1 A Prayer of the afflicted when he is feeble, and before Jehovah poureth out his plaint. O Jehovah, hear my prayer, yea, my cry to Thee cometh.
From the end of the land unto Thee I call, In the feebleness of my heart, Into a rock higher than I Thou dost lead me.
In mine adversity I call Jehovah, And unto my God I cry. He heareth from His temple my voice, And My cry before Him cometh into His ears.
To the Overseer. -- `On the Lilies,' by David. Save me, O God, for come have waters unto the soul. I have sunk in deep mire, And there is no standing, I have come into the depths of the waters, And a flood hath overflown me.
who in the days of his flesh both prayers and supplications unto Him who was able to save him from death -- with strong crying and tears -- having offered up, and having been heard in respect to that which he feared,
Thou hast covered Thyself with a cloud, So that prayer doth not pass through.
And I say, Perished hath my strength and my hope from Jehovah. Remember my affliction and my mourning, Wormwood and gall! Remember well, and bow down doth my soul in me.
The desire of those fearing Him He doth, And their cry He heareth, and saveth them.
Haste, answer me, O Jehovah, My spirit hath been consumed, Hide not Thou Thy face from me, Or I have been compared with those going down `to' the pit.
I pour forth before Him my meditation, My distress before Him I declare. When my spirit hath been feeble in me, Then Thou hast known my path; In the way `in' which I walk, They have hid a snare for me.
A Song of the Ascents. From depths I have called Thee, Jehovah. Lord, hearken to my voice, Thine ears are attentive to the voice of my supplications.
To the Overseer with stringed instruments. -- An instruction, by David. Give ear, O God, `to' my prayer, And hide not from my supplication. Attend to me, and answer me, I mourn in my meditation, and make a noise, Because of the voice of an enemy, Because of the oppression of the wicked, For they cause sorrow to move against me, And in anger they hate me. My heart is pained within me, And terrors of death have fallen on me. Fear and trembling come in to me, And horror doth cover me.
Hear my prayer, O Jehovah, And `to' my cry give ear, Unto my tear be not silent, For a sojourner I `am' with Thee, A settler like all my fathers.
and the priests, the Levites, rise and bless the people, and their voice is heard, and their prayer cometh in to His holy habitation, to the heavens.
`At this time tomorrow, I send unto thee a man out of the land of Benjamin -- and thou hast anointed him for leader over My people Israel, and he hath saved My people out of the hand of the Philistines; for I have seen My people, for its cry hath come in unto Me.'
And Hannah answereth and saith, `No, my lord, A woman sharply pained in spirit I `am', and wine and strong drink I have not drunk, and I pour out my soul before Jehovah; put not thy handmaid before a daughter of worthlessness, for from the abundance of my meditation, and of my provocation, I have spoken hitherto.'
And they turn aside the gods of the stranger out of their midst, and serve Jehovah, and His soul is grieved with the misery of Israel.
To the Overseer. -- A Psalm of David. O the happiness of him Who is acting wisely unto the poor, In a day of evil doth Jehovah deliver him. Jehovah doth preserve him and revive him, He is happy in the land, And Thou givest him not into the will of his enemies.
Be attentive to the voice of my cry, My king and my God, For unto Thee I pray habitually.
Because of the spoiling of the poor, Because of the groaning of the needy, Now do I arise, saith Jehovah, I set in safety `him who' doth breathe for it.
I remember God, and make a noise, I meditate, and feeble is my spirit. Selah.
Trust in Him at all times, O people, Pour forth before Him your heart, God `is' a refuge for us. Selah.
To the Overseer. -- `Destroy not.' -- A secret treasure of David, in his fleeing from the face of Saul into a cave. Favour me, O God, favour me, For in Thee is my soul trusting, And in the shadow of Thy wings I trust, Until the calamities pass over. I call to God Most High, To God `who' is perfecting for me. He sendeth from the heaven, and saveth me, He reproached -- who is panting after me. Selah. God sendeth forth His kindness and His truth.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Psalms 102
Commentary on Psalms 102 Matthew Henry Commentary
Psalm 102
Some think that David penned this psalm at the time of Absalom's rebellion; others that Daniel, Nehemiah, or some other prophet, penned it for the use of the church, when it was in captivity in Babylon, because it seems to speak of the ruin of Zion and of a time set for the rebuilding of it, which Daniel understood by books, Dan. 9:2. Or perhaps the psalmist was himself in great affliction, which he complains of in the beginning of the psalm, but (as in Ps. 77 and elsewhere) he comforts himself under it with the consideration of God's eternity, and the church's prosperity and perpetuity, how much soever it was now distressed and threatened. But it is clear, from the application of v. 25, 26, to Christ (Heb. 1:10-12), that the psalm has reference to the days of the Messiah, and speaks either of his affliction or of the afflictions of his church for his sake. In the psalm we have,
In singing this psalm, if we have not occasion to make the same complaints, yet we may take occasion to sympathize with those that have, and then the comfortable part of this psalm will be the more comfortable to us in the singing of it.
A prayer of the afflicted, when he is overwhelmed, and poureth out his complaint before the Lord.
Psa 102:1-11
The title of this psalm is very observable; it is a prayer of the afflicted. It was composed by one that was himself afflicted, afflicted with the church and for it; and on those that are of a public spirit afflictions of that kind lie heavier than any other. It is calculated for an afflicted state, and is intended for the use of others that may be in the like distress; for whatsoever things were written aforetime were written designedly for our use. The whole word of God is of use to direct us in prayer; but here, as often elsewhere, the Holy Ghost has drawn up our petition for us, has put words into our mouths. Hos. 14:2, Take with you words. Here is a prayer put into the hands of the afflicted: let them set, not their hands, but their hearts to it, and present it to God. Note,
Psa 102:12-22
Many exceedingly great and precious comforts are here thought of, and mustered up, to balance the foregoing complaints; for unto the upright there arises light in the darkness, so that, though they are cast down, they are not in despair. It is bad with the psalmist himself, bad with the people of God; but he has many considerations to revive himself with.
Psa 102:23-28
We may here observe,