Psalm 70 - overcomer - Make haste O God

I started putting this psalm to music in November, 2023, shortly before my 70th birthday. This psalm seems be a prayer for what is now going on in Israel, regarding the evil done by Hamas and the worldwide anti-semitism. I am praying this prayer now for Israel.

 This psalm is related to 2 previous psalms. This psalm is almost the same as  the ending of Psalm 40. Psalm 40 is a wonderful Messianic Psalm and about the Lord's thoughts toward me personally. It is easy to not appreciate the desperate prayer at the end of Psalm 40. This ending is a real prayer that we will need to pray in our lives at times of trouble. Memorize this psalm now so that you will have it when trouble comes. That is why it is a psalm to bring to remembrance.
 
The other related psalm is Psalm 38. Psalm 38 is the only other Psalm that has "to bring to remembrance" in its title. See note there. As David wrote Psalm 6 when he was younger, and remembered it in Psalm 38 when he was old, here also David remembers Psalm 40 in Psalm 70. Also Psalm 38 ends in the way Psalm 70 begins and ends (Ps 38:22).  (There are only 3 other verses in Psalms where the Psalmist prays for God to make haste [22:19; 71:12; 141:1])
Psalm 38, though, is not "for the overcomer". It is easy to enjoy and relate to. Psalms 70, 40 and 6 are all "for the overcomer". They are harder to enjoy.

I am using the same tune as I used for Psalm 38.
 
David's sufferings in both Psalm 38 and 40 are due to sin (Ps 38:3-5,16,18; Ps 40:12), but in this psalm there is no mention of sin by the suffering one. Thus it is applicable to being persecuted for righteousness' or the gospel's sake, which will happen to us if we are faithful.

This is the second Psalm which is a repetition of another, the former being Psalm 53, which was a rehearsal of Psalm 14. ...
As we have the words of this Psalm twice in the letter, let them be doubly with us in spirit. - C. H. Spurgeon
 
2 Same as Psalm 40:14 except that David here drops the word "together" in "they together seek my soul" and dropped the the word "destroy" in "destroy my soul". For people to "seek my soul" means they seek to kill me (Ps 86:14).
In Psalm 40 there was a united group seeking to kill David. Here it is more general. Those seeking to destroy Israel are from many opposing viewpoints. Also, many of them do not have the intention to destroy Israel, but what they are pushing would have the result to destroy Israel.
David's prayer for these people who seek his soul is that they be confounded, ashamed, turned around and confused. He does not pray for their death or physical suffering. What he prays is to stop them and their influence.

For people to become ashamed of their wrongdoing is good for them, and can bring them to the Lord, but if it does not turn them to the Lord, the result will be very bad for them. (Ps 83:16-17)
 
3 Same as Ps 40:15 except that here David changed "make desolate" to "turn back" and dropped the words "to me" after "Aha".
David's prayer here is less harsh than in Psalm 40. Also, he is not just praying regarding those who accuse him, but all those loudly accusing anyone.
In v2 David prays regarding those that are attacking him personally. In this verse he prays regarding those attacking anyone unrighteously.
The attacks against Israel today are people saying, Aha, Aha, Israel did this wrong.
 
4 David prays here not for those helping him, but for those seeking God, who love God's salvation. This is the way to pray. Those who seek God and appreciate His salvation should be the same ones who will help us if we are in the right. And if we are in the wrong, we should not be helped.
We should live righteously, but the people here prayed for might not be so righteous, but they are seeking God and love His salvation. Oskar Schindler was not a righteous man according to the 10 commandments, but he was seeking God and saved 1200 Jews.
 
5 Just the same plea as in the preceding Psalm, Ps 69:29: it seems to be a favourite argument with tried saints; evidently our poverty is our wealth, even as our weakness is our strength. May we learn well this riddle.
Make haste unto me, O God. This is written instead of "yet the Lord thinketh upon me " in Psalm 40:17 and there is a reason for the change, since the key note of the Psalm frequently dictates its close. Psalm 40 sings of God's thoughts, and, therefore, ends therewith; but the peculiar note of Psalm 70 is "Make haste, "and, therefore, so it concludes.  - Spurgeon

12/2/2023 Steve Miller