Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
Psalms 69:5

Clarke's Commentary

Verse Psalms 69:5. Thou knowest my foolishness — Though we have been brought into captivity in consequence of the crimes of our fathers, yet we have guilt enough of our own to merit a continuation of our miseries. How can such words as are in this verse be attributed to our blessed Lord, however they may be twisted or turned?

Bridgeway Bible Commentary

Psalms 69:0 Undeserved suffering

As a person sinking in a muddy pit, or someone drowning in swirling floodwaters, so the psalmist fears he is being overwhelmed by his sufferings. No human help is near (1-3). His enemies cruelly injure him, forcing him to suffer for sins that he did not commit (4). He knows he is not sinless, but he also knows that he has tried to live uprightly before God. On the basis of this he cries out to God to rescue him. He does not want his enemies to triumph over him, in case other believers are discouraged (5-6).
This suffering is for God’s sake. The psalmist is an outcast even among his own family (7-8). His zeal for God, his fasting, and his other acts of devotion are merely an excuse for others to mock him and insult God (9-12).
At this point the psalmist turns to consider God’s steadfast love. Although his sufferings and dangers are not lessened, he believes God will rescue him from them (13-18). He has nothing but disappointment from those he thought were his friends. They have all deserted him. His enemies increase his torture by the poisoned food and bitter drink they give him (19-21). The psalmist prays that his persecutors themselves will taste something of the tortures that they have been giving him - the poisoned food, the dark hiding places, the weakness the fear, the loneliness (22-25). As they have heaped sorrow on the godly, may God heap his punishment on them (26-28).
Although in pain and despair, the psalmist still trusts in God, believing that God will hear him. He promises that his worship will be thankful and sincere, far more than the mere sacrifice of animals (29-31). His deliverance will encourage others who are harshly treated to put their whole trust in God (32-33). And if God can save the individual, he can also save the nation and make it a fitting dwelling place for the righteous (34-36).

For the wider meaning of many sections of the psalm in the experience of Jesus Christ, see Background. See also introductory and closing notes to Psalms 22:0. For quotations of this psalm in the New Testament cf. v. 4 with John 15:25; cf. v. 9 with John 2:17, Romans 15:3; cf. v. 21 with Matthew 27:34,Matthew 27:38; cf. v. 22-23 with Romans 11:9-10; cf. v. 24 with Revelation 16:1; cf. v. 25 with Acts 1:20; cf. v. 28 with Revelation 20:15.

Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible

A PRAYER FOR DELIVERANCE

“O God, thou knowest my foolishness; And my sins are not hid from thee. Let not them that wait for thee be put to shame through me, O Lord Jehovah of hosts. Let not those that seek thee be brought to dishonor, O God of Israel.”

“My sins are not hid from thee” Statements of this kind forbid the application of the psalm in its entirety to the sinless Christ.

“Them that wait for thee… those that seek thee” These were the faithful Israelites, the “true seed of Abraham” as distinguished from the great majority of the people. Such devout souls, of course, were praying for David’s survival, but as the partisans of Saul closed in upon the fugitive, David recognized that, if he were to be destroyed, the faithful of the whole kingdom also would have been hunted down and destroyed by Saul. Therefore, David prayed that God would not allow such a thing to happen.

By the time of David’s flight from the presence of King Saul, the evil character of that king had already alienated the true followers of God from his support. He had named a son after the pagan god Baal; and there were not any of the true “seed of Abraham” in Israel at that time who could have been unaware that Saul would have to be removed from the kingship if faith in the true God was to survive in Israel.

Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible

O God, thou knowest my foolishness - The errors and follies of my life. Though conscious of innocence in this case - though he felt that his enemies hated him “without cause,” and that they took what belonged to him and not to them, yet he was not insensible to the fact that he was a sinner, and he was not unwilling to confess before God, that, however conscious of uprightness he might be in his dealings toward people, yet toward God, he was a sinful man. From him he deserved all that had come upon him. Indeed the very calamities which had been permitted to come upon him were proof to his own mind that he was a sinner, and served, as they were doubtless designed, to turn his mind to that fact, and to humble him. The effect of calamities coming upon us, as reminding us of the fact that we are sinners, is often referred to in the Psalms. See Psalms 38:2-4; Psalms 40:12.

