Psalms 129:1 - Meaning and Application

The church of God, through all its ages, is spoken of here as one person. It is now old and gray-haired, looking back on the former days and remembering earlier troubles. After reviewing its history, two things stand out.

First, the church has often suffered hard oppression from its enemies on earth. Israel could say, in effect, “I have been oppressed more than any other people, like a speckled bird pecked at by birds all around” (Jeremiah 12:9). It is true that their sins brought trouble on them, and God was righteous in punishing them. But their neighbors also hated and persecuted them because of their covenant life and their distinct religion.

“For many times they have afflicted me from my youth.” God’s people have always had many enemies, and the church, from its beginning, has often been a suffering church. Israel’s youth was in Egypt, or in the time of the Judges, when they were oppressed and kept under pressure from then on. The gospel church, since it began, has also gone through times of suffering, especially in its early years, as shown by the ten persecutions the first church endured.

“The plowers plowed on my back” (Psalm 129:3). In (Psalm 125:3), the rod of the wicked is on the lot of the righteous. Here, the image is of a plow used on the back. The pictures are different, but the meaning is the same. God’s people have often been treated very cruelly.

They were torn open like ground cut by a plowshare, as if men wanted to break them apart and take all they could from them. In that way, the saints of the Most High were worn down, just as soil is exhausted after long use. When God allowed this, he meant it for his people’s good. He meant to break up the hard ground of their hearts so he could sow his grace in them and gather a harvest of good fruit. But their enemies did not mean that at all, nor did they think so (Isaiah 10:7). They kept dragging the furrows longer and longer, never knowing when to stop, aiming at nothing less than the church’s ruin.

Many also understand the furrows on their backs to mean the stripes they received. So the verse may speak of those who cut and lashed them. God’s people have often suffered cruel beatings, and also cruel mocking, since there is such a thing as the lash of the tongue (Hebrews 11:36). This was fulfilled in Christ, who gave his back to those who struck him (Isaiah 50:6). It may also refer to the destruction enemies brought on the cities of Israel. “Zion will be plowed like a field” (Micah 3:12).

Second, the church has always been kindly delivered by its friend in heaven. The enemies’ plans have been ruined. They have afflicted the church, hoping to destroy it, but they have not succeeded. The church has been through many storms, shocks, and heavy blows, yet it still stands. “They have not prevailed against me.” One may wonder how this ship has stayed afloat, when waves and tempests have rolled over it. Christ has built his church on a rock, and the gates of hell have not overcome it, nor ever will.

The enemies’ power has also been broken. God has cut the cords of the wicked. He has broken their gear and traces, so their plowing is spoiled. He has cut their scourges, so their striking is spoiled. He has broken the bands of union that held them together, and he has broken the bands of captivity by which they held God’s people. God has many ways to stop wicked people from doing the harm they plan against his church, and to shame their schemes.

“The Lord is righteous” may refer either to the church’s sufferings or to its deliverance. The Lord is righteous in allowing Israel to be afflicted. God’s people have always been ready to admit this, that however unfair their enemies were, God was just in all that came upon them (Nehemiah 9:33). The Lord is also righteous in not allowing Israel to be destroyed, because he has promised to keep it as a people for himself, and he will keep his word. He is righteous in repaying their persecutors and giving them what they deserve (2 Thessalonians 1:6).