BIBLE CHAPTER STUDY
Psalms 143 — A Plea for Deliverance and Guidance
A lament psalm in which David, overwhelmed by enemies, pleads for God to answer in faithfulness, lead him by the Spirit, and preserve his life.
Scripture
1A Psalm of David. Hear my prayer, O Jehovah; Give ear to my supplications: In thy faithfulness answer me, and in thy righteousness.
2And enter not into judgment with thy servant; For in thy sight no man living is righteous.
3For the enemy hath persecuted my soul; He hath smitten my life down to the ground: He hath made me to dwell in dark places, as those that have been long dead.
4Therefore is my spirit overwhelmed within me; My heart within me is desolate.
5I remember the days of old; I meditate on all thy doings; I muse on the work of thy hands.
6I spread forth my hands unto thee: My soul thirsteth after thee, as a weary land. [[Selah
7Make haste to answer me, O Jehovah; My spirit faileth: Hide not thy face from me, Lest I become like them that go down into the pit.
8Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; For in thee do I trust: Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; For I lift up my soul unto thee.
9Deliver me, O Jehovah, from mine enemies: I flee unto thee to hide me.
10Teach me to do thy will; For thou art my God: Thy Spirit is good; Lead me in the land of uprightness.
11Quicken me, O Jehovah, for thy name's sake: In thy righteousness bring my soul out of trouble.
12And in thy lovingkindness cut off mine enemies, And destroy all them that afflict my soul; For I am thy servant.
What this passage means
Psalm 143 is one of the seven penitential psalms, structured as a movement from plea to confession to trust. David opens by asking God to answer "in thy faithfulness" and "in thy righteousness" (v. 1), appealing not to his own merit but to God's covenant character. Verse 2 makes the basis of the plea explicit: "for in thy sight no man living is righteous." David does not claim innocence; he asks that God would not bring him into a strict forensic judgment, because no one can stand on that ground.
The middle section (vv. 3–6) describes the psalmist's suffering and his recourse to memory. The enemy has crushed his life "down to the ground" and made him dwell in darkness "as those that have been long dead" (v. 3). His spirit is overwhelmed and his heart desolate (v. 4). The turning point is verse 5: "I remember the days of old; I meditate on all thy doings; I muse on the work of thy hands." Recollection of God's past acts becomes the ground for renewed prayer, and his soul reaches out to God like a parched land (v. 6).
The closing petitions (vv. 7–12) ask for three things: to hear God's lovingkindness "in the morning" and to know the way to walk (v. 8); to be taught God's will and led by His Spirit "in the land of uprightness" (v. 10); and to be revived and delivered from enemies "for thy name's sake" (v. 11). The psalm ends by identifying the ground of the entire prayer: "I am thy servant" (v. 12). Deliverance is sought not as a right, but as a consequence of belonging to God.
Context
The chapter note identifies Psalm 143 as one of the backfilled Psalms outside the P0/P1 selection, and the chapter itself is presented as a complete unit without surrounding context. Within the psalm, David addresses God directly throughout, and a single Selah appears in verse 6, marking the transition from lament and recollection (vv. 1–6) to direct petition (vv. 7–12). The superscription "A Psalm of David" appears in verse 1.
Key words in the original
- H0530 אֱמוּנָה (ʾĕmûnāh, 'faithfulness') in verse 1 denotes covenant reliability, the steadfast loyalty by which God answers prayer. David grounds his plea in God's faithfulness, not in his own worthiness.
- H6663 יִצְדַּק (yiṣdaq, 'be righteous') in verse 2 is the verbal form of the noun ṣĕdāqāh. David concedes that no living person can be pronounced righteous before God's審判, which frames his plea that God not enter into judgment with him.
- H4941 מִשְׁפָּט (mišpāṭ, 'judgment') in verse 2 means a judicial verdict or sentence. David's request that God 'not enter into judgment' is a request that the covenant relationship, not strict legal reckoning, govern how he is treated.
Related verses
- Psalms 25:4 This verse mirrors David's request in Psalm 143:8 to 'know the way wherein I should walk.' Both psalms plead for divine guidance rather than self-direction.
- Proverbs 3:5 Proverbs 3:5–6 expands the psalmist's trust language of 143:8 ('for in thee do I trust') into a general exhortation: wholehearted reliance on the Lord paired with acknowledgment of Him in all ways.
- Psalms 32:8 This verse answers David's 'Teach me to do thy will' (143:10): God personally instructs and counsels the one He guides, watching over him with His eye.
Common questions
Why does David ask God not to "enter into judgment" (v. 2)?
David does not deny his need for justice but acknowledges that no living person can stand righteous before God's strict judgment (v. 2). He pleads that God would deal with him on the basis of covenant faithfulness rather than forensic reckoning.
What is the function of the Selah in verse 6?
Selah appears once in the psalm at the end of verse 6, marking the transition from David's recollection of God's past deeds and his own thirst for God to the direct petitions that follow in verses 7–12.
What three things does David ask for in the closing petitions (vv. 8, 10, 11)?
He asks (1) to hear God's lovingkindness in the morning and to know the way to walk (v. 8); (2) to be taught God's will and led by His Spirit in the land of uprightness (v. 10); and (3) to be revived and delivered from trouble for God's name's sake (v. 11).