And my sins are not hid from thee - Margin, “guiltiness.” The word used here has always attached to it the idea of “guilt.” The meaning is, that God knew all his life; and that however unjust the conduct of “men” toward him might be when they treated him as if he had wronged them, yet considered as a part of the dealings of God, or as having been suffered to come upon him from God, all that had occurred was right, for it was a proper expression of the divine displeasure against his sins. We may feel that we have not wronged our fellow-men; yet even the treatment which we receive from them, however unjust so far as they are concerned, may be regarded as deserved by us at the hand of God, and as proper on his part as an expression of his displeasure for our transgressions against him, and as a proof that we are sinners. Trial never comes to us from any quarter except as founded on the fact that we are sinners; and even where there is entire innocence toward our fellow-men, God may make use of their passions to rebuke and discipline us for our sins toward himself.

Calvin's Commentary on the Bible

5.O God! thou knowest my foolishness Augustine has labored to little purpose to show in what way these words are applicable to Christ; and at length he transfers to his members that which could not properly be said of the Head. ⁽⁷²⁾ David here uses the language of irony; and by this mode of expressing himself he meant to intimate, that, overwhelmed with the unrighteous judgments of men, he betakes himself to God, and implores him to appear as the defender of his cause. This is much more emphatic than if he had affirmed plainly, and without figure, that his integrity was known to God. In this way he administers a sharp rebuke to his enemies, and as it were looks down with a noble contempt upon the calumnious speeches which they uttered against him; as Jeremiah does when he says,

“O Lord! thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived.”
(Psalms 20:7)

Some ignorant people put a violent construction on these words of Jeremiah, as if they implied that he was actually deceived; whereas he is rather to be understood as deriding with bitter sarcasm his calumniators, who, in speaking evil of him, were chargeable with reproaching and blaspheming God himself. David in like manner, in the passage before us, as a means of preserving himself from succumbing under the perverse judgments of men, appeals to God as the judge of his cause; and possessing as he did the approving testimony of a good conscience, he regards in a great measure with indifference the unjust estimate which men might form of his character. It were indeed desirable that our integrity should also be acknowledged and approved of by men, and that not so much on our own account as for the edification of our brethren. But if, after we have done all in our power to make men form a favorable opinion respecting us, they misconstruct and pervert every good word which we utter, and every good action which we perform, we ought to maintain such greatness of mind as boldly to despise the world and all false accusers, resting contented with the judgment of God and with that alone; for those who are over anxious about maintaining their good name cannot but often experience fainting of heart. Let us be always ready to satisfy men; but if they refuse to listen to what we have to say in self-vindication, let us proceed in our course through evil report as well as good report, following the example of Paul where he fearlessly appeals to the judgment of God,

“who will bring to light the hidden things of dark,”
(1 Corinthians 4:5)

(72) According to Augustine, the Messiah, when he says “my foolishness” and “my iniquities,” speaks of the sins of men which were imputed to him, and for which he suffered and died under the curse of the law, which treated him as if he had been a sinner, in consequence of the sins thus imputed to him. A similar interpretation is given by Bishops Horsley and Horne, as well as many others. “The Messiah,” says the first of these critics, “here, as in many places, may speak of the follies and crimes of men, for which he had made himself answerable as his own.” Admitting, as we are disposed to do, although Calvin takes an opposite view, that the passage is applicable to Christ, it may be doubted whether this is the correct interpretation. The sins of those for whom Christ died, by being imputed to him, no doubt became his in the eye of the law, in such a sense as to make him answerable for them. But the Scriptures, be it observed, while they speak of him as “wounded for our transgressions, and bruised for our iniquities,” and as “bearing our sins in his own body on the tree,” as if afraid to use any forms of expression which would even seem to derogate from his immaculate purity, never speak of the sins of those for whom he died as his own sins. What Horsley adds, as an additional explanation, is very unguarded. “Perhaps,” says he, “He who, although he was without sin, was yet tempted in all points like up to us, might, in his humility, speak of the incitement of the passions in his own mind as weakness and fault, making confession of it before the Father.” Nothing, doubtless, was farther from the mind of the prelate than to teach any thing inconsistent with the perfect holiness of the Son of God; and he expressly warns that “he was without sin;” but the language which he employs is scarcely consistent with this position, and it can convey no idea on the subject except an erroneous one. “The prince of this world cometh,” said Jesus to his disciples, “and hath nothing in me” —hath nothing in me, that is, to use the words of Dr Doddridge, “no guilt of mine to give him power over me; nor any inward corruption, to take part with his temptations.” The explanation of the text, which appears to be the most natural and consistent, is that which considers the Savior as solemnly appealing to the Father in vindication of his innocence. His enemies falsely charged him with crimes, and made these charges the ground of their cruel and malignant proceedings against him. The Divine Sufferer, therefore, with confidence appeals to God, saying, Thou, who art the omniscient and all-righteous Judge, knowest that I am innocent of the crimes laid to my charge, and I invoke thee to plead my cause. This interpretation, which is adopted by many eminent critics, as Dr Boothroyd, Dr Morrison, Walford, and others, is strongly supported by the context. The preceding verse contains strong assertions of his innocence; and it was very natural to accompany these with an appeal from the falsehood and calumny of men, to the all-seeing and righteous Judge of the universe.

