Psalms 35

David cries to God for rescue from enemies who attack him without cause, using the pictures of a courtroom and a battlefield. He remembers how he grieved for these same people when they were sick, and how they repaid him with hatred. The psalm moves in three rounds of plea and promise, each ending with thanks and praise to the LORD who defends His servant.

Psalms 35:1

David asks the LORD to take up his case. The words fit both a lawsuit and a war. He does not strike back himself. He hands the quarrel to God, who will argue his cause and fight his enemies.

BSA: Contend (“strive, plead my cause”): God is asked to act as David’s advocate in court, speaking for the one who has been wronged.

Hebrew: רִיבָה (rîvāh, H7378) — “argue a case, take up a dispute.” This is a legal word. David asks God to be his lawyer and his warrior at once.

Psalms 35:2-3

David pictures God as a soldier taking up shield, buckler, spear and javelin. The weapons are vivid language for God’s active help. The deepest request is for a word to his soul. David wants to hear God Himself say, ‘I am your salvation.’.

BSA: salvation (“deliverance, victory, prosperity”): The word means more than escape. It means being brought safely into wholeness and victory. say (“command, promise”): God’s word to the soul is both a promise and a decree that makes it so.

See also: Exodus 15:2.

Psalms 35:4

David asks that those who hunt his life be put to shame and turned back. This is a plea for justice, not for private revenge. Plots against the innocent should fail, and the plotters should be left confused and empty-handed.

BSA: driven back (“turned back, repelled”): The attackers are stopped in their tracks and forced to retreat.

Psalms 35:5-6

The angel of the LORD is pictured as God’s own messenger, driving the enemies off like chaff blown from the threshing floor. Their way becomes dark and slippery, so they cannot find footing or escape. David trusts that God’s agent pursues them, not David.

BSA: chaff (“loose outer covering of grain”): Chaff is light and worthless, and the slightest wind carries it away. angel (“messenger, representative”): The angel acts with God’s authority, as His sent representative.

See also: Psalm 1:4; Psalm 34:7.

Psalms 35:7-8

The enemies hid a net and dug a pit, and they had no reason to do it. David asks that the traps meant for him catch them instead. Scripture often shows evil turning back on those who plan it.

BSA: cause (“without reason or cost”): The attack was undeserved, and it was a deliberate scheme. hazard (“pit, destruction”): The pit they dug becomes their own ruin.

See also: Psalm 7:15-16; Proverbs 26:27.

Psalms 35:9-10

David looks past the rescue to its result, which is joy in the LORD. His whole body joins in, down to his bones. His praise rests on what God is like: He saves the weak from the strong, the poor from the plunderer.

BSA: bones (“every part of me”): Praise will fill his whole being, not only his lips. afflicted (“weak, humble, or depressed”): God’s attention goes to those who are crushed or low.

See also: Psalm 113:5-7.

Psalms 35:11

Witnesses rise up against David and accuse him of things he has never done or even heard of. This is slander dressed as testimony. It is especially painful because he is innocent and has no way to answer charges he cannot understand.

BSA: witnesses (“false accusers, those who testify against me”): These witnesses are false, and they stand up in a court-like setting to harm him.

See also: Exodus 20:16.

Psalms 35:12

Good was met with evil. David had done these people good, and they paid him back with harm. The result is a loss that leaves his soul bereaved, like someone who has lost a loved one.

BSA: bereavement (“loss, sorrow”): The betrayal feels like a death. Something precious in his relationships has been taken.

See also: Psalm 109:4-5.

Psalms 35:13-14

When these people were sick, David grieved. He wore sackcloth and fasted for them, and he prayed as though for a brother. The phrase about prayers returning probably means he prayed with all his heart. His kindness was real, which makes their treatment of him sadder.

BSA: sackcloth (“a coarse cloth”): Rough cloth worn as a sign of deep sorrow and humility. humbled (“afflicted, oppressed”): Fasting was a way of laying himself low before God for the sake of others.

See also: Matthew 5:44.

Psalms 35:15-16

When David stumbled, they gathered in glee. Strangers joined them and slandered him without stopping. They mocked him like party jesters who sneer for a laugh, grinding their teeth at him. His trouble became their entertainment.

