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Psalms 43

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Plea for Vindication and Deliverance 1–2

1
Judge me, O God, and plead my cause against an ungodly nation: Oh deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man. ​
2
For thou art the God of my strength; why hast thou cast me off? Why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy? ​

Prayer for Light and Temple Access 3–5

3
Oh send out thy light and thy truth; let them lead me: Let them bring me unto thy holy hill, And to thy tabernacles. ​
4
Then will I go unto the altar of God, Unto God my exceeding joy; And upon the harp will I praise thee, O God, my God.
5
Why art thou cast down, O my soul? And why art thou disquieted within me? Hope thou in God; for I shall yet praise him, Who isthe help of my countenance, and my God. ​

Bible text: American Standard Version (1901) · Public domain

Study Notes for Psalms 43

Verse 1

Judge me, O God, and plead my cause — Two courtroom verbs: shaphat, to pronounce sentence, and riv, to contend in a case. David asks God to be both judge and advocate, as he told Saul: 'The LORD therefore be judge, and judge between me and thee, and see, and plead my cause' (1 Sam 24:15). 'Ungodly' is literally 'not kind' (lo chasid).

Verse 2

the God of my strength — Ma'oz is a fortress, a place of refuge, so 'why dost thou cast me off?' asks why the stronghold seems closed. Zanach, to push aside, is the verb of Ps 44:9, 'thou hast cast off'. The second question repeats Ps 42:9, 'why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?'

Verse 3

thy light and thy truth — God's own gifts are asked to go out as guides (shalach, to send; nachah, to lead) to 'thy holy hill, and to thy tabernacles', the place of worship. 'Tabernacles' is the plural of Ps 84:1, 'How amiable are thy tabernacles, O LORD of hosts!' The psalmist says of God's light in Ps 36:9: 'in thy light shall we see light.'

Verse 5

hope in God — The refrain of Ps 42:5 and 42:11, repeated here with 42:11's wording, closing both psalms. 'Hope' is yachal, to wait; 'health' is yeshuah, deliverance, and 'countenance' is literally 'face' (panim), so God is named as the deliverance of his face.