Smith's Bible Commentary

Psalms 69:1-36

The sixty-ninth psalm is a Messianic psalm. That is, it is a psalm of prophecy concerning Jesus Christ. And there are many scriptures within the psalm here that make reference to Jesus Christ.

Save me, O God; for the waters are come in unto my soul. I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing: I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me. I am weary of my crying: my throat is dried: mine eyes fail while I wait for God. They that hate me without cause are more than the hairs of my head: they that would destroy me, being my enemies wrongfully, are mighty: then I restore that which I took not away. O God, thou knowest my foolishness; and my sins are not hid from thee. Let not them that wait on thee, O Lord God of hosts, be ashamed for my sake: let not those that seek thee be confounded for my sake, O God of Israel. Because for thy sake I have borne reproach; shame hath covered my face ( Psalms 69:1-7 ).

Again, referring to Christ. For God's sake He bore the reproach; shame covered His face.

I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother's children ( Psalms 69:8 ).

It said that His brothers did not believe in Him. They thought that He was crazy, actually.

For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me ( Psalms 69:9 ).

Remember when Jesus went into the temple and He saw them making merchandise, and He took and He made a scourge, a whip, and He began to drive out the moneychangers and those that were selling doves. And He said, "Get out of here! You've made my Father's house a den of thieves." And then they remembered the scripture that was written of Him that said, "The zeal of Thine house hath eaten Me up." The zeal for the house of God, it just ate Him up when He saw the terrible things that were being done in the house of God in the name of God. I wonder what would be His reaction today if He should come and visit some of the bingo parties and other functions that have been devised to make money for the church.

"The zeal of Mine house hath eaten Me up. The reproaches of them that reproach Thee fall upon Me."

When I wept, and chastened my soul with fasting, that was to my reproach. I made sackcloth also my garment; and I became a proverb to them. They that sit in the gate speak against me; and I was the song of drunkards ( Psalms 69:10-12 ).

He is still the song of drunkards. The blasphemy when a person becomes intoxicated so often.

But as for me, my prayer is unto thee, O LORD, in an acceptable time: O God, in the multitude of thy mercy hear me, in the truth of thy salvation ( Psalms 69:13 ).

Some believe that this is actually the prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane.

Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink: let me be delivered from them that hate me, and out of the deep waters ( Psalms 69:14 ).

You remember He said, "If it is possible, let this cup pass from Me."

Let not the waterflood overflow me, neither let the deep swallow me up, and let not the pit shut her mouth upon me. Hear me, O LORD; for thy loving-kindness is good: turn unto me according to the multitude of thy tender mercies. And hide not thy face from thy servant; for I am in trouble: hear me speedily. Draw nigh unto my soul, and redeem it: deliver me because of mine enemies. For thou hast known my reproach, and my shame, and my dishonor: mine adversaries are all before thee. Reproach hath broken my heart; and I am full of heaviness ( Psalms 69:15-20 ):

The fact that when Jesus was pierced with a sword there came forth blood and water indicates that actually His death was by a heart rupture. The fact that there was water that came forth with the blood indicates death by heart rupture. They broke, "Reproach," he said, "hath broken my heart. I am full of heaviness." Also there is something to that bloody sweat that indicates much the same.

and I looked for some to take pity ( Psalms 69:20 ),

You remember in the Garden of Gethsemane, and in great heaviness, He sweat as it were, great drops of blood flowing to the ground. "And I looked for some to take pity." You remember He came back to His disciples, but they were sleeping. "I looked for some to take pity,"

but there was none; for comforters, I found none ( Psalms 69:20 ).

