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Commentary on Psalms 116 verses 1–9
In this part of the psalm we have,
I. A general account of David's experience, and his pious resolutions (Psa 116:1, Psa 116:2), which are as the contents of the whole psalm, and give an idea of it. 1. He had experienced God's goodness to him in answer to prayer: He has heard my voice and my supplications. David, in straits, had humbly and earnestly begged mercy of God, and God had heard him, that is, had graciously accepted his prayer, taken cognizance of his case, and granted him an answer of peace. He has inclined his ear to me. This intimates his readiness and willingness to hear prayer; he lays his ear, as it were, to the mouth of prayer, to hear it, though it be but whispered in groanings that cannot be uttered. He hearkens and hears, Jer 8:6. Yet it implies, also, that it is wonderful condescension in God to hear prayer; it is bowing his ear. Lord, what is man, that God should thus stoop to him!-2. He resolved, in consideration thereof, to devote himself entirely to God and to his honour. (1.) He will love God the better. He begins the psalm somewhat abruptly with a profession of that which his heart was full of: I love the Lord (as Psa 18:1); and fitly does he begin with this, in compliance with the first and great commandment and with God's end in all the gifts of his bounty to us. "I love him only, and nothing besides him, but what I love for him." God's love of compassion towards us justly requires our love of complacency in him. (2.) He will love prayer the better: Therefore I will call upon him. The experiences we have had of God's goodness to us, in answer to prayer, are great encouragements to us to continue praying; we have sped well, notwithstanding our unworthiness and our infirmities in prayer, and therefore why may we not? God answers prayer, to make us love it, and expects this from us, in return for his favour. Why should we glean in any other field when we have been so well treated in this? Nay, I will call upon him as long as I live (Heb., In my days), every day, to the last day. Note, As long as we continue living we must continue praying. This breath we must breathe till we breathe our last, because then we shall take our leave of it, and till then we have continual occasion for it.
II. A more particular narrative of God's gracious dealings with him and the good impressions thereby made upon him.
1.God, in his dealings with him, showed himself a good God, and therefore he bears this testimony to him, and leaves it upon record (Psa 116:5): "Gracious is the Lord, and righteous. He is righteous, and did me no wrong in afflicting me; he is gracious, and was very kind in supporting and delivering me." Let us all speak of God as we have found; and have we ever found him otherwise than just and good? No; our God is merciful, merciful to us, and it is of his mercies that we are not consumed.
(1.)Let us review David's experiences. [1.] He was in great distress and trouble (Psa 116:3): The sorrows of death compassed me, that is, such sorrows as were likely to be his death, such as were thought to be the very pangs of death. Perhaps the extremity of bodily pain, or trouble of mind, is called here the pains of hell, terror of conscience arising from sense of guilt. Note, The sorrows of death are great sorrows, and the pains of hell great pains. Let us therefore give diligence to prepare for the former, that we may escape the latter. These compassed him on every side; they arrested him, got hold upon him, so that he could not escape. Without were fightings, within were fears. "I found trouble and sorrow; not only they found me, but I found them." Those that are melancholy have a great deal of sorrow of their own finding, a great deal of trouble which they create to themselves, by indulging fancy and passion; this has sometimes been the infirmity of good men. When God's providence makes our condition bad let us not by our own imprudence make it worse. [2.] In his trouble he had recourse to God by faithful and fervent prayer, Psa 116:4. He tells us that he prayed: Then called I upon the name of the Lord; then, when he was brought to the last extremity, then he made use of this, not as the last remedy, but as the old and only remedy, which he had found a salve for every sore. He tells us what his prayer was; it was short, but to the purpose: "O Lord! I beseech thee, deliver my soul; save me from death, and save me from sin, for that is it that is killing to the soul." Both the humility and the fervency of his prayer are intimated in these words, O Lord! I beseech thee. When we come to the throne of grace we must come as beggars for an alms, for necessary food. The following words (Psa 116:5), Gracious is the Lord, may be taken as part of his prayer, as a plea to enforce his request and encourage his faith and hope: "Lord deliver my soul, for thou art gracious and merciful, and that only I depend upon for relief." [3.] God, in answer to his prayer, came in with seasonable and effectual relief. He found by experience that God is gracious and merciful, and in his compassion preserves the simple, Psa 116:6. Because they are simple (that is, sincere, and upright, and without guile) therefore God preserves them, as he preserved Paul, who had his conversation in the world not with fleshly wisdom, but in simplicity and godly sincerity. Though they are simple (that is, weak, and helpless, and unable to shift for themselves, men of no depth, no design) yet God preserves them, because they commit themselves to him and have no confidence in their own sufficiency. Those who by faith put themselves under God's protection shall be safe.
