Psalms 69:6

Psa 69:6 Let not them that wait on thee, O Lord GOD of hosts, be ashamed for my sake: let not those that seek thee be confounded for my sake, O God of Israel.

Ver. 6. Let not them … be ashamed for my sake] Give me not up to passions of dishonour, to opprobrious practices, whereby religion might be reproached, or good people reviled and abused, much less staggered and set at a stand by my sufferings.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Psa_69:6

Let not them that wait on Thee, O Lord, be ashamed for my sake.

Esprit de corps

This poet is afraid that if he misbehaves himself people will exalt themselves against God, and say with mocking laughter, These are Thy saints! Even whilst he is sinking he would wish to do it with some grace. Extinction itself may be crowned with a species of honour. Death need not be humiliation. There are men who have so died as to have lived a thousand lives in their last combat. Have we lost esprit de corps? Do you not remember that we are involved in the way in which you bear your troubles? If you do not play the man now the enemy will laugh at the whole Church; he will gladly take you up as a specimen of Gods sustaining grace, and say, This is the man who prayed: how chopfallen now I see how that once proud chin hangs on the collapsing breast: this is prayer! If I do not bear myself heroically in the storm, the enemy will have a right to laugh at this pulpit, and to put his foot of contempt upon this whole ministry. If I play the atheist in the darkness, then may men justly meek what I endeavour to say in the light. The mockery will be directed against God, not against men. Moses felt this; he said, If they go back, they will say Thou thyself wert not able to take us forward; and if saints do not play the hero in the time of real combat and desperate difficulty, when everything is going down, when business is dull, when enemies are strong, when health is quaking, people will blame not them only but God, and say, This is the doing of the Lord; why, what advantage is it that we pray to Him? or what profit have we in waiting upon God? the saint and the dog die in the same agony. Thus we recover ourselves, under the blessing of God, by thinking of others. (J. Parker, D. D.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Psa 69:6. Let not them that wait on thee — The truly pious, who believe thy promises, and look to thee for the fulfilment of them; who are conscious of their own weakness, and of the insufficiency of all human aid, and therefore apply to thee, and trust in thee for the help they want; be ashamed — That is, frustrated of their just and reasonable expectations, which would make them ashamed of their past confidence in thee, and either to look up to thee in future, or to look upon their enemies with assurance, when they shall reproach them for their trust in thee; for my sake — Because of my sad disappointments. For, if they see me forsaken, they will be discouraged by this example; or, let them not hang down their heads for shame to see me, who am thy worshipper, deserted of thee. He was afraid, if God did not appear for him, it would be a discouragement to other pious people, and give their enemies cause to triumph over them; and it was his earnest desire, whatever became of himself, that all the true people of God might retain their confidence and hope in God, and their boldness in his cause, and neither be discouraged in themselves, nor exposed to contempt from others.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

7. (Psa 69:6). Let not them be ashamed in me that wait for thee, Lord, Jehovah, of Hosts; let not them be disgraced in me that seek thee, God of Israel! He prays that the principle laid down in Psa 25:3 may not be falsified. In me, not merely by me, or because of me, but in me, as the representative of the whole class. Ashamed, disappointed and defeated in their hopes. Wait for thee, for thine appearance and the fulfilment of thy promises. Seek thee, i.e. seek to know thee, and enjoy thy favour.

Joseph Addison Alexander, The Psalms Translated and Explained (1850) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Let not mine evil entreaty of the enemies be an occasion, that the faithful fall from thee.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

for my sake--literally, "in me," in my confusion and shame.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 6. Be ashamed for my sake] The sins of the Jews were a great stumbling-block in the way of the conversion of the Gentiles. They had been the peculiar people of the Lord. "How," say the Gentiles, "can a pure and holy Being love such people?" They were now punished for their crimes. "How," say the Gentiles, "can God deal so hardly with those whom he professes to love?" The pious among the captives felt keenly, because this reproach seemed to fall upon their gracious and merciful God.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