"Oh Peter, could you not watch with Me one hour? Watch and pray." "I looked for someone to have pity. I looked for comforters, but I found none."

They gave me gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink ( Psalms 69:21 ).

You remember that when Jesus cried, "I thirst," someone took a sponge and filled it with vinegar and put it to His lips.

Let their table become a snare before them: and that which should have been for their welfare, let it become a trap ( Psalms 69:22 ).

Paul quotes this in Romans, the eleventh chapter, concerning Israel.

Let their eyes become darkened, that they see not; and make their loins continually to shake ( Psalms 69:23 ).

The judgment that should come upon the Jews for the rejection of Jesus.

Pour out thine indignation upon them, and let thy wrathful anger take hold of them. Let their habitation be desolate ( Psalms 69:24-25 );

Now in the first chapter of Acts, Peter quotes this as referring to Judas Iscariot. And he puts it together with another psalm, "Let their habitation be desolate and let another take his bishopric." And so, this is quoted concerning Judas Iscariot by Peter in Acts, chapter 1.

and let none dwell in their tents. For they persecute him whom you have smitten; and they talk to the grief of those whom you have wounded. Add iniquity unto their iniquity: and let them not come into thy righteousness. Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous. But I am poor and sorrowful: let thy salvation, O God, set me up on high. I will praise the name of God with a song, and I will magnify him with thanksgiving. This also shall please the LORD better than an ox or bullock that hath horns and hoofs. The humble shall see this, and be glad: and your heart shall live that seek God. For the LORD heareth the poor, and despise not the prisoners. Let the heaven and the earth praise him, the seas, and every thing that moves therein. For God will save Zion, and build the cities of Judah: that they may dwell there, and have it in possession. The seed also of his servants shall inherit it: and they that love his name shall dwell therein ( Psalms 69:25-36 ). "

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

Psalms 69

In this imprecatory psalm of individual lament, David sought God to deliver him from destruction. He was experiencing criticism and rejection from the Israelites because of decisions he had made to do God’s will. He asked God to deal with his oppressors, and he looked forward to relief and the renewal of praise to God. Some scholars have labeled this psalm "indirectly messianic" because, while it does not specifically predict Messiah, Messiah fulfilled what the writer expressed (cf. Psalms 16; Psalms 22; Psalms 34; Psalms 40; Psalms 41; Psalms 109). [Note: Chisholm, "A Theology . . .," pp. 290-91.] After Psalms 110, 22, this is the third most frequently quoted psalm in the New Testament.

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

David did not pretend to be sinless, but he believed his enemies’ present antagonism was not due to sins he had committed.

Dr. Constable's Expository Notes

2. The reason for and the results of David’s condition 69:5-12

Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

O God, thou knowest my foolishness,.... Not that there was real foolishness in him, who, as man, from his infancy was filled with wisdom, and increased in it; and, as Mediator, had the spirit of wisdom on him, and the treasures of wisdom in him; and, as a divine Person, he is the Wisdom of God, and the only wise God; and, as in our nature, there was no foolishness in his heart, nor in his words, nor in his actions: but this is to be understood either of what was accounted so by others; he and his followers were reckoned foolish and illiterate men, and the Gospel preached by him and his apostles was foolishness to them that perished; or of what he was charged with by his enemies; even with immorality, heresy, blasphemy, and sedition; of all which he was innocent, and therefore could appeal to his divine Father, who knows all things, that he was clear of all such folly; for it may be rendered, "thou knowest as to my foolishness" x, with respect to what he was charged with, that there was none in him; or else it regards the foolishness of his people imputed to him, the sin that folly of follies, together with all the foolishness in the heart, lip, and lives of his people, before and after conversion; these were all reckoned to him, and reckoned by him, as his own in some sense; and which is confirmed by what follows:

and my sins are not hid from thee; meaning not any committed by him; for then he could not have said what he does in Psalms 69:4; but the sins of his people imputed to him, which be calls his own,