(2.)Let David speak his own experience. [1.] God supported him under his troubles: "I was brought low, was plunged into the depth of misery, and then he helped me, helped me both to bear the worst and to hope the best, helped me to pray, else desire had failed, helped me to wait, else faith had failed. I was one of the simple ones whom God preserved, the poor man who cried and the Lord heard him," Psa 34:6. Note, God's people are never brought so low but that everlasting arms are under them, and those cannot sink who are thus sustained. Nay, it is in the time of need, at the dead lift, that God chooses to help, Deu 32:36. [2.] God saved him out of his troubles (Psa 116:8): Thou hast delivered, which means either the preventing of the distress he was ready to fall into or the recovering of him from the distress he was already in. God graciously delivered, First, His soul from death. Note, It is God's great mercy to us that we are alive; and the mercy is the more sensible if we have been at death's door and yet have been spared and raised up, just turned to destruction and yet ordered to return. That a life so often forfeited, and so often exposed, should yet be lengthened out, is a miracle of mercy. The deliverance of the soul from spiritual and eternal death is especially to be acknowledged by all those who are now sanctified and shall be shortly glorified. Secondly, His eyes from tears, that is, his heart from inordinate grief. It is a great mercy to be kept either from the occasions of sorrow, the evil that causes grief, or, at least, from being swallowed up with over-much sorrow. When God comforts those that are cast down, looses the mourners' sackcloth and girds them with gladness, then he delivers their eyes from tears, which yet will not be perfectly done till we come to that world where God shall wipe away all tears from our eyes. Thirdly, His feet from falling, from falling into sin and so into misery. It is a great mercy, when our feet are almost gone, to have God hold us by the right hand (Psa 72:2, 23), so that though we enter into temptation we are not overcome and overthrown by the temptation. Or, "Thou hast delivered my feet from falling into the grave, when I had one foot there already."
2.David, in his returns of gratitude to God, showed himself a good man. God had done all this for him, and therefore,
(1.)He will live a life of delight in God (Psa 116:7): Return unto thy rest, O my soul! [1.] "Repose thyself and be easy, and do not agitate thyself with distrustful disquieting fears as thou hast sometimes done. Quiet thyself, and then enjoy thyself. God has dealt kindly with thee, and therefore thou needest not fear that ever he will deal hardly with thee." [2.] "Repose thyself in God. Return to him as thy rest, and seek not for that rest in the creature which is to be had in him only." God is the soul's rest; in him only it can dwell at ease; to him therefore it must retire, and rejoice in him. He has dealt bountifully with us; he has provided sufficiently for our comfort and refreshment, and encouraged us to come to him for the benefit of it, at all times, upon all occasions; let us therefore be satisfied with that. Return to that rest which Christ gives to the weary and heavy-laden, Mat 11:28. Return to thy Noah; his name signifies rest, as the dove, when she found no rest, returned to the ark. I know no word more proper to close our eyes with at night, when we go to sleep, nor to close them with at death, that long sleep, than this, Return to thy rest, O my soul!
(2.)He will live a life of devotedness to God (Psa 116:9): I will walk before the Lord in the land of the living, that is, in this world, as long as I continue to live in it. Note, [1.] It is our great duty to walk before the Lord, to do all we do as becomes us in his presence and under his eye, to approve ourselves to him as a holy God by conformity to him as our sovereign Lord, by subjection to his will, and, as a God all-sufficient, by a cheerful confidence in him. I am the almighty God; walk before me, Gen 17:1. We must walk worthy of the Lord unto all well-pleasing. [2.] The consideration of this, that we are in the land of the living, should engage and quicken us to do so. We are spared and continued in the land of the living by the power, and patience, and tender mercy of our God, and therefore must make conscience of our duty to him. The land of the living is a land of mercy, which we ought to be thankful for; it is a land of opportunity, which we should improve. Canaan is called the land of the living (Eze 26:20), and those whose lot is cast in such a valley of vision are in a special manner concerned to set the Lord always before them. If God has delivered our soul from death, we must walk before him. A new life must be a new life indeed.
