Suffering and Prayer
Psalm 69:1-18
Save me, O God; for the waters are come in to my soul.…


The psalm is a prayer and complaint of one suffering severely from men for the sake of God.

I. GREAT SUFFERING. (Vers. 1-4.)

1. Exposing him to great danger. (Vers. 1, 2.) He is in peril of his life. "The floods overwhelm him."

2. Entailing great bodily exhaustion. (Ver. 3.) Weary of crying, parched throat, failing eyes.

3. Arising from the unjust hatred of his enemies, who are numerous and strong. (Ver. 4.) They that hate him without a just cause and wrongfully, are numberless and mighty.

II. GREAT SUFFERING FOR THE SAKE OF GOD AND THE RIGHTEOUS CAUSE, (Vers. 5-12.)

1. Awakens a sense of personal unworthiness. (Ver. 5.) All suffering tends to this.

2. The sin of his enemies was sin against God. (Vers. 7-9.)

3. Intimate relatives and friends as well as strangers join in the persecution of his enemies. (Vers. 8-12.)

III. THE GROUNDS OF HIS PRAYER FOR DELIVERANCE. (Vers. 13-18.)

1. Others who trust in God will be put to shame if he is left to perish. Go back to ver. 6 for this. Faith in God is at stake.

2. His great misery is his argument for salvation. (Vers. 14, 15-17.) We may well use this plea.

3. The greatness of the Divine loving kindness and mercy. (Vers. 13-16.) This is the argument which is fullest of hope to those who have known God in all ages, but especially to those who have known God in Christ. - S.



Parallel Verses
KJV: {To the chief Musician upon Shoshannim, A Psalm of David.} Save me, O God; for the waters are come in unto my soul.

WEB: Save me, God, for the waters have come up to my neck!




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