Psalms 69:4- :: these must be known to his divine Father, since he is God omniscient, and since he laid them upon him, and he made satisfaction for them to him; and which he observes to enforce his petition, Psalms 69:1; with this compare Isaiah 53:11.

x לאולתי "tu nosti ut res se habeat quoad stultitiam meam", Gussetius, p. 312.

Henry's Complete Commentary on the Bible

To the chief musician upon Shoshannim. A psalm of David.

      1 Save me, O God; for the waters are come in unto my soul.   2 I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing: I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me.   3 I am weary of my crying: my throat is dried: mine eyes fail while I wait for my God.   4 They that hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of mine head: they that would destroy me, being mine enemies wrongfully, are mighty: then I restored that which I took not away.   5 O God, thou knowest my foolishness; and my sins are not hid from thee.   6 Let not them that wait on thee, O Lord GOD of hosts, be ashamed for my sake: let not those that seek thee be confounded for my sake, O God of Israel.   7 Because for thy sake I have borne reproach; shame hath covered my face.   8 I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother's children.   9 For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.   10 When I wept, and chastened my soul with fasting, that was to my reproach.   11 I made sackcloth also my garment; and I became a proverb to them.   12 They that sit in the gate speak against me; and I was the song of the drunkards.

      In these verses David complains of his troubles, intermixing with those complaints some requests for relief.

      I. His complaints are very sad, and he pours them out before the Lord, as one that hoped thus to ease himself of a burden that lay very heaven upon him.

      1. He complains of the deep impressions that his troubles made upon his spirit (Psalms 69:1; Psalms 69:2): "The waters of affliction, those bitter waters, have come unto my soul, not only threaten my life, but disquiet my mind; they fill my head with perplexing cares and my heart with oppressive grief, so that I cannot enjoy God and myself as I used to do." We shall bear up under our troubles if we can but keep them from our hearts; but, when they put us out of the possession of our own souls, our case is bad. The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity; but what shall we do when the spirit is wounded? That was David's case here. His thoughts sought for something to confide in, and with which to support his hope, but he found nothing: He sunk in keep mire, where there was no standing, no firm footing; the considerations that used to support and encourage him now failed him, or were out of the way, and he was ready to give himself up for gone. He sought for something to comfort himself with, but found himself in deep waters that overflowed him, overwhelmed him; he was like a sinking drowning man, in such confusion and consternation. This points at Christ's sufferings in his soul, and the inward agony he was in when he said, Now is my soul troubled; and, My soul is exceedingly sorrowful; for it was his soul that he made an offering for sin. And it instructs us, when we are in affliction, to commit the keeping of our souls to God, that we may be neither soured with discontent nor sink into despair.

      2. He complains of the long continuance of his troubles (Psalms 69:3; Psalms 69:3): I am weary of my crying. Though he could not keep his head above water, yet he cried to his God, and the more death was in his view the more life was in his prayers; yet he had not immediately an answer of peace given in, no, nor so much of that support and comfort in praying which God's people used to have; so that he was almost weary of crying, grew hoarse, and his throat so dried that he could cry no more. Nor had he his wonted satisfaction in believing, hoping, and expecting relief: My eyes fail while I wait for my God; he had almost looked his eyes out, in expectation of deliverance. Yet his pleading this with God is an indication that he is resolved not to give up believing and praying. His throat is dried, but his heart is not; his eyes fail, but his faith does not. Thus our Lord Jesus, on the cross, cried out, Why hast thou forsaken me? yet, at the same time, he kept hold of his relation to him: My God, my God.