6 O Jehovah, Lord of Hosts! let not them that wait for thee be ashamed in me. David declares that he is set forth as an example from which all the people of God may derive matter either of hope or despair. Although he was held in detestation and execrated by the great body of the people, there yet remained a few who were ready to bear just and impartial testimony to his innocence; knowing as they did that he was unrighteously afflicted by his persecutors, that he constantly reposed on the grace and goodness of God, and that no temptations could discourage or prevent him from continuing steadfast in the practice of true godliness. But when they observed the distresses and calamities to which he was notwithstanding subjected, the only conclusion to which they were able to arrive was, that all the pains and labor which he had taken in devoutly serving God were entirely thrown away. As all the instances in which God extends his succor to his servants are so many seals, by which he confirms and gives us assurance of his goodness and grace towards us, the faithful must have been exceedingly discouraged had David been forsaken in the extremity of his distress. The danger of their being thus discouraged he now lays before God; not that God has ever need of being put in mind of any thing, but because he allows us to deal familiarly with him at the throne of grace. The word wait is properly to be understood of hope, and the expression to seek God, of prayer. The connecting of the two together teaches us the profitable lesson, that faith is not all inactive principle, since it is the means of stirring us up to seek God.

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

(6) Let not them.—We again meet the feeling so common in the Psalms (see especially Psa_44:17-22), that the sufferings of any member of Israel must bring dishonour on the name of Jehovah and on His religion. Here, however, it seems to touch a higher chord of feeling and to approach the true Churchmanship—the esprit de corps of the Kingdom of Heaven—which attaches a greater heinousness to the sin because it may harm the brethren. Not only would Jehovah be dishonoured in the sight of the heathen if He seemed to be disregarding His part of the covenant, but for an Israelite to have violated his part brought shame on all Israel.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

6. Let not those that wait on thee be ashamed through me,

O Lord, Jehovah of hosts:

Let not those that seek thee be brought to dishonour through me, O God of Israel.

Cp. Psa_25:3; Psa_38:15-16. The divine titles are significant. They appeal to God’s sovereignty and to His relation to His people. Surely, since He has the power to prevent it, He cannot leave the true Israel to be the scorn of its foes, as will happen through me, or, in my case, if I am left to perish unregarded.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Let not them that wait on thee, O Lord God of hosts, be ashamed for my sake,.... Of their expectation of redemption and salvation by the Messiah, they have been waiting upon the Lord for; when they shall see him in suffering circumstances, and even dead and laid in the grave, without any hope of his rising again; which was the case of the two disciples travelling to Emmaus, Luk 24:19; whose trust in him, and expectation of him, as the Redeemer of Israel, were almost gone. The people of God, and believers in Christ, are described by such that "wait on the Lord"; for the coming of Christ, and salvation by him; who would be in danger of being put to shame and in confusion, when they should see him under the power of death and the grave; wherefore in this petition Christ addresses his divine Father as "the Lord God of hosts", of armies above and below, as God omnipotent; partly to encourage their trust and confidence in him, and partly to encourage his own faith as man, that this petition would be answered;

let not those that seek thee: in the word and ordinances, by prayer and supplication, with all their hearts, in Christ, in whom the Lord is only to be found, and for life and happiness:

be confounded for my sake; that is, through his sufferings and death, as before:

O God of Israel; the covenant God of the spiritual Israel, whom he has chosen, the Messiah redeems, and the Spirit makes Israelites indeed.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Let not them that wait on thee - Those who worship thee; those who are thy true friends. True piety is often, in the Scriptures, represented as waiting on the Lord. See Psa 25:3, Psa 25:5; Psa 37:9; Isa 40:31.

Be ashamed for my sake - On account of me; or, in consequence of what I do. Let me not be suffered to do anything that would make them ashamed of me, or ashamed to have it known that I belong to their number. I know that I am a sinner; I know that judgments come justly on me; I know that if left to myself I shall fall into sin, and shall dishonor religion; and I pray, therefore, that I may be kept from acting out the depravity of my heart, and bringing dishonor on the cause that I profess to love. No one who knows the evil of his own heart can fail to see the propriety of this prayer; no one who remembers how often people high in the church, and zealous in their professed piety, fall into sin, and disgrace their profession, can help feeling that what has happened to others “may” happen to him also, and that he has need of special prayer, and special grace, that he may go down into the grave at last without having brought dishonor upon religion.

Let not those that seek thee - Another phrase to denote people of true piety - as those who are “seeking” after God; that is, who are desirous of understanding his character, and obtaining his favor.

Be confounded for my sake - Let them not feel “disgraced” in me; let them not feel it a dishonor to have it said that I am one of their number, or that I profess to be united to them.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Them that wait on thee, i.e. thy godly people, who rely upon thy promises which thou hast made to all thine in general, and to me in a special manner, wherein they also are concerned.

Ashamed, i.e. frustrated of their just hopes; which will make them ashamed, either to look upon God, or to look upon their enemies, when they shall reproach them for their confidence in God.

