Psalms 69

Berean Standard Bible · Compare translations · Tap a verse to copy, share or highlight ·

36 verses · 607 words · ~3 min read · ~4 min listen

The Waters Are up to My Neck

For the choirmaster. To the tune of “Lilies.” Of David.

¹Save me, O God,

for the waters are up to my neck.

²I have sunk into the miry depths,

where there is no footing;

I have drifted into deep waters,

where the flood engulfs me.

³I am weary from my crying;

my throat is parched.

My eyes fail,

looking for my God.

⁴Those who hate me without cause

outnumber the hairs of my head;

many are those who would destroy me—

my enemies for no reason.

Though I did not steal,

I must repay.

⁵You know my folly, O God,

and my guilt is not hidden from You.

⁶May those who hope in You not be ashamed through me,

O Lord God of Hosts;

may those who seek You not be dishonored through me,

O God of Israel.

⁷For I have endured scorn for Your sake,

and shame has covered my face.

⁸I have become a stranger to my brothers

and a foreigner to my motherʼs sons,

⁹because zeal for Your house has consumed me,

and the insults of those who insult You have fallen on me.

¹⁰I wept and fasted,

but it brought me reproach.

¹¹I made sackcloth my clothing,

and I was sport to them.

¹²Those who sit at the gate mock me,

and I am the song of drunkards.

¹³But my prayer to You, O Lord,

is for a time of favor.

In Your abundant loving devotion, O God,

answer me with Your sure salvation.

¹⁴Rescue me from the mire

and do not let me sink;

deliver me from my foes

and out of the deep waters.

¹⁵Do not let the floods engulf me

or the depths swallow me up;

let not the Pit close its mouth over me.

¹⁶Answer me, O Lord,

for Your loving devotion is good;

turn to me in keeping with Your great compassion.

¹⁷Hide not Your face from Your servant,

for I am in distress.

Answer me quickly!

¹⁸Draw near to my soul and redeem me;

ransom me because of my foes.

¹⁹You know my reproach, my shame and disgrace.

All my adversaries are before You.

²⁰Insults have broken my heart,

and I am in despair.

I looked for sympathy, but there was none,

for comforters, but I found no one.

²¹They poisoned my food with gall

and gave me vinegar to quench my thirst.

²²May their table become a snare;

may it be a retribution and a trap.

²³May their eyes be darkened so they cannot see,

and their backs be bent forever.

²⁴Pour out Your wrath upon them,

and let Your burning anger overtake them.

²⁵May their place be deserted;

let there be no one to dwell in their tents.

²⁶For they persecute the one You struck

and recount the pain of those You wounded.

²⁷Add iniquity to their iniquity;

let them not share in Your righteousness.

²⁸May they be blotted out of the Book of Life

and not listed with the righteous.

²⁹But I am in pain and distress;

let Your salvation protect me, O God.

³⁰I will praise Godʼs name in song

and exalt Him with thanksgiving.

³¹And this will please the Lord more than an ox,

more than a bull with horns and hooves.

³²The humble will see and rejoice.

You who seek God, let your hearts be revived!

³³For the Lord listens to the needy

and does not despise His captive people.

³⁴Let heaven and earth praise Him,

the seas and everything that moves in them.

³⁵For God will save Zion

and rebuild the cities of Judah,

that they may dwell there and possess it.

³⁶The descendants of His servants will inherit it,

and those who love His name will settle in it.

Footnotes (6)

a v4 See John 15:25
b v9 Cited in John 2:17
c v9 Cited in Romans 15:3
d v22 A slight revocalization of the Hebrew (see also LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate); literally may their prosperity be a trap; cited in Romans 11:9
e v23 LXX; Hebrew and may their loins tremble continually; cited in Romans 11:10
f v25 Cited in Acts 1:20

Study notes on this chapter · 3

Prophecy & fulfillmentLinked by the New Testament

They hated me without a cause

Jesus tells his disciples that the world's hatred of him fulfils a line 'written in their Law': they hated me without reason. The phrase appears in both Psalm 35 and Psalm 69, psalms of David's unjust suffering. 'Law' here means Scripture broadly.

When: Psalms of David, c. 1000 BC; Jesus' upper-room discourse, c. AD 30–33.

Original passagePsalms 69:4Psalms 35:19

Where the New Testament applies itJohn 15:24–25

Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.

Prophecy & fulfillmentLinked by the New Testament

Zeal for your house; vinegar for my thirst

A psalm of a suffering righteous man. John connects 'zeal for your house consumes me' to Jesus cleansing the temple, and the gospels connect 'they gave me vinegar for my thirst' to the cross.

When: Written by David; events c. AD 30–33.

Original passagePsalms 69:9Psalms 69:21

Where the New Testament applies itJohn 2:17Matthew 27:34John 19:28–29

Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.

Prophecy & fulfillmentLinked by the New Testament

Let another take his office

Before choosing a replacement for Judas, Peter says that Scripture had to be fulfilled, and joins two psalms of David: one about a desolate homestead and one about another taking his position of oversight. Both psalms describe the suffering of the righteous at the hands of enemies, and Peter applies them to Judas.

When: Psalms of David, c. 1000 BC; Peter's speech in Jerusalem, c. AD 30–33.

Original passagePsalms 69:25Psalms 109:8

Where the New Testament applies itActs 1:15–22

Editorial note by BibleWay. Interpretations vary; dates are approximate scholarly estimates.

See all prophecy & fulfillment notes →

Psalms 69

The Waters Are up to My Neckⓘ

Study notes on this chapter · 3

They hated me without a cause

Zeal for your house; vinegar for my thirst

Let another take his office

The Waters Are up to My Neck