Psalms 86:6

Psa 86:6 Give ear, O LORD, unto my prayer; and attend to the voice of my supplications.

Ver. 6. Give ear, O Lord, &c.] The hearing of our duties is earnestly to be sought and reckoned among our chiefest mercies.

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_86:6-7

Give ear, O Lord, unto my prayer.

Concerning prayer

In such a prayer-psalm as this, there is no studying of language: it is the pouring out of the heart as the heart boils over, the utterance of the desires as they bubble up from the souls deeps, with an entire carelessness as to the fashion of the expression. This ought to be a hint to you when you pray. Do not study how to arrange your words when you come before the Lord. When your heart is like a boiling geyser, let it steam aloft in pillars of prayer. The overflowing of the soul is the best praying in the world.

I. David in his prayer sought, beyond all things, to have personal intercourse with God. To my mind that is just the distinction between prayer before conversion and prayer after it. Note well that David, while he thus sought to have dealings with God, to come to close grips with the Lord in the act of prayer, was not presumptuously bold. He perceives the condescension of such fellowship on Gods part. This may be seen in the first line: Bow down Thine ear, O Lord, hear me. As if he said, Thou art so high that, unless Thou shalt stoop very low, Thou canst not commune with me. But, Lord, do thus stoop. Bow down Thine ear. From Thy lofty throne, higher than an angels wing can reach, stoop Thou down and listen to me--poor, feeble me. As you further read in this psalm, you will notice that David, in order to obtain this high privilege, pleads his need of it. He cries, I am poor and needy; as much as to say, Lord, do come to me, do let me have personal intercourse witch Thee, for nothing else will serve my turn. I am so poor that Thou alone canst enrich me; I am so feeble that Thou alone canst sustain me. Thou hast made me: Lord, forsake not the work of Thine own hands; I, Thy child, am full of wants, which Thou only canst supply. Oh, deal with me in great compassion! He next pleads his personal consecration: Preserve my soul, for I am holy--consecrated and dedicated to the Divine service. Moreover, David, anxious to use every argument, pleads his trust: Save Thy servant that trusteth in Thee. This is s conquering plea: Lord, my sole reliance is on Thee; come to me, then, and justify the confidence which Thou Thyself hast inspired. Then, notice that David pleads for Gods presence because He is Gods servant. Save Thy servant. He urges yet another reason why just now he should see God, namely, that he is always in prayer: I cry unto Thee daily. Blessed are we when prayer surrounds us like an atmosphere. Then we are living in the presence of God; we are continually conversing with Him. May we climb to the top of the mount of communion, and may we never come down from it! David also tells the Lord that, when he could not attain to the nearness he desired, yet he struggled after it, and strained after it. Now, when a mans daily cries and inward strivings are after God, he may certainly expect that God in prayer will have intercourse with him. There are occasions with all His people when the Lord brings them very near, and speaks with them, and they with Him, when His presence is to them as real as the all-pervading air, and they are as much rejoiced in it as in the presence of father, or wife, or child, or friend. Still David, conscious of the great privilege which he sought, was not content without pleading the master argument of all: he pleads the great goodness of the Lord. For Thou, Lord, art good. As much as to say, If Thou wert not good Thou wouldst never listen to me. I am, as it were, a noxious insect which a man might far sooner crush than speak with; and yet Thou art so good, my God, that instead of setting Thy foot on me, Thou dost lift me up and talk with me.