For my sake; either,

1. For the sake of my sins last mentioned; let not all good men suffer for my sins. Or,

2. Because of my sad disappointments. For if they see me rejected and forsaken of God, whom they have esteemed a great example of faith, and prayer, and all virtue and piety, they will be exceedingly discouraged by this example; which will tend much to thy dishonour and disservice.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Ver. 6. Let not them that wait on thee, O Lord God of hosts, be ashamed for my sake. If he were deserted, others who were walking in the same path of faith would be discouraged and disappointed. Unbelievers are ready enough to catch at anything which may turn humble faith into ridicule, therefore, O God of all the armies of Israel, let not my case cause the enemy to blaspheme--such is the spirit of this verse. Our blessed Lord ever had a tender concern for his people, and would not have his own oppression of spirit become a source of discouragement to them.

Let not those that seek thee be confounded for my sake, O God of Israel. He appealed to the Lord of hosts by his power to help him, and now to the God of Israel by his covenant faithfulness to come to the rescue. If the captain of the host fail, how will it fare with the rank and file? If David flee, what will his followers do? If the king of believers shall find his faith unrewarded, how will the feeble ones hold on their way? Our Lord's behaviour during his sharpest agonies is no cause of shame to us; he wept, for he was man, but he murmured not, for he was sinless man; he cried, "My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; "for he was human, but he added, "Nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt, "for his humanity was without taint of rebellion. In the depths of tribulation no repining word escaped him, for there was no repining in his heart. The Lord of martyrs witnessed a good confession. He was strengthened in the hour of peril, and came off more than a conqueror, as we also shall do, if we hold fast our confidence even to the end.

Ver. 6. Let not them that wait on thee, O Lord God of hosts, be ashamed for my sake, etc. This says, that unless the carriage and deportment of the godly man redounds to the comfort of all the rest of the godly, it in some way tends to the discredit of the godly. Since this is the case, when they slip aside, or carry not aright; since they are all in hazard of doing so, it should be matter of affecting and afflicting exercise, lest they do so. Fellow professors are ashamed of the person that walketh not aright; they are ashamed that ever they should have been in company or fellowship with him; they are ashamed that ever such a person should have owned such a cause, and that ever such a thing should have befallen a professor of such a cause; and, besides, they are weakened by him in their hopes of persevering for themselves. Again, they are in hazard of being a discredit to all the godly, because, say they, it seems the Lord has granted no peremptory promise, as to the manner of their final perseverance; and corruption enough remains in them still, to overturn all their stock of grace, if they get not present renewed influences. William Guthrie. 1620-1655.

Ver. 6. Ashamed for my sake. I pray that they may not be confounded by external enemies with their boundless insults and reproaches, because they seem to be the worshippers of a God crucified and dead, and are themselves like dead men, and lie rotting before his sepulchre, as if their good name were gone. Rather let my enemies who do not wish me to live be terror stricken at my angelic countenance, and fall like the dead. Gerhohus.

Ver. 6. For my sake. yb: more exactly, in me. In these words the voice of the Sponsor of his people's peace is clearly audible. The prayer of the Sufferer has its answer in the declarative testimony which now forms the basis of the gospel: "He that believeth on him shall not be confounded." 1Pe 2:6. Arthur Pridham.

Ver. 6. Because I, for their sakes, do at thy command bear that shame which they should else have done, Lord, take it off from them, because thou hast laid it upon me; so it expressly follows, Ps 69:7: Because for thy sake I have borne reproach; shame hath covered my face. Thomas Goodwin.

None.

Psalms 69:7*

Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

6. Ashamed for my sake—Literally, ashamed in me. The form of speech is exactly similar to “offended in me.” Mat_11:6. The meaning is, Let not them that wait on thee be turned out of the way on account of my sufferings and apparent abandonment. The humility, poverty, and persecutions of Jesus were the occasion of turning many aside. See Mat_13:21; Mat_13:57; Mat_26:31; Mat_26:33

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Let not them that wait on thee (or, hope in thee), O Lord God of hosts, be ashamed for my sake; or, through me (Revised Version); on my account (Kay) as they would be if I, although thy faithful worshipper, were delivered into my enemies" hands. Let not those that seek thee be confounded for my sake, O God of Israel. One of the many places where the second clause is a simple echo of the first.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

For my sake - Because of my sad disappointments. For if they see me forsaken, they will be discouraged by this example.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.