BSA: stumbled (“experienced adversity”): Any fall or trouble became a reason for them to celebrate. gnashed (“ground, rubbed”): Grinding teeth shows open hostility and contempt.

Psalms 35:17

David asks ‘How long?’ as he waits for God to act. He compares his enemies to lions and asks to be rescued. He calls his life precious, and in the original the word is something like ‘my only one’. It is his one life, and he asks God to protect it.

BSA: precious (“beloved, unique”): His life is single and irreplaceable, and he trusts God to guard it. lions (“young lions, fierce attackers”): The enemies are strong and hungry, and they are ready to tear him apart.

See also: Psalm 13:1.

Psalms 35:18

This is David’s first promise of thanks. When God rescues him, he will not keep quiet. He will give thanks in the large assembly of God’s people, so that his deliverance becomes a witness for others.

BSA: assembly (“congregation, gathering”): His thanks is meant to be shared publicly with God’s people.

See also: Psalm 22:25.

Psalms 35:19

David asks that those who hate him for no reason not be allowed to enjoy his downfall. The wink of the eye is a secret signal of cruel, shared amusement. It shows a hatred that has no cause but its own spite.

BSA: wink (“blink, squeeze”): A small gesture that signals shared malice.

See also: John 15:25.

Psalms 35:20

These enemies do not speak words of peace. They invent lies against quiet people, those who just want to live in peace in the land. The plots are aimed at the harmless, which shows how wrong the attackers are.

BSA: peace (“shalom, completeness and wellness”): They refuse to wish anyone well-being, since shalom means wholeness for another person. quietly (“in a restful or peaceful state, restful”): The victims are calm, peaceable people who give no reason for the attack.

Psalms 35:21

The enemies open their mouths wide and shout ‘Aha, aha!’ They claim to have seen David do wrong, but their cry is mockery and delight at his misfortune. Their open mouths picture hungry greed to see him fall.

BSA: gape (“open their mouth wide, enlarge against”): A wide mouth shows eager, greedy mockery, as if ready to swallow him.

Psalms 35:22-23

David says ‘You have seen it,’ trusting that God knows the truth. Then he begs God not to stay silent or far off. He calls on God to wake and rise, which describes God acting, not sleeping. He addresses Him as both God and Lord, appealing to His rule and to a personal bond.

BSA: silent (“quiet, unmoved”): David fears that God will do nothing, and he asks for an answer. Awake (“stir up, rouse to action”): It is a bold plea for God to act now, spoken in the language of waking.

See also: Psalm 44:23.

Psalms 35:24-25

David asks to be vindicated by God’s righteousness, not his own. If God judges rightly, the innocent will be cleared. He asks that his enemies not be able to say ‘We have swallowed him up,’ as if they had won.

BSA: Vindicate (“judge, prove innocent”): David asks God as judge to declare him in the right. swallowed him up (“completely destroyed, devoured him”): The enemies think they have devoured him, and David asks God to prove them wrong.

See also: Psalm 7:8.

Psalms 35:26

David asks that those who rejoice at his trouble be ashamed, and that the proud who lift themselves above him be clothed in shame. The picture is of garments. Shame will cover them as clothes cover a body, and everyone will see it.

BSA: clothed (“wrapped, covered”): Shame becomes a visible garment on those who mocked him.

See also: Psalm 109:29.

Psalms 35:27

In contrast, David asks joy for those who want to see him in the right. They will keep saying that the LORD is great, because He delights in the well-being of His servant. David is sure God cares about his welfare, not only about winning the case.

BSA: well-being (“prosperity, peace, shalom”): God wants his servant whole and at peace, not only rescued. servant’s (“slave’s, follower’s”): David sees himself as belonging to God and under His care.

Hebrew: שָׁלוֹם (shālôm, H7965) — “peace, wholeness, well-being.” It means more than a quiet mind. It means life that is complete and flourishing in every part.

Psalms 35:28

The psalm ends in praise. David promises that his tongue will tell of God’s righteousness all day long. What began as a cry for help ends with confident thanks, because he trusts that the righteous God will set things right.

BSA: righteousness (“justice, moral integrity”): He will praise God’s faithful, right character, which he has relied on throughout.

See also: Psalm 71:24.