This You have seen, O LORD: God has seen the facts of the case, and these include not only Davids innocence, but also that he is being falsely accused and slandered. (Boice), ii. 131, 4, b, carries its subject in itself. , Jeremiah 18:18. A great deal of good service he had done to his king, witness his harp, witness Goliath's sword, witness the foreskins of the Philistines; and yet his king vowed his death, and his country was made too hot for him. 14 I behaved myself as though he had been my friend or brother: I bowed down heavily, as one that mourneth for his mother. The words were, as it were, muttered into his bosom. Psalm 35 David, in this psalm, appeals to the righteous Judge of heaven and earth against his enemies that hated and persecuted him. But to suppose that this was the motive in the case is to suppose that the psalmist was wholly selfish, and would take away the very point of his observation about his prayer - that it was dictated by the sincerest love for them and true sympathy for their sufferings. 15 But in mine adversity they rejoiced, and gathered themselves together: yea, the abjects gathered themselves together against me, and I knew it not; they did tear me, and ceased not: 16 With hypocritical mockers in feasts, they gnashed upon me with their teeth. (2)The far more probable meaning, my . But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth: I humbled my soul with fasting; and my prayer returned into mine own bosom. Psalm 35:13, 14. Click to enable/disable _gid - Google Analytics Cookie. Click to enable/disable Google Analytics tracking. The Hebrew verb has this frequentative sense in one of its conjugations. We need 2 cookies to store this setting. Verse 13. was not my soul grieved for the poor? They really would get upset.Now when Elisha was going up the hill, little kids came up from Bethel saying, "aha, aha, ye old bald man!" Many good works have I shown you from my Father; for which of those do you stone me? See this explained by Solomon, 1 Kings 7 31, 32. Among the Hebrews fasting and prayer were much more closely connected than they are with Christians. Psalm 35:13 - NIV - Yet when they were ill, I put - Christianity 3. hrq, of the crackling of a fire and the grating of a file), which is used according to Ges. April 30 Easter 4A Acts 2 42 47 Psalm 23 John 10 1 10 aha! Verse 13. And now another prophecy relating to Christ. And my prayer returned into mine own bosom. of Against his many enemies (v. 4-6): Let them be confounded, etc. Psalms 35 - Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible - StudyLight.org The most simple interpretation, therefore, is that which supposes that the prayer was offered under such a burden of grief on account of their sufferings, that his head sank on his bosom; or, in other words, that the prayer which was offered was such as is presented when the heart is most burdened and most sad. This prayer we may put up against our persecutors, that God would restrain them and stop their way. I behaved myself as though he had been my friend or brother: I bowed down heavily, as one that mourns for his mother. (2.) David was the fool in the play, and his disappointment all the table-talk of the hypocritical mockers at feasts; it was the song of the drunkards. He prays earnestly to God to appear graciously for him and his friends, against his and their enemies, that by his providence the struggle might issue to the honour and comfort of David and to the conviction and confusion of his persecutors. And, lastly, he found himself an unequal match for them. Let not them that are my enemies wrongfully rejoice over me: neither let them wink with the eye that hate me without a cause. so would we have it (v. 25), much more that he might not be reduced to such extremity that they should say, We have swallowed him up; for then they will reflect upon God himself. This is the view of Ewald and Delitzsch, but seems prosaic. With his prayers he joined humiliation and self-affliction, both in his diet (he fasted, at least from pleasant bread) and in his dress; he clothed himself with sackcloth, thus expressing his grief, not only for their affliction, but for their sin; for this was the guise and practice of a penitent. 7 For without cause have they hid for me their net in a pit, which without cause they have digged for my soul. We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. Who favor my righteous cause; my prayer came back again and again to my bosom, i.e., for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth, And my prayer returned into mine own bosom, Conjunctive waw | Pronoun - first person common singular, Preposition-b | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct | third person masculine plural, Noun - masculine singular construct | first person common singular, A mesh, coarse loose cloth, sacking, a bag, Verb - Piel - Perfect - first person common singular, Noun - feminine singular construct | first person common singular, A soul, living being, life, self, person, desire, passion, appetite, emotion, Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine singular, Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine singular construct | first person common singular, David prays for his own safety, and his enemies' confusion, Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers, OT Poetry: Psalm 35:13 But as for me when they were (Psalm Ps Psa. Prof. Alexander supposes that this means, according to a traditional interpretation of the Jews, that he desired that the prayer which he offered might redound to his own advantage: "My prayer shall not be lost, it shall return in blessings to the heart which prompted it." Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver the website, refusing them will have impact how our site functions. Compassion to the sick. To him: "Say unto my soul, I am thy salvation; let me have inward comfort under all these outward troubles, to support my soul which they strike at. Psalm chapter 35. There is some difference in the numbering of the psalms among versions. When Saul would have David attainted of treason, in order to his being outlawed, perhaps he did it with the formalities of a legal prosecution, produced witnesses who swore some treasonable words or overt acts against him, and he being not present to clear himself (or, if he was, it was all the same), Saul adjudged him a traitor. Luke 10:6 And if the son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon it: if not, it shall turn to you again. Psalm 35:13 in all English translations. the common phrase for thoughts coming upon the heart, Jeremiah 3:16; Jeremiah 7:31, etc.) What does Psalm 35:13 mean? | BibleRef.com [Note: Ibid., p. Truly, the saints can afford to wait. (Spurgeon). Take hold of shield and buckler, And stand up for my help. Salem Media Group. David was the fool in the play, and his disappointment all the table-talk of the hypocritical mockers at feasts; it was the song of the drunkards. His prospect of the destruction of his enemies, which he prays for, not in malice or revenge. And my soul shall be joyful in the LORD: it shall rejoice in his salvation. 142. Nor was it a sudden passion against him that they harboured, but inveterate malice: They devised his hurt, laid their heads together, and set their wits on work, not only to do him a mischief, but to find out ways and means to ruin him. Thieves enter only to take away life, to . All rights reserved. There remains (1) the literal, and my prayer turned upon my bosom, referring to the posture described in Psalm 35:14. This is the plural for the generic word for God. II. (2.) (1.) Proud member b. This , which even Rashi interprets in substantially the same manner, stands either in a logical co-ordinate relation (vid., on Isaiah 19:11) or in a logical as well as grammatical subordinate relation to its regens . But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth; I humbled my soul with fasting, And my prayer kept returning to my bosom. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. We ought to mourn for the sins of those that do not mourn for them themselves. It is the character of the godly in the land that they are the quiet in the land, that they live in all dutiful subjection to government and governors, in the Lord, and endeavour, as much as in them lies, to live peaceably with all men, however they may have been misrepresented as enemies to Csar and hurtful to kings and provinces. 1. A posture somewhat similar to this is referred to in the case of Elijah, 1 Kings 18:42 : And he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees. The posture of prayer with the head reclining toward the bosom is common among the Muslims, Reland de Religione Mohammetica, p. 87. If you do not want that we track your visit to our site you can disable tracking in your browser here: We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. When they were sick, David prayed for their recovery and mourned over their condition. With , used of the solemn slowness of gait, which corresponds to the sacredness of pain, alternates used of the being bowed down very low, in which the heavy weight of pain finds expression. Take hold of shield and buckler, stand up for my help. 27 Let them shout for joy, and be glad, that favour my righteous cause: yea, let them say continually, Let the Lord be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant. Psalm 35 KJV - Plead my cause, O LORD, with them that - Bible Gateway IV. My clothing was sackcloth - Compare the notes at Psalm 30:11. The words were, as it were, muttered into his bosom. They were like alms given to the miserable for God's sake, who takes care to return to the merciful man tenfold into his bosom. They plot evil and make false accusations against him (19-21), but he trusts that God will not allow them to gain the victory (22-25). He prayed for them. signifies the colours, outward appearance, and attire of mourning: with dark clothes, with tearful unwashed face, and with neglected beard. This he complains of here as the highest piece of injustice imaginable: False witnesses did rise up, who would swear anything; they laid to my charge things that I knew not, nor ever thought of. Verse 13-14. I. Much of his suffering during that time was because of the false accusations made against him by influential people in Sauls court. He prays that his enemies might not have cause to rejoice (v. 19): Let them not rejoice over me (and again, v. 24); not so much because it would be a mortification to him to be trampled upon the abjects, as because it would turn to the dishonour of God and the reproach of his confidence in God. It is a vexation of spirit which attends even a right work that for this a man is envied of his neighbour,Ecclesiastes 4:4. We don't think of it today saying, "aha, aha" as being such an evil, contemptuous kind of thing, but in those days, man, it was really evil and contemptuous. But as for me, when they were sick Or under any