      3. He complains of the malice and multitude of his enemies, their injustice and cruelty, and the hardships they put upon him, Psalms 69:4; Psalms 69:4. They hated him, they would destroy him, for hatred aims at the destruction of the person hated; but what was his iniquity, what was his sin, what provocation had he given them, that they were so spiteful towards him? None at all: "They hate me without a cause; I never did them the least injury, that they should bear me such ill-will." Our Saviour applies this to himself (John 15:25): They hated me without a cause. We are apt to use this in justification of our passion against those that hate us, that we never gave them cause to hate us. But it is rather an argument why we should bear it patiently, because then we suffer as Christ did, and may then expect that God will give us redress. "They are my enemies wrongfully, for I have been no enemy to them." In a world where unrighteousness reigns so much we must not wonder if we meet with those that are our enemies wrongfully. Let us take care that we never do wrong and then we may the better bear it if we receive wrong. These enemies were not to be despised, but were very formidable both for their number--They are more than the hairs of my head (Christ's enemies were numerous; those that came to seize him were a great multitude; how were those increased that troubled him!) and for their strength--They are mighty in authority and power. We are weak, but our enemies are strong; for we wrestle against principalities and powers. Then I restored that which I took not away. Applying this to David, it was what his enemies compelled him to (they made him suffer for that offence which he had never been guilty of); and it was what he consented to, that, if possible, he might pacify them and make them to be at peace with him. He might have insisted upon the laws of justice and honour, the former not requiring and the latter commonly thought to forbid the restoring of that which we took not away, for that is to wrong ourselves both in our wealth and in our reputation. Yet the case may be such sometimes that it may become our duty. Blessed Paul, though free from all men, yet, for the honour of Christ and the edification of the church, made himself a servant to all. But, applying it to Christ, it is an observable description of the satisfaction which he made to God for our sin by his blood: Then he restored that which he took not away; he underwent the punishment that was due to us, paid our debt, suffered for our offence. God's glory, in some instances of it, was taken away by the sin of man; man's honour, and peace, and happiness, were taken away; it was not he that took them away, and yet by the merit of his death he restored them.

      4. He complains of the unkindness of his friends and relations, and this is a grievance which with an ingenuous mind cuts as deeply as any (Psalms 69:8; Psalms 69:8): "I have become a stranger to my brethren; they make themselves strange to me and use me as a stranger, are shy of conversing with me and ashamed to own me." This was fulfilled in Christ, whose brethren did not believe on him (John 7:5), who came to his own and his own received him not (John 1:11), and who was forsaken by his disciples, whom he had been free with as his brethren.

      5. He complains of the contempt that was put upon him and the reproach with which he was continually loaded. And in this especially his complaint points at Christ, who for our sakes submitted to the greatest disgrace and made himself of no reputation. We having by sin injured God in his honour, Christ made him satisfaction, not only by divesting himself of the honours due to an incarnate deity, but by submitting to the greatest dishonours that could be done to any man. Two things David here takes notice of as aggravations of the indignities done him:-- (1.) The ground and matter of the reproach, Psalms 69:10; Psalms 69:11. They ridiculed him for that by which he both humbled himself and honoured God. When men lift up themselves in pride and vain glory they are justly laughed at for their folly; but David chastened his soul, and clothed himself with sackcloth, and from his abasing himself they took occasion to trample upon him. When men dishonour God it is just that their so doing should turn to their dishonour; but when David, purely in devotion to God and to testify his respect to him, wept, and chastened his soul with fasting, and made sackcloth his garment, as humble penitents used to do, instead of commending his devotion and recommending it as a great example of piety, they did all they could both to discourage him in it and to prevent others from following his good example; for that was to his reproach. They laughed at him as a fool for mortifying himself thus; and even for this he became a proverb to them; they made him the common subject of their banter. We must not think it strange if we be ill spoken of for that which is well done, and in which we have reason to hope that we are accepted of God. Our Lord Jesus was stoned for his good works (John 10:32), and when he cried, Eli, Eli--My God, my God, was bantered, as if he called for Elias. (2.) The persons that reproached him, Psalms 69:12; Psalms 69:12. [1.] Even the gravest and the most honourable, from whom better was expected: Those that sit in the gate speak against me, and their reproaches pass for the dictates of senators and the decrees of judges, and are credited accordingly. [2.] The meanest, and the most despicable, the abjects (Psalms 35:15), and scum of the country, the children of fools, yea, the children of base men,Job 30:8. Such drunkards as these make themselves vile, and he was the song of the drunkards; they made themselves and their companions merry with him. See the bad consequences of the sin of drunkenness; it makes men despisers of those that are good,2 Timothy 3:3. When the king was made sick with bottles of wine he stretched out his hand with scorners,Hosea 7:5. The bench of the drunkards is the seat of the scornful. See what is commonly the lot of the best of men: those that are the praise of the wise are the song of fools. But it is easy to those that rightly judge of things to despise being thus despised.