II. David desired personal answers from God. We hear our fellow-Christians say, when we tell them of instances in which God has heard our prayers, How very extraordinary! And we look at them, and say, Extraordinary? Has it become an extraordinary thing for God to be true to His own promise? I like better the remark of the good old lady, who, when her prayer was answered, was asked, Does it not surprise you? She said, No, it does not surprise me; it is just like Him. A promise is like a cheque. If I have a cheque, what do I do with it? Suppose I carried it about in my pocket, and said, I do not see the use of this bit of paper, I cannot buy anything with it, a person would say, Have you been to the bank with it? No, I did not think of that. But it is payable to your order. Have you written your name on the back of it? No, I have not done that. And yet you are blaming the person who gave you the cheque! The whole blame lies with yourself. Put your name at the back of the cheque, go with it to the bank, and you will get what is promised to you. A prayer should be the presentation of Gods promise endorsed by your personal faith. We expect our God to answer our prayer all the more surely when we are in trouble. David so expected: In the day of my trouble I will call upon Thee: for Thou wilt answer me. Trouble is sent to make us pray. When we pray, the prayer becomes the solace of our trouble; and when the prayer is heard, it becomes the salvation out of our trouble. Many of you would be out of trouble quickly if you prayed. Sir, I have been doing my best. And what is your best? A better thing than your best is to wait upon the Lord. Now, if we expect God to answer us, we do so on very good grounds. There are certain natural reasons. I was turning over in my mind the question, Why do I pray? Why have I any reason to believe that God hears me? And I thought to myself, Well, on natural grounds I have a right to believe that God will hear prayer, or otherwise why is prayer commanded? The Scripture is full of prayer. It is an institution of the old covenant, as well as of the new, and yet it is a piece of folly if God does not hear it. Observe, again, that prayer has been universal among all the saints. There have been saints of different moulds and temperaments, but they have all prayed. Some of them have been, like Heman and Asaph, masters of song, and they have prayed; others could not sing, but they have all prayed. But, if you turn to scriptural reasons, why was there a mercy-seat if there is nothing in prayer? Why does the throne of grace still remain as a permanent institution, of which Paul says, Let us come boldly to the throne of grace, unless there is a reality in it? Tell me, why is Christ the way to the mercy-seat? Why is He Himself the great Intercessor and Mediator, if there is nothing in prayer?. The Holy Ghost helpeth our infirmities in prayer; surely there must be something effectual where He lends His aid. What! is He, after all, helping us to do a thing which produces no result? For, once more, we know that God hears prayer, because we have met with multitudes of His people who can tell of answers to prayer. (C. H. Spurgeon.)

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

Psa 86:6-7. Give ear, O Lord, &c. — He repeats and multiplies his requests, both to ease his own troubled mind, and prevail with God, who is well pleased with his people’s importunity in prayer, Luk 18:1, &c. For thou wilt answer me — Whereof I have assurance, both from the benignity of thy nature, and from the truth and certainty of thy promises, and from my own experience, and that of others in former times.

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

6. (Psa 86:6) Give ear, Jehovah, to my prayer, and attend (or hearken) to the voice of my supplications. The same verbs are used in a similar connection, Psa 5:1-2. The last word in Hebrew, according to its etymology, denotes specifically prayers for favour, grace, or mercy. See above, on Psa 28:6; Psa 31:22. There is no new ground or argument suggested here, beyond what is implied in the use of the word just explained, and of the divine name in the first clause.

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

By crying and calling continually, he showeth how we may not be weary, though God grant not forthwith our request, but that we must earnestly and often call upon him.

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

Verse 6. Give ear, O Lord] Attend to me. Millions call upon thee for help and mercy; but who has more need than myself? That the psalmist was deeply in earnest, his conduct shows.

1. He prayed.

2. His prayer was vehement; he lifted up his voice.

3. He continued in prayer; he abounded in supplications.

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

6 Listen, O Jehovah! to my prayer. From the earnest repetition of his former requests in this and the subsequent verse, it is evident that he was oppressed with no ordinary degree of grief, and also agitated with extreme anxiety, From this example, we are taught that those who, having engaged in prayer once, allow themselves immediately to give over that exercise, provided God does not at once grant them their desire, betray the coldness and inconstancy of their hearts. Nor is this repetition of the same requests to be thought superfluous; for hereby the saints, by little and little, discharge their cares into the bosom of God, and this importunity is a sacrifice of a sweet savor before Him. When the Psalmist says, God will hear me when I cry in the day of trouble, he makes a particular application to himself of the truth which he had just now stated, That God is merciful and gracious to all who call upon him.

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) Give ear.—Here the petition takes a new starting-point.

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

6. Taken from Psa_55:1-2; Psa_5:2; Psa_28:2; cp. Psa_130:2.

attend] R.V. hearken.

6–10. Renewed supplication for a hearing. The Psalmist is sure of an answer, for Jehovah is the only true God, Whom all nations will one day acknowledge.

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.

Give ear, O Lord, unto my prayer,.... As this psalm is called, in the title of it; his own prayer, and not another's, not one composed for him, but what was composed by him; this petition is repeated, as to the sense of it, from Psa 86:1 to show his importunity to be heard:

and attend to the voice of my supplications; which proceeded from the spirit of grace and supplication, put up in an humble manner, in a dependence on the mercy of God, which the word used has the signification of, and were attended with thanksgiving, Psa 86:12, according to the apostle's rule, Phi 4:6, these were vocal prayers, and not mere mental ones; see Heb 5:7.