“Because he has inclined his ear to me.” “He inclined,” he said, not that you might take some corporeal notion about God having ears and inclining them to a gentle voice, as we do, putting our ear close to those who speak low, so that by the nearness we may perceive what is said. But he said, “he inclined,” in order that he might point out to us his own weakness. Because through kindness God came down to me while I was lying on the ground, as if, when some sick person is not able to speak clearly because of his great weakness, a kind physician, bringing his ear close, should learn through the nearness what was necessary for the sick person. Therefore, “He has inclined his ear to me.” The divine ear, indeed, does not need a voice for perception; it knows how to recognize in the movements of the heart what is sought. Or, do you not hear how Moses, although he said nothing but met the Lord with his inexpressible groanings, was heard by the Lord, who said, “Why do you cry to me?” God knows how to hear even the blood of a just person, to which no tongue is attached and of which no voice pierces the air. The presence of good works is a loud voice before God.“And in my days I will call on him.” If we have prayed on one day, or if in one hour for a brief time we were saddened by our sins, we are carefree as if we had already made some compensation for our wickedness. However, the holy person says that he is disclosing his confession, which is measured by the whole time of his life, for he says, “In all my days I will call on him.” Then, in order that you may not think that he called on God because he was fortunate in this life and because all his affairs were successful, he describes in detail the magnitude and difficulty of the circumstances in which, when he was involved, he did not forget the name of God.
“The sorrows of death,” he says, “have compassed me; and the perils of hell have found me.” Properly the sorrows of death have been agreed on as the pains of childbirth, when the womb, distended with its burden, thrusts out the fetus; then, the generative parts, being compressed and stretched around the fetus by spasms and contractions of the muscles, produce in the mothers the sharpest pains and most bitter pangs. He transferred the name of these pains to those that besiege the animal in the division of soul and body at death. He says that he has suffered nothing moderately but that he has been tried even to the sorrows of death and has arrived at the peril of the descent into hell. Now, did he endure only these things for which he is exalted, or did he endure these things frequently and unwillingly? Nothing that is forced is praiseworthy. But, look at the nobility of nature of the athlete. When the sorrows of death compassed me and the perils of hell found me, I was so far from succumbing to these trials that I willingly proposed to myself even much greater trials than these. Trouble and sorrow, I, as it were, willingly devised for myself; I was not unwillingly seized by them.Indeed, in the preceding words we read, “The perils of hell have found me,” but here, “I met with trouble and sorrow.” For, since I was found to be unyielding there in regard to what was brought on by the tempter, in order that I might show the abundance of my love toward God, I added trouble to trouble and sorrow to sorrow, and I did not rise up against these sufferings by my own power, but I called upon the name of the Lord. Such is also the declaration of the apostle, who says, “But in all these things we overcome because of him who has loved us.” For he conquers who does not yield to those who lead on by force, but he is more than conqueror, who voluntarily invites sorrows for a demonstration of his endurance. Let him who was in some sin to death say, “The sorrows of death have compassed me.” “For everyone,” he says, “who commits sin has been born of the devil.” Now, when I, he says, committed sin and was pregnant by death, then also I was found by the perils of hell. How, then, did I cure myself? Because I devised trouble and sorrow through penance. I contrived for myself a suffering of penance proportionate to the greatness of the sin, and thus I dared to call on the name of the Lord. But, what was it that I said? “O Lord, deliver my soul.” I am held in this captivity, so you give ransom for me and deliver my soul.
