Psalms 86:1

Bow down thine ear, O LORD, hear me: for I am poor and needy. Psalms 86:1.-God's grace to His trusting people their ground of expecting deliverance (Psalms 86:1); His omnipotence to help, so that all nations shall at last worship Him (Psalms 86:6); God's special mercy to the suppliant in saving his soul from hell, for which he will praise God forever (Psalms 86:11); special prayer for deliverance from proud assailants (Psalms 86:14). The occasion was probably Absalom's revolt. Title. - A prayer of David....

1._Incline thy ear, O Jehovah! _Neither the inscription nor the contents of this psalm enable us to conclude with certainty what dangers David here complains of; but the psalm in all probability refers to that period of his life when he was persecuted by Saul, and describes the train of thought which then occupied his mind, although it may not have been written until after his restoration to a state of outward peace and tranquillity, when he enjoyed greater leisure. He does not without cause allege before God the oppressions which he endured as a plea for obtaining the divine favor; for nothing is more suitable to the nature of God than to succor the afflicted: and the more severely any one is oppressed, and the more destitute he is of the resources of human aid, the more inclined is God graciously to help him. That despair therefore may not overwhelm our minds under our greatest afflict...

1-7 Our poverty and wretchedness, when felt, powerfully plead in our behalf at the throne of grace. The best self-preservation is to commit ourselves to God's keeping. I am one whom thou favourest, hast set apart for thyself, and made partaker of sanctifying grace. It is a great encouragement to prayer, to feel that we have received the converting grace of God, have learned to trust in him, and to be his servants. We may expect comfort from God, when we keep up our communion with God. God's goodness appears in two things, in giving and forgiving. Whatever others do, let us call upon God, and commit our case to him; we shall not seek in vain....

PSALM LXXXVI _The psalmist prays to God for support, from a conviction that_ _he is merciful, good, ready to forgive, and that there is none_ _like him_, 1-8; _all nations shall bow before him because of his wondrous works_, 9, 10; _he prays to be instructed, and promises to praise God for his_ _great mercy_, 11-13; _describes his enemies, and appeals to God_, 14-16; _begs a token for God, that his enemies may be confounded_, 17. NOTES ON PSALM LXXXVI The...

BOW DOWN THINE EAR, O LORD, HEAR ME - See the notes at Psalms 5:1. FOR I AM POOR AND NEEDY - This is the reason here assigned why God should hear him. It is not a plea of merit. It is not that there was any claim on God in the fact that he was a poor and needy man - a sinner helpless and dependent, or that it would be any injustice if God should not hear, for a sinner has no claim to favor; but it is that this was a condition in which the aid of God was needed, and in which it was proper or appropriate for God to hear prayer, and to render help. We may always make our helplessness, our weakness, our poverty, our need, a ground of appeal to God; not as a claim of justice, but as a case in which he will glorify himself by a gracious interposition. It is also to be remarked that it is a matter of unspeakable thankfulness that t

EXPOSITION THIS is the prayer of an afflicted and humble soul in a time of persecution (Psalms 86:14), intermixed with outbursts of praise (Psalms 86:5, Psalms 86:8, Psalms 86:15) and thankfulness (Psalms 86:12, Psalms 86:13). It is assigned in the title to David, and contains nothing, either in matter or style, to make the ascription unlikely. Still, most modern critics regard the psalm as probably of a later date, and consider it the work

BOW DOWN THINE EAR, O LORD, HEAR ME,.... This is spoken of God after the manner of men, who, when they listen and attentively hearken to what is said to them, stoop and bow the head, and incline the ear; and it denotes condescension in the Lord, who humbles himself as to look upon men, so to bow down the ear and hearken to them: this favour is granted to the saints, to whom he is a God hearing and answering prayer, and which Christ, as man and Mediator, enjoyed; see Hebrews 5:7, FOR I AM POOR AND NEEDY; weak and feeble, destitute and distressed, and so wanted help and assistance; and which carries in it an argument or reason enforcing the above petition; for the Lord has a regard to the poor and needy; see Psalms 6:2. This may be understood literally, it being the common case of the people of God,

Psalms 86 A Prayer _ 1. The prayer of the poor and needy one (Psalms 86:1)_ 2. The praise of His Name (Psalms 86:10) This Psalm has for an inscription “A prayer of David.” We can hear in it the voice of the Son of David, our Lord, pleading in the place of humiliation, and also the pleadings of the remnant saints. The prophetic element enters in with Psalms 86:9. “All nations whom Thou hast made shall come and worship before thee O Lord.” This will be the glorious result of His humiliation. Into the many and precious details of this Psalm we cannot enter. The name of the Lord (Adonai) is found seven times in this Psalm

LXXXVI. THE PRAYER OF A GODLY MAN IN AFFLICTION. This Ps. is little more than a cento from the rest of the Psalter. PSALMS 86:1. The Psalmist prays for succour, pleading God's mercy and his own piety. For piety, see Psalms 4:3. PSALMS 86:8. The incomparable greatness of God, which all nations will in the end acknowledge. PSALMS 86:11. Prayer for Divine guidance and for a token that God is on his side, not on that of his more prosperous foes. PSALMS 86:11. TO FEAR: read, to them that fear. The LXX reads

TITLE.. PRAYER. An Intercession, or Hymn. Compare Psalms 72:20, referring to the whole of Book II. Hebrew. _Tephillah._ See App-63. OF DAVID. The only Psalm in this third book ascribed to David. Refers to David's Son and Lord. LORD. Hebrew. _Jehovah._ App-4. HEAR. answer. POOR. helpless. Hebrew. _'ebyon._ See note on Proverbs 6:11....