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

Give ear, O Lord, unto my prayer ... - See the notes at Psa 5:1.

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

He repeats and multiplies his requests, both to ease his own troubled mind, and to prevail with God, who is well-pleased with his people’s importunity in prayer. See Luk 18:1, &c.

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

Ver. 6. Give ear, O LORD, unto my prayer. Even the glory which his spirit had beheld did not withdraw him from his prayer, but rather urged him to be more fervent in it; hence he implores the Lord to hear his requests.

Attend to the voice of my supplications. Here are repetitions, but not vain repetitions. When a child cries it repeats the same note, but it is equally in earnest every time, and so was it with the suppliant here. Note the expression, "the voice of my supplications", as if they were not all voice but were partly made up of inarticulate noise, yet amid much that was superfluous there really was a distinct voice, an inner meaning, a living sense which was the heart's intention. This he would have the Lord sift out from the chaff, and hear amid the mingled din. May our prayers never be voiceless; may the soul's intent always give them a live core of meaning.

Ver 6. Supplications ytwnwxt, deprecations. The Psalmist forms a peculiar Hebrew word, feminine plural, not found elsewhere, to convey more impressively the idea of suppliant weakness. A.R. Fausset.

Ver. 6. The praying man desires above all things an answer. Objections to such an expectation. Grounds for continuing to expect, and duties incumbent upon those who realise such expectations.

Ver. 6. The voice of supplication. It is the voice of weakness, of penitence, of faith, of hope, of the new nature, of knowledge, & c.

Psalms 86:7*

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

Vers. 6-10. In this second strophe praise is predominant. Prayer occupies two verses only (vers. 6, 7); in the other three (vers. 8-10) God is magnified and glorified.

Give ear, O Lord, unto my prayer. An echo of ver. 1. The psalmist begins, as it were, afresh, calling God"s attention to himself, as if he had not yet spoken. And attend to the voice of my supplications. (comp. Psa_17:1 Psa_55:2 Psa_61:1, etc.) That God"s ear is always attend to the prayers of his people does not make it superfluous for them to entreat his attention. He will listen more favourably when besought to listen.

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

Here, too, almost everything is an echo of earlier language of the Psalms and of the Law; viz., Psa 86:7 follows Psa 17:6 and other passages; Psa 86:8 is taken from Exo 15:11, cf. Psa 89:9, where, however, אלהים, gods, is avoided; Psa 86:8 follows Deu 3:24; Psa 86:9 follows Psa 22:28; Psa 86:11 is taken from Psa 27:11; Psa 86:11 from Psa 26:3; Psa 86:13, שׁאול תּחתּיּה from Deu 32:22, where instead of this it is תּחתּית, just as in Psa 130:2 תּחנוּני (supplicatory prayer) instead of תּחנוּנותי (importunate supplications); and also Psa 86:10 (cf. Psa 72:18) is a doxological formula that was already in existence. The construction הקשׁיב בּ is the same as in Psa 66:19. But although for the most part flowing on only in the language of prayer borrowed from earlier periods, this Psalm is, moreover, not without remarkable significance and beauty. With the confession of the incomparableness of the Lord is combined the prospect of the recognition of the incomparable One throughout the nations of the earth. This clear unallegorical prediction of the conversion of the heathen is the principal parallel to Rev 15:4. "All nations, which Thou hast made" - they have their being from Thee; and although they have forgotten it (vid., Psa 9:18), they will nevertheless at last come to recognise it. כּל־גּוים, since the article is wanting, are nations of all tribes (countries and nationalities); cf. Jer 16:16 with Psa 22:18; Tobit 13:11, ἔθνη πολλά, with ibid. Psa 14:6, πάντα τὰ ἔθνη. And how weightily brief and charming is the petition in Psa 86:11 : uni cor meum, ut timeat nomen tuum! Luther has rightly departed from the renderings of the lxx, Syriac, and Vulgate: laetetur (יחדּ from חדה). The meaning, however, is not so much "keep my heart near to the only thing," as "direct all its powers and concentrate them on the one thing." The following group shows us what is the meaning of the deliverance out of the hell beneath (שׁאול תּחתּיּה, like ארץ תּחתּית, the earth beneath, the inner parts of the earth, Eze 31:14.), for which the poet promises beforehand to manifest his thankfulness (כּי, Psa 86:13, as in Ps 56:14).

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)