* A depiction of the High Priest at the Mercy Seat, the covering of the Ark of the Covenant which was placed within first the tent of meeting, then the temple in Shiloh, then a tent on Mount Zion, and finally within the temple. The name Mercy Seat is based on the earliest Greek and Latin translations. It is compared to the throne of grace (Hebrews 9:5; Ephesians 2:6). Some suggest that the Mercy Seat was actually the incense that was burned by the high priest on the great day of atonement, and upon or toward which the blood of the goat was sprinkled.
The artwork is in the 1890 Holman Bible.
>1. Who is the author and what is the opening line? What poetic illustration is given? (1)
* Psalm 69:1 "Save me, O God, for the waters have come up to my neck."
* The title is "For the director of music. To the tune of 'Lilies.' Of David." See psalm 45 for another reference to the tune "Lilies". "Lilies" is translated from the Hebrew noun "Shushan" which means "Lily" and "Lilies". That is why the KJV has "To the chief Musician upon Shoshannim..."
Some commentaries wonder if David was the author stating it could be Hezekiah or Jeremiah. I am not sure why someone has a need to suggest someone else based on what they want to suspect with no supporting evidence to support something less than a hunch.
* Psalm 69 can be broken up into these stanzas. I did this trying to follow the logic and flow. 1-3, 4-5, 6-9, 10-12, 13-15, 16-19, 20-21, 22-25, 26-28, 29-32, 33-36.
* The occasion that David wrote this psalm can not be discovered from the psalm, nor the historical books of the Bible.
* Psalm 69 is the second most highly quoted psalm in the New Testament, seven times, because it foreshadows Jesus' suffering. Psalm 22 is the most one quoted in the New Testament.
* Psalm 69 and other Davidic psalms are the reason why many classify David as a type of Christ, or in other words, a person whose life typified the type of life that Jesus lived. I like to believe that those who live by the truth of God and live by faith will experience the things that Jesus, David, the prophets, and the apostles did. Jesus said so.
* John 2:17 quotes verse 9. Matthew 27:24 and 48, Mark 15:23, and John 19:29 quote verse 21 applying it to Jesus' suffering caused by the Jewish leadership. Apostle Paul quotes verse 22 as a prophecy of the wickedness of the Jews, and the punishment they were to receive. He also quotes verse 23 in the same way.
* Compare to Psalms 22, 31, 35, 38, 40, and 109.
* When studying this psalm, taking lead from the places the gospel writers places quotes from in this psalm, we should consider Jesus first and second coming with hints of the Church age.
* "Save me, O God" -"Yasha Elohim" in the original Greek. "Elohim" being the first word for God in the Bible (Genesis 1:1). "Yasha" is a primitive root verb.
* "for the waters have come up to my neck" -A common mediator in Biblical poetry. Examples: Psalm 40:2 and Jonah 2:5 which reads, "The engulfing waters threatened me, the deep surrounded me; seaweed was wrapped around my head."
* Introduction.
Psalm 69 is the first of three prayer-psalms asking for deliverance when threatened by enemies. It is the prayer of one who is in deep distress by wounds inflicted by God (26), wrongfully persecuted by enemies, and conscious that, though he knows he is with sin, yet, still innocent of any crime (5), his sufferings are due to his obligations to God.
This, according to the New Testament authors, is Jesus, who is suffering because of the sins of others, placed on him while on the cross, while himself remains innocent of sin. This psalm, like Psalm 22, is an expression of feelings of our Savior in the flesh and the coming punishment of those who placed him there.
This psalm also stands as an encouragement because we live like Jesus, and yet are persecuted just like he was. As Jesus rose from death and was exalted, so we will be saved and exalted with him.
>How does the author continue the illustration of danger of nearly drowning in verse 2? What is David portraying? How might this be like being in the grave (consider what water baptism represents? (Romans 6:4 Colossians 2:12, 1 Peter 3:21)
* Psalm 69:2 "I sink in the miry depths, where there is no foothold. I have come into the deep waters; the floods engulf me."
