Psalms

Chapter 109

The Song of the Slandered

This psalm gives voice to a sufferer surrounded by lies, hatred, and thankless accusation, and it does so without softening the violence of the conflict. The chapter moves from complaint to severe appeals for judgment, then back to a frail plea for mercy and rescue, and finally ends in thanksgiving because the needy one is not left alone: the LORD stands at his right hand when hostile voices gather to condemn him.

Psalm 109 is one of the Psalter's starkest prayers against enemies. It fits the book's theology of lament by showing that the faithful do not deny slander, injustice, or the desire for vindication, but carry even those raw appeals into God's court, where final judgment belongs to him and the last word is still his defense of the poor and needy.

1 section·228 words·~1 min read

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Psalms 109

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vv. 1-31

The Song of the Slandered

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F¹or the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. ²For wicked and deceitful mouths open against me; ³They surround me with hateful words ⁴In return for my love they accuse me, ⁵They repay me evil for good,

⁶Set over him a wicked man; ⁷When he is tried, let him be found guilty, ⁸May his days be few; ⁹May his children be fatherless ¹⁰May his children wander as beggars, ¹¹May the creditor seize all he owns, ¹²May there be no one to extend kindness to him, ¹³May his descendants be cut off; ¹⁴May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD, ¹⁵May their sins always remain before the LORD, ¹⁶For he never thought to show kindness, ¹⁷The cursing that he loved, ¹⁸The cursing that he wore like a coat, ¹⁹May it be like a robe wrapped about him, ²⁰May this be the LORD’s reward to my accusers,

²¹But You, O GOD, the Lord, ²²For I am poor and needy; ²³I am fading away like a lengthening shadow; ²⁴My knees are weak from fasting, ²⁵I am an object of scorn to my accusers; ²⁶Help me, O LORD my God; ²⁷Let them know that this is Your hand, ²⁸Though they curse, You will bless. ²⁹May my accusers be clothed with disgrace;

³⁰With my mouth I will thank the LORD profusely; ³¹For He stands at the right hand of the needy one,

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01vv. 1-31The Song of the SlanderedDavid begins by asking the God of his praise not to remain silent while deceitful and hateful accusers repay his love with evil. He then calls for judgment to fall back on the unmerciful persecutor and his house, turns to a direct plea for help from the LORD because he is weak, mocked, and fading, and closes by promising loud thanksgiving because the LORD stands beside the needy to save him from those who condemn him.