“I have loved,” the psalmist says, “because the Lord will hear the voice of my prayer.” It is not in the power of everyone to say “I have loved,” but of him who is already perfect and beyond the fear of slavery and who has been formed in the spirit of adoption as children. He does not add to “I have loved” the word someone, but we supply in thought “the God of the universe.” For, that which is properly beloved is God, since they define “beloved” as that at which all things aim. Now, God is a good and the first and most perfect of good things. Therefore, I have loved God, who is the highest of objects to be desired, and I have received with joy sufferings for his sake. What these things are, the psalmist goes through in detail a little later—the pangs of death, the dangers of hell, the affliction, the pain, all things whatsoever that are desirable to him because of the love of God—and he demonstrates the hope that was stored up for those who receive sufferings because of their devoutness. For I did not endure the contests, he says, contrary to my will or by force or constraint, but I accepted the sufferings with a certain love and affection, so that I was able to say, “Because for your sake we are killed all the day long.” And these words seem to have equal weight with the words of the apostle and to be spoken by him with the same feeling: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or hunger, or nakedness, or danger or the sword?” Therefore, I have loved all these things, knowing that I endure the dangers for the sake of piety under the hands of the Lord of the universe who sees and bestows the reward. “Because the Lord will hear the voice of my prayer.” So, each one of us is able to perform the difficult tasks enjoined by the commandments whenever he displays his conduct of life to the God of the universe as if to a spectator.
Do you hear him [the psalmist] saying, “The sorrows of death have compassed me”? “Still, I have loved the Lord even in the sorrows of death. The perils of hell have found me, not fearing indeed, but loving, but hoping, because no distress, no persecution, no dangers, no sword shall separate me from Christ.” Therefore, he accepted tribulation and sorrow willingly, knowing that “suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope.” As a good athlete, he sought the contest that he might gain the crown, but he knew that this was given to him not through his own strength but by the aid of God. He could not have been victorious had he not called on him who helps contenders.
"I have loved, since the Lord will hear the voice of my prayer" [Psalm 116:1]. Let the soul that is sojourning in absence from the Lord sing thus, let that sheep which had strayed sing thus, let that son who had "died and returned to life," who had "been lost and was found;" [Luke 15:6, 24] let our soul sing thus, brethren, and most beloved sons. Let us be taught, and let us abide, and let us sing thus with the Saints: "I have loved: since the Lord will hear the voice of my prayer." Is this a reason for having loved, that the Lord will hear the voice of my prayer? And do we not rather love, because He has heard, or that He may hear? What then means, "I have loved, since the Lord will hear"? Does he, because hope is wont to inflame love, say that he has loved, since he has hoped that God will listen to the voice of his prayer?
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SUMMARY
Psalms 116:1 opens with a profound and deeply personal declaration of the psalmist's unwavering love for the Lord, a love explicitly rooted in and affirmed by God's faithful and attentive response to heartfelt prayers and earnest supplications. This verse encapsulates the essence of a grateful heart, establishing a direct and experiential link between the psalmist's profound devotion and God's demonstrable faithfulness in hearing and answering cries for help, thereby setting a tone of profound thanksgiving and celebration for divine responsiveness and deliverance from distress.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Psalms 116:1 employs several powerful literary devices that enhance its impact and convey its profound message. The most prominent is Personal Confession, as the psalmist directly states "I love the LORD," making the opening a deeply intimate and subjective declaration of faith and devotion. This is immediately followed by a clear Cause and Effect relationship, indicated by the word "because." The psalmist's love is not arbitrary but a direct, logical consequence of God's action ("he hath heard my voice and my supplications"), reinforcing the experiential basis of faith and the reciprocal nature of the relationship. Furthermore, there is an element of Anthropomorphism in the phrase "he hath heard my voice," attributing human sensory perception (hearing) to God. This device serves to make God's responsiveness relatable and tangible to the human experience, emphasizing His attentive and caring nature without diminishing His transcendence. The verse also functions as a Declarative Statement, setting the theme for the entire psalm as a testimony of answered prayer and grateful praise, inviting the reader into the psalmist's experience of divine faithfulness.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Psalms 116:1 serves as a foundational statement regarding the nature of prayer and God's character, echoing throughout the biblical narrative. It underscores the profound truth that God is not a distant or indifferent deity, but one who actively listens and responds to the cries of His people. This experiential knowledge of God's attentiveness transforms abstract theology into lived reality, fostering a love that is rooted in gratitude and trust. The psalmist's declaration of love, born from answered prayer, illustrates the reciprocal nature of the covenant relationship: as God demonstrates His faithfulness, humanity responds with devotion and praise. This dynamic relationship is a cornerstone of biblical theology, emphasizing God's desire for intimate communion with His creation and His unwavering commitment to those who call upon Him in truth.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Psalms 116:1 offers a timeless encouragement for believers today, inviting us into a deeper, more experiential relationship with God. It challenges us to move beyond a theoretical understanding of prayer to a confident expectation that God genuinely hears and responds to our "voice" and "supplications." When we intentionally recall and acknowledge God's past faithfulness in answering our prayers, our love and trust in Him are profoundly deepened. This verse calls us to cultivate a consistent and heartfelt prayer life, recognizing that every answered prayer, no matter how small, is a fresh demonstration of God's attentiveness and a new reason to love Him more deeply. It reminds us that our devotion is not a burdensome duty but a grateful response to a God who is intimately involved in our lives, transforming our anxieties into adoration and our pleas into praise. This profound truth encourages perseverance in prayer, knowing that our cries are never unheard by our compassionate Heavenly Father.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Does the psalmist's love for God in this verse imply a conditional love, based only on answered prayer?