* Romans 6:4 "We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life."
* Colossians 2:12 "having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead."
* 1 Peter 3:20-22 "who disobeyed long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also--not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at God's right hand--with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him."
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* Psalm 69:3 "I am worn out calling for help; my throat is parched. My eyes fail, looking for my God."
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>2.
* Psalm 69:4 "Those who hate me without reason outnumber the hairs of my head; many are my enemies without cause, those who seek to destroy me. I am forced to restore what I did not steal."
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* Psalm 69:5 "You know my folly, O God; my guilt is not hidden from you."
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>3.
* Psalm 69:6 "May those who hope in you not be disgraced because of me, O Lord, the LORD Almighty; may those who seek you not be put to shame because of me, O God of Israel."
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* Psalm 69:7 "For I endure scorn for your sake, and shame covers my face."
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* Psalm 69:8 "I am a stranger to my brothers, an alien to my own mother's sons;"
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* Psalm 69:9 "for zeal for your house consumes me, and the insults of those who insult you fall on me."
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>4.
* Psalm 69:10 "When I weep and fast, I must endure scorn;"
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* Psalm 69:11 "when I put on sackcloth, people make sport of me."
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* Psalm 69:12 "Those who sit at the gate mock me, and I am the song of the drunkards."
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II. Come Near and Rescue Me (69:13-21)
* David kills a lion, thus saving a lamb. Author unknown. This is a fine example of pointillism.
>5.
* Psalm 69:13 "But I pray to you, O LORD, in the time of your favor; in your great love, O God, answer me with your sure salvation."
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* Psalm 69:14 "Rescue me from the mire, do not let me sink; deliver me from those who hate me, from the deep waters."
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* Psalm 69:15 "Do not let the floodwaters engulf me or the depths swallow me up or the pit close its mouth over me."
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>6.
* Psalm 69:16 "Answer me, O LORD, out of the goodness of your love; in your great mercy turn to me."
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* Psalm 69:17 "Do not hide your face from your servant; answer me quickly, for I am in trouble."
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* Psalm 69:18 "Come near and rescue me; redeem me because of my foes."
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* Psalm 69:19 "You know how I am scorned, disgraced and shamed; all my enemies are before you."
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>7.
* Psalm 69:20 "Scorn has broken my heart and has left me helpless; I looked for sympathy, but there was none, for comforters, but I found none."
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* Psalm 69:21 "They put gall in my food and gave me vinegar for my thirst."
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III. Summon Your Power (69:22-36)
* David plays the harp before troubled Saul. This would not have been the harp that David played. Author unknown. This is a fine example of pointillism.
>8.
* Psalm 69:22 "May the table set before them become a snare; may it become retribution and a trap."
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* Psalm 69:23 "May their eyes be darkened so they cannot see, and their backs be bent forever."
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* Psalm 69:24 "Pour out your wrath on them; let your fierce anger overtake them."
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* Psalm 69:25 "May their place be deserted; let there be no one to dwell in their tents."
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>9.
* Psalm 69:26 "For they persecute those you wound and talk about the pain of those you hurt."
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* Psalm 69:27 "Charge them with crime upon crime; do not let them share in your salvation."
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* Psalm 69:28 "May they be blotted out of the book of life and not be listed with the righteous."
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>10.
* Psalm 69:29 "I am in pain and distress; may your salvation, O God, protect me."
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* Psalm 69:30 "I will praise God's name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving."
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* Psalm 69:31 "This will please the LORD more than an ox, more than a bull with its horns and hoofs."
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* Psalm 69:32 "The poor will see and be glad-- you who seek God, may your hearts live!"
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>11.
* Psalm 69:33 "The LORD hears the needy and does not despise his captive people."
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* Psalm 69:34 "Let heaven and earth praise him, the seas and all that move in them,"
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* Psalm 69:35 "for God will save Zion and rebuild the cities of Judah. Then people will settle there and possess it;"
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* Psalm 69:36 "the children of his servants will inherit it, and those who love his name will dwell there."