disorder or distress of body or mind, when any misfortune or infirmity attended them; meaning Saul and his courtiers, before David was persecuted by them; my clothing [was] sackcloth; that is, he was grieved, and mourned for them, it being usual to put on sackcloth in time of mourning; see ( Genesis 37:34 ) ; I humbled my soul with fasting; on the account of them, giving up himself to prayer for them, as follows: and my prayer returned into mine own bosom; that is, he prayed privately and heartily for them, as for himself; he was constant in it, his heart was in it, and he took delight in it, and he was heard and answered; unless the sense should be, that his prayer was slighted by them, and so returned back to himself, as a present despised is returned; but however it was not without its effect, the good for which he prayed for them was returned by the Lord unto him. But, on the contrary, that they might be ashamed and brought to confusion together (v. 26, as before, v. 4); he desires that his innocency might be so cleared that they might be ashamed of the calumnies with which they had loaded him, that his interest might be so confirmed that they might be ashamed of their designs against him and their expectations of his ruin, that they might either be brought to that shame which would be a step towards their reformation or that that might be their portion which would be their everlasting misery. Otherwise you will be prompted again when opening a new browser window or new a tab. Why Does God Compare Our Relationship with Him to That of a Bride and Groom? He thought God had forgotten him, had forgotten his promises to him, his covenant with him, his former lovingkindness which he had shown him and which he took to be an earnest of further mercy, had forgotten that there was such a man in the world, who needed and expected relief and succour from him. He thought of the people of God enlarging the LORD in their hearts and minds, and of his continual praise to God (my tongue shall speak of Your righteousness and of Your praise all the day long). 15 But in mine adversity they rejoiced, and gathered themselves together: yea, the abjects gathered themselves together against me, and I knew it not; they did tear me, and ceased not: 16 With hypocritical mockers in feasts, they gnashed upon me with their teeth. But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth: I humbled my soul with fasting; and my prayer returned into my own bosom. like , Genesis 49:12, from , construct state, like ) for a mother (the objective genitive, as in Genesis 27:41; Deuteronomy 34:8; Amos 8:10; Jeremiah 6:26). If we be at any time charged with what we are innocent of let us not think it strange, as though some new thing happened to us; so persecuted they the prophets, even the great prophet. The "aha, aha" was evidently a nasty kind of a derisive thing. He prays that God would act for him, and not stand by as a spectator (v. 17): "Lord, how long wilt thou look on? 8 Let destruction come upon him at unawares; and let his net that he hath hid catch himself: into that very destruction let him fall. If the kings of the earth set themselves against the Lord and his anointed, who can contend with them? ), and all to ruin them and root them out. Psalms 35:13 Meaning and Commentary Psalms 35:13 But as for me, when they were sick Or under any disorder or distress of body or mind, when any misfortune or infirmity attended them; meaning Saul and his courtiers, before David was persecuted by them; my clothing [was] sackcloth; His fasting also put an edge upon his praying, and was an expression of the fervour of it; he was so intent in his devotions that he had no appetite to meat, nor would allow himself time for eating: "My prayer returned into my own bosom; I had the comfort of having done my duty, and of having approved myself a loving neighbour, though I could not thereby win upon them nor make them my friends." David was a man of war, and of a bold stout spirit, and yet was thus susceptible of the impressions of sympathy, forgot the bravery of the hero, and seemed wholly made up of love and pity; it was a rare composition of hardiness and tenderness, courage and compassion, in the same breast. Nay, he had deserved well not only of the public in general, but of those particular persons that were now most bitter against him. Those that hated David thought scorn, like Haman, to lay hands on him alone, but contrived to involve all the religious people of the land in the same ruin with him. Psalm 35 NIV - Of David. Contend, LORD, with those who - Bible Gateway And of Your praise all the day long. But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing. 1. Much like Psalm 23 ends in abundance, so Jesus concludes this parable in an abundant image of his care, described so beautifully in the First Nations Version of the Gospel of John: "Following the Shepherd, they will go in and out and find good food to eat. Of the many interpretations that are given of this passage, that appears to me the most probable which derives it from the posture of the worshipper; who standing with his head inclined downward toward his bosom, turned away his attention from all external objects, and uttered his mournful and earnest requests, as if they were directed to his own bosom. He appeals to God's justice: Awake to my judgment, even to my cause, and let it have a hearing at thy bar, v. 23. No such patron of oppressed innocency, no such punisher of triumphant tyranny.