Psalms 143:7 - Meaning and Application

David here tells us what he said when he stretched out his hands to God. He begins not only in earnest, but in haste: “Hear me quickly, and do not delay, for my spirit is failing.” He means, “I am about to faint. Bring help now, quickly, or I am finished.” This is not the rush of unbelief, but the urgency of strong desire and holy love.

David asks for three things here. First, he asks for signs of God’s favor, that God would be pleased with him and let him know it. He values this above every other good (Psalm 4:6). He fears God’s displeasure: “Lord, do not hide your face from me. Do not be angry with me. Do not turn away from me as we do from someone we dislike.” He asks that he not be left wondering whether God is angry with him. Those who truly have grace cannot help wanting proof of it.

David pleads that life without God’s favor would be miserable. “Do not leave me under your wrath,” he says, “for then I am like those who go down to the pit,” meaning the grave or even hell, the bottomless pit. Even people whom grace has kept from that pit can sometimes feel so crushed by God’s terrors that they seem to be going there. Sorrowful believers have sometimes cried out under God’s wrath as if they were lost sinners themselves (Job 6:4; Psalm 88:6).

He also asks for God’s kindness: “Cause me to hear your lovingkindness in the morning” (Psalm 143:8). David believes God has kind words for him, but the noise of his troubles has drowned them out. So he asks, “Lord, do not only speak kindly to me, help me hear it.” He wants to hear “joy and gladness” (Psalm 51:8). God speaks through his word and through his providence, and in both we should want to hear his lovingkindness (Psalm 107:43). David wants this each morning, so that his first thoughts every day will be of God’s love.

His reason is simple: “For in you do I trust.” He looks for comfort from God alone. God’s goodness is usually shown to those who trust him, those who by faith draw it out (Psalm 31:8).

Second, David asks for the work of God’s grace in himself. He wants not only signs of God’s favor, but also God’s help to live well. He prays that he would be taught God’s will, and this is the first work of the Spirit, because God deals with us as thinking people. He asks, “Cause me to know the way I should walk.” Sometimes sincere people want to do right, but they still do not know which path is right. So they should come to God and ask him to show the way through his word, his Spirit, and his providence. A good man does not ask which way is easiest or most pleasant. He asks which way is right.

He adds, “Teach me to do your will.” David does not want only to know God’s will, but to learn how to do it well. He wants to turn his hand skillfully to duty. This is the desire and effort of all God’s faithful servants, to know his will and do it fully. He says, “You are my God,” meaning, “You are my guide and ruler.” If we sincerely take God as our God, we may trust him to teach us his will, as a master teaches a servant.

He also prays, “Lead me into the land of uprightness” (Psalm 143:10). This means either the fellowship of God’s people, that pleasant land where the upright dwell, or a settled life of holiness that leads to heaven. Heaven is called the land of uprightness because holiness will be complete there. We should want to be led safely there, not only because it is a place of blessing, but because it is the place where righteousness is made perfect. We cannot find that path unless God shows us, and we cannot keep walking in it unless he leads us by the hand. His plea is, “Your Spirit is good.” God’s Spirit is able and willing to guide those who are at a loss. Those who have the Lord as their God have his Spirit as their guide, and it is both their mark and their privilege to be led by the Spirit.

David also asks to be made alive for God’s service: “Quicken me, O Lord” (Psalm 143:11). That means, “Make my prayers lively. Stir me up to duty, and keep me active in it.” Even the best believers often find themselves dull, dead, and slow, so they pray for this help for God’s name’s sake.

Third, David asks for God’s providence to work on his behalf. He wants deliverance from his troubles in God’s time and way: “Deliver me, O Lord, from my enemies, for I flee to you to hide me” (Psalm 143:9). He trusts God to protect him in trouble, and so he asks God to rescue him from it. God’s past protection is a pledge of future salvation, and those who make him their hiding place by faith will find him to be so.

David explains this again: “Bring my soul out of trouble” (Psalm 143:11). He asks not only to be freed from outward distress, but also from the inward trouble that threatens to overwhelm him. Whatever else happens, he is asking, “Lord, do not let my heart be troubled” (John 14:1). He also prays for judgment on the enemies who caused his distress: “Of your mercy, cut off my enemies, and destroy all those who afflict my soul” (Psalm 143:12). They are many and powerful, but David leaves them in God’s hands.

He closes by grounding his prayer in his relationship to God: “For I am your servant.” He is resolved to remain God’s servant, and so he asks to be owned and protected in that service. This prayer also points ahead to the total ruin of all who stubbornly oppose Jesus Christ and his kingdom, who refuse his rule, grieve his Spirit, and hurt his people, in whose suffering he himself is afflicted.