Psalms 35
35
Rescue Me
A poetic song by King David # 35 This is the first of seven Psalms in which David cried out for vengeance upon his enemies (see Pss. 52; 58; 59; 69; 109; 137).
Part One – David, a Warrior
1O Lord, fight for me! Harass the hecklers; accuse my accusers.
Fight those who fight against me.
2-3Put on your armor, Lord; take up your shield and protect me.
Rise up, mighty God! Grab your weapons of war
and block the way of the wicked who come to fight me.
Stand for me when they stand against me!
Speak over my soul: “I am your strong Savior!” # 35:2–3 The Aramaic word used here is found thirty-three times in the Psalms and clearly means “Savior.” Although a New Testament concept, David had a deep understanding almost one thousand years before the Savior was born that God would become his Savior. The Hebrew word for “Savior,” Yasha, is very similar to the name Jesus, Yeshua.
4Humiliate those who seek my harm. Defeat them all!
Frustrate their plans to defeat me and drive them back.
Disgrace them all as they have devised their plans to disgrace me.
5Blow them away like dust in the wind,
with the angel of Almighty God driving them back!
6Make the road in front of them nothing but slippery darkness,
with the angel of Yahweh behind them, chasing them away!
7For though I did nothing wrong to them, they set a trap for me,
wanting me to fail and fall.
8Surprise them with your ambush, Lord,
and catch them in the very trap they set for me.
Let them be the ones to fail and fall into destruction!
9Then my fears will dissolve into limitless joy;
my whole being will overflow with gladness
because of your mighty deliverance.
10Everything inside of me will shout it out:
“There’s no one like you, Lord!”
For look at how you protect the weak and helpless
from the strong and heartless who oppress them.
Part Two – David, a Witness
11They are malicious men, hostile witnesses of wrong.
They rise up against me, accusers appearing out of nowhere.
12When I show them mercy, they bring me misery.
I’m forsaken and forlorn, like a motherless child.
13I even prayed over them when they were sick.
I was burdened and bowed low with fasting
and interceded for their healing,
and I didn’t stop praying.
14I grieved for them, heavyhearted,
as though they were my dearest family members
or my good friends who were sick,
nearing death, needing prayer.
15But when I was the one who tripped up and stumbled,
they came together to slander me,
rejoicing in my time of trouble, tearing me to shreds
with their lies and betrayal.
16These nameless ruffians,
mocking me like godless fools at a feast—
how they delight in throwing mud on my name.
17God, how long can you just stand there doing nothing?
Now is the time to act.
Rescue me from these brutal men,
for I am being torn to shreds by these beasts
who are out to get me.
Save me from their rage, their cruel grasp.
18Then I will praise you wherever I go.
And when everyone gathers for worship,
I will lift up your praise with a shout
in front of the largest crowd I can find!
Part Three – David, a Worshiper
19Don’t let those who fight me for no reason be victorious.
Don’t let them succeed, these heartless haters
who come against me with their gloating sneers.
20They are the ones who would never seek peace as friends,
for they are ever devising deceit against the innocent ones
who mind their own business.
21They open their mouths with ugly grins,
gloating with glee over my every fault.
“Look,” they say, “we caught him red-handed!
We saw him fall with our own eyes!”
22Yahweh, my caring God, you have been there all along.
You have seen their hypocrisy.
Yahweh, don’t let them get away with this.
Don’t walk away without doing something.
23Now is the time to awake! Rise up, Lord!
Vindicate me, my Lord and my God!
24You have every right to judge me, Lord,
according to your righteousness,
but don’t let them rejoice over me when I stumble.
25-26Let them all be ashamed of themselves,
humiliated when they rejoice over my every blunder.
Shame them, Lord, when they say, “We saw what he did.
Now we have him right where we want him.
Let’s get him while he’s down!”
Make them look ridiculous when they exalt themselves over me.
May they all be disgraced and dishonored!
27But let all my true friends shout for joy,
all those who know and love what I do for you.
Let them all say, “The Lord is great,
and he delights in the prosperity of his servant.”
28Then I won’t be able to hold it in—
everyone will hear my joyous praises all day long!
Your righteousness will be the theme of my glory-song of praise!
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Psalms 35: TPT
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Learn More About The Passion TranslationPsalms 35
35
A psalm of David.
1Oppose my opponents, Lord; fight those who are fighting against me.
2Put your armor on, and pick up your shield. Get ready, come and help me.
3Draw your spear and your javelin, confront those who are chasing me. Tell me, “I am your salvation!”
4Shame them! Humiliate those who are trying to kill me! Turn them back! Disgrace those who are planning to hurt me!
5Let them be like chaff blown by the wind; let the angel of the Lord drive them away.
6May their path be dark and slippery, with the angel of the Lord chasing them down.
7For no reason they set a net to catch me; for no reason they dug a pit to trap me.
8Let disaster come on them suddenly; let the net they set catch them instead; let the pit they dug trap them instead.
9Then I will be glad in the Lord; I will be happy in his salvation.
10Every part of me#35:10. Literally, “all of my bones.” will say, Who can compare to you, Lord? You rescue the weak from the strong; the poor and needy from robbers.
11Hostile witnesses stand up to testify against me, accusing me of crimes I don't know anything about.
12They pay me back with evil instead of good. I feel like giving up.#35:12. Literally, “my soul is forlorn.”
13But when they were sick, I put on clothes of sackcloth#35:13. “Clothes of sackcloth”—a sign of mourning. in sympathy. I denied myself through fasting. May my prayer for them return to bless me too.#35:13. Literally, “my prayer returned to my bosom.”
14I was upset for them, as if they were my own friends or family; I bowed down in grief as if I was mourning my own mother.
15But when I was in trouble, they gathered around and laughed at me. Even strangers I don't know attacked me, constantly tearing me apart.
16Like irreligious people mocking a cripple#35:16. The Hebrew here is unclear. they mock me and call me names, gnashing their teeth at me.
17How long, Lord, will you sit by and just watch? Save me from their vicious attacks; defend the only life I have from these lions.
18Then I will thank you in front of the whole congregation and praise you in front of all the people.
19Don't let my enemies take pleasure in my troubles, those people who hate me and tell lies about me, gloating over me for no reason.
20They are not looking for peace; they invent malicious and deceptive schemes against innocent peace-loving people.#35:20. Literally, “the quiet ones of the land.”
21They open their mouths wide to make accusations against me, saying, “Look! Look! We saw it with our own eyes!”
22But Lord, you've seen all this! Say something! Don't give up on me, Lord!
23Wake up! Get up and defend me, my Lord and my God! Take up my case and make sure justice is done!
24Vindicate me, my Lord and my God, because you are just and right. Don't let them gloat over me.
25Don't let them say to themselves, “Look! We got what we wanted!” Don't let them say, “We completely destroyed him!”
26Make them totally ashamed, all those who are happy for the trouble I'm in. Let those who are celebrating over me be covered with shame and dishonor.
27Instead let those who are pleased I've been vindicated celebrate and shout for joy. Let them always say, “How great is the Lord! He is happy when his servants live in peace and have what they need.”#35:27. The word used here “shalom” is often translated as simply “peace.” However, it is not simply the absence of conflict but also refers to a happy and prosperous life.
28I will tell others about your character of truth and right, praising you all day long!
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com