Psalms 71:2

2. Deliver me &c.] In thy righteousness wilt thou deliver me and rescue me: an expansion of the simpler rescue me in Psa_31:1. In thy righteousness stands emphatically at the beginning of the sentence in the Heb. The righteousness of God is a thought upon which this Psalmist loves to dwell (Psa_71:2; Psa_71:15-16; Psa_71:19; Psa_71:24). In virtue of that unchanging rectitude which is an inalienable attribute of Deity, He cannot desert His servant. He must be true to His promise. Cp. 2Ti_2:13.

incline] Or, bow down, as in Psa_31:2 : i.e. ‘bend a listening ear.’

save me] In Psa_31:2, deliver me speedily.

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.

Psa 71:2 Deliver me in thy righteousness, and cause me to escape: incline thine ear unto me, and save me.

Ver. 2. Deliver me in thy righteousness] Let my deliverance be the fruit of thy promise and of my prayer; and so it will be much the sweeter.

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 71:2. In thy righteousness thou wilt deliver me and cause me to escape; incline to me thine ear and save me. See above, on Psa 31:1-2, where the imperative form of the preceding clause is still retained, instead of being changed, as here, into the future. The verb deliver me there occurs in what is here the second clause; and the qualifying term, haste or quickly, is omitted in the case before us. The division of the sentences is also different, so that the verses do not exactly correspond.

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

By declaring thyself true of promise.

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

Deliver me in thy righteousness,.... By it, or "for the sake of it" (q); See Gill on Psa 31:1;

and cause me to escape; present danger, and out of the hands of enemies, as well as wrath to come, and eternal death; which nothing but the righteousness of God can deliver from, or cause to escape;

incline thine ear unto me; or "bow it"; See Gill on Psa 31:2;

and save me; out of all troubles and afflictions, and from wicked and unreasonable men.

(q) "propter justitiam tuam", Pagninus, Piscator; so Schmidt.

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

Deliver me in thy righteousness - See the notes at Psa 31:1. The first three verses of this psalm seem in fact to have been taken, with slight variations, from the first three verses of Ps. 31.

And cause me to escape - That is, from impending dangers; from the power of my enemies.

Incline thine ear unto me - In Psa 31:2, this is, “Bow down thine ear to me.” The idea is the same. See the notes at that place. Compare the notes at Psa 17:6.

And save me - In Psa 31:2, this is, “Deliver me speedily.”

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

Ver. 2. Deliver me in thy righteousness, and cause me to escape. Be true, O God, to thy word. It is a righteous thing in thee to keep the promises which thou hast made unto thy servants. I have trusted thee, and thou wilt not be unrighteous to forget my faith. I am taken as in a net, but do thou liberate me from the malice of my persecutors.

Incline thine ear unto me, and save me. Stoop to my feebleness, and hear my faint whispers; be gracious to my infirmities, and smile upon me: I ask salvation; listen thou to my petitions, and save me. Like one wounded and left for dead by mine enemies, I need that thou bend over me and bind up my wounds. These mercies are asked on the plea of faith, and they cannot, therefore, be denied.

Ver. 2. Deliver me in thy righteousness. Incline thine ear. Let my deliverance be the fruit of thy promise, and of my prayer; and so it will be much the sweeter. John Trapp.

Ver. 2. In thy righteousness. The righteousness of God is in this place that virtue by which he makes good his promises-- revenges injuries and rewards piety--which is elsewhere called his veracity. Upon this perfection David here calls, not because he was innocent before God, but because God had bound himself to him by promises, as if he were, in the presence of the men who were persecuting him, both innocent and righteous; and, therefore, worthy of being delivered from this last terrible calamity into which he has fallen through Absalom, since God had thus acted towards him. Hermann Venema.

Ver. 2. Thy righteousness. Not mine. He knew that he was being chastened for his sin against Uriah. He pleads no merit of his own. Simon de Muis.

Ver. 2. Incline thine ear. And since I am so wounded that I am not able to send up my cry to thee, the Most High, do thou incline thine ear to me as I lie half dead, left by the robbers who have wounded and spoiled me. Gerhohus.

Ver. 2. An appeal.

I. To the power of God: Deliver me.

II. To the faithfulness of God: In thy righteousness.

III. To the providence of God: Cause me to escape.

IV. To the condescension of God: Incline thine ear.

V. To the mercy of God: Save me.

Ver. 2. Cause me to escape. From whom? From what? How? By what power? For what end?

Psalms 71:3*

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

Deliver me in thy righteousness. Identical with the last clause cf. Psa_31:1. And cause me to escape. The danger seems to be pressing, and such as characterized Absalom"s rather than Adonijah"s rebellion. Incline thine ear unto me, and save me. (comp. Psa_31:2)

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