      II. His confessions of sin are very serious (Psalms 69:5; Psalms 69:5): "O God! thou knowest my foolishness, what is and what is not; my sins that I am guilty of are not hidden from thee, and therefore thou knowest how innocent I am of those crimes which they charge upon me." Note, Even when, as to men's unjust accusations, we plead Not guilty, yet, before God, we must acknowledge ourselves to have deserved all that is brought upon us, and much worse. This is the genuine confession of a penitent, who knows that he cannot prosper in covering his sin, and that therefore it is his wisdom to acknowledge it, because it is naked and open before God. 1. He knows the corruption of our nature: Thou knowest the foolishness that is bound up in my heart. All our sins take rise from our foolishness. 2. He knows the transgressions of our lives; they are not hidden from him, no, not our heart-sins, no, not those that are committed most secretly. They are all done in his sight, and are never cast behind his back till they are repented of and pardoned. This may aptly be applied to Christ, for he knew no sin, yet he was made sin for us; and God knew it, nor was it hidden from him, when it pleased the Lord to bruise him and put him to grief.

      III. His supplications are very earnest. 1. For himself (Psalms 69:1; Psalms 69:1): "Save me, O God! save me from sinking, from despairing." Thus Christ was heard in that he feared, for he was saved from letting fall his undertaking, Hebrews 5:7. 2. For his friends (Psalms 69:6; Psalms 69:6): Let not those that wait on thee, O Lord God of hosts! and that seek thee, O God of Israel! (under these two characters we ought to seek God, and in seeking him to wait on him, as the God of hosts, who has all power to help, and as the God of Israel in covenant with his people, whom therefore he is engaged in honour and truth to help) be ashamed and confounded for my sake. This intimates his fear that if God did not appear for him it would be a discouragement to all other good people and would give their enemies occasion to triumph over them, and his earnest desire that whatever became of him all that seek God, and wait upon him, might be kept in heart and kept in countenance, and might neither be discouraged in themselves nor exposed to contempt from others. If Jesus Christ had not been owned and accepted of his Father in his sufferings, all that seek God, and wait for him, would have been ashamed and confounded; but they have confidence towards God, and in his name come boldly to the throne of grace.

      IV. His plea is very powerful, Psalms 69:7; Psalms 69:9. Reproach was one of the greatest of his burdens: "Lord, roll away the reproach, and plead my cause, for, 1. It is for thee that I am reproached, for serving thee and trusting in thee: For thy sake I have borne reproach." Those that are evil spoken of for well-doing may with a humble confidence leave it to God to bring forth their righteousness as the light. 2. "It is with thee that I am reproached: The zeal of thy house has eaten me up, that is, has made me forget myself, and do that which they wickedly turn to my reproach. Those that hate thee and thy house for that reason hate me, because they know how zealously affected I am to it. It is this that has made them ready to eat me up and has eaten up all the love and respect I had among them." Those that blasphemed God, and spoke ill of his word and ways, did therefore reproach David for believing in his word and walking in his ways. Or it may be construed as an instance of David's zeal for God's house, that he resented all the indignities done to God's name as if they had been done to his own name. He laid to heart all the dishonour done to God and the contempt cast upon religion; these he laid nearer to his heart than any outward troubles of his own. And therefore he had reason to hope God would interest himself in the reproaches cast upon him, because he had always interested himself in the reproaches cast upon God. Both the parts of Psalms 69:9 are applied to Christ. (1.) It was an instance of his love to his Father that the zeal of his house did even eat him up when he whipped the buyers and sellers out of the temple, which reminded his disciples of this text, John 2:17. (2.) It was an instance of his self-denial, and that he pleased not himself, that the reproaches of those that reproached God fell upon him (Romans 15:3), and therein he set us an example.