Answer: While the verse explicitly states "because he hath heard my voice," it does not imply a conditional love in the sense that the love would cease if prayers were not answered. Instead, it highlights the experiential basis of the psalmist's love. True biblical love for God is rooted in His character and covenant faithfulness, which are consistently demonstrated through His responsiveness. The psalmist's declaration is a testimony to God's nature as a hearer of prayer, which deepens and confirms an already existing love and trust. It's a grateful response to divine grace, not a transactional exchange. The psalmist's love is a natural overflow of experiencing God's goodness and mercy, affirming His trustworthiness and power, much like a child's love for a parent who consistently cares for them.
What is the significance of God "hearing" the psalmist's voice and supplications?
Answer: The act of God "hearing" (Hebrew: shama') is profoundly significant. It goes far beyond mere auditory perception. In biblical thought, when God hears, it implies attentive listening, understanding, and, crucially, a responsive action. It signifies His active engagement with humanity, His compassion, and His readiness to intervene. For the psalmist, it meant that his desperate cries in a time of distress were not ignored but were met with divine attention and effective deliverance. This concept assures believers that their prayers are not uttered into a void but are received by a personal, caring, and powerful God who is intimately involved in their lives, as seen in Psalm 4:1. It underscores God's immanence and His desire for a dynamic relationship with His people.
How does this verse speak to times when prayers feel unanswered?
Answer: Psalms 116:1 primarily focuses on the experience of answered prayer, which serves as a powerful foundation for faith. However, even when prayers feel unanswered, this verse reminds us of God's character as one who hears. The "hearing" is a constant, even if the "answer" is not always what we expect or desire, or if it unfolds in God's timing. The New Testament encourages persistent prayer, trusting in God's wisdom and sovereign plan, even when understanding is limited (Romans 8:28). This verse provides a bedrock of assurance that God is always attentive, even if His responses are sometimes mysterious or involve a different path than we envisioned. It calls us to trust in His perfect will and timing, knowing He always hears, even if He answers in ways beyond our comprehension.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Psalms 116:1, with its profound declaration of love for a God who hears and delivers, finds its ultimate and most glorious fulfillment in the person and work of Jesus Christ. The psalmist's experience of being heard in distress foreshadows the ultimate deliverance secured by Christ. Jesus himself, in His earthly ministry, was the embodiment of God's attentive ear, constantly hearing the cries of the sick, the marginalized, and the desperate, and responding with healing and compassion, demonstrating the Father's heart to those in need (Matthew 11:5). More profoundly, Christ's own fervent prayers in the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:42) and His cry from the cross (Matthew 27:46) demonstrate His complete identification with humanity's supplications, even in the depths of suffering. Through His sacrificial death and glorious resurrection, Christ became the ultimate answer to humanity's deepest cry for deliverance from sin and death, providing eternal salvation. Now, as our ascended High Priest, Jesus continually intercedes for us before the Father, ensuring that our "voice" and "supplications" are not only heard but are presented effectively through Him, granting us access to grace and mercy (Hebrews 7:25). Our love for the Lord, like the psalmist's, is now rooted in the definitive act of God's hearing and delivering us through Christ, enabling us to approach the throne of grace with confidence, knowing that we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.