetest praise. David would give his best music, both vocal and instrumental, to the Best of Masters. His harp should not be silent, nor his voice. Even thy truth, O my God. This is ever a most enchanting attribute—viz., the truth or faithfulness of our covenant God. On this we rest, and from it we draw streams of richest consolation. His promises are sure, his love unalterable, his veracity indisputable. What saint will not praise him as he remembers this?”

Psalms 71:23

“My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing unto thee,.... Both with vocal and instrumental music; this is praising the Lord with joyful lips, Psa 63:5; and my soul, which thou hast redeemed; signifying that it would not be lip labour, or bodily service, only that he should perform; but that his heart would go along with his lips in praise; and that under a sense of redeeming love, than which nothing can more strongly engage in such work, Psa 103:”

Psalms 71:23

“My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing unto thee. It shall be no weariness to me to praise thee. It shall be a delightful recreation, a solace, a joy. The essence of song lies in the holy joy of the singer. And my soul, which thou hast redeemed. Soul singing is the soul of singing. Till men are redeemed, they are like instruments out of tune; but when once the precious blood has set them at liberty, then are they fitted to magnify the Lord who bought them.”

Psalms 71:24

“My tongue also shall talk of thy righteousness all the day long,.... See Gill on Psa 71:16; for they are confounded; his adversaries, for whose confusion he prayed, Psa 71:13; for they are brought unto shame that seek my hurt; as Absalom and Ahithophel, being both brought to a shameful end.”

Psalms 71:24

“God's righteousness and his salvation are here joined together; let no man think to put them asunder, nor expect salvation without righteousness, Ps. l. If these two are made the objects of our desire, let them be made the subjects of our discourse all the day, for they are subjects that can never be exhausted.”