Commentary - Psalms 31:19-22

Bird's-eye view

This brief section of Psalm 31 marks a significant shift in tone. David, having just poured out his lament and detailed the suffocating pressures of his enemies, now pivots to an exultant celebration of God's profound goodness and protective care. This is not the emotional swing of a manic-depressive; it is the logical progression of robust faith. After laying his burdens before the Lord, he remembers who that Lord is. The passage is a doxology, a burst of praise that extols the quality and quantity of God's goodness, a goodness that is both stored up like a treasure for the saints and publicly displayed for all to see. David celebrates the intimate, spiritual protection God provides, a secret pavilion that shields the believer from the public shame of human conspiracies and the incessant nagging of slanderous tongues. He concludes with a personal testimony, recalling a moment of panicked despair in a besieged city, only to marvel at how God's lovingkindness broke through his alarm and heard his cry. This is a picture of faith that is honest about its fears but ultimately anchored in the character of God.

The core message here is that God's goodness is not a flimsy, sentimental thing. It is a robust, fortress-like reality. It is a treasure laid up for future enjoyment and a mighty work performed in the present. It is a secret hiding place and a public vindication. And it is a grace that stoops to hear us even when we are at our wit's end, speaking foolishly in our haste. This is a profound encouragement for every believer who feels surrounded, slandered, and on the verge of being cut off.

Outline

Context In Psalms

Psalm 31 is a psalm of David that blends profound trust with raw lament. It is a prayer offered in a time of great distress. The first part of the psalm (vv. 1-8) is a declaration of trust and a plea for deliverance. The middle section (vv. 9-18) is a heart-wrenching description of David's suffering; he is physically wasting away, emotionally spent, socially isolated, and the target of deadly plots. Our passage (vv. 19-22) follows immediately after this lament, serving as the turning point. Having fully expressed his grief and fear to God, David's faith reasserts itself, and he breaks forth into praise. This structure is common in the Psalms and instructive for us: biblical faith is not about pretending you don't have problems. It is about taking your problems to God and then, on the other side of that honest supplication, remembering the bedrock truths about who He is. This section of praise then flows into a final exhortation for all the saints to love the Lord, be of good courage, and hope in Him (vv. 23-24). Famously, the Lord Jesus quoted the fifth verse of this psalm from the cross: "Into your hand I commit my spirit" (Luke 23:46), forever marking it as a psalm for the righteous sufferer who trusts in God to the end.

Key Issues

The Public Secret

One of the central tensions in the Christian life is the relationship between our public witness and our private walk with God. This passage holds these two realities together beautifully. In verse 19, God's goodness is "worked for those who take refuge in You, before the sons of men." This is a public, open, visible demonstration. Our trust in God is not a quiet, private affair to be kept to ourselves. It is meant to be seen. The world is watching, and God intends to put His goodness on display through the lives of His people who trust Him in the open square.

But then, in the very next breath, David speaks of a profound secrecy. God hides His people "in the secret place of Your presence" and keeps them "secretly in a shelter." How can our faith be both a public spectacle and a secret refuge? This is the glorious paradox of living in Christ. We are hidden in Him, and our life is secure in a way the world cannot understand or touch. From that place of perfect security, we are then able to live boldly and openly before the watching world. The world can see our actions, but they cannot see the fortress from which we act. They can see our courage, but they cannot see the secret presence of God that fuels it. We live out in the open, precisely because we are hidden in the secret place.

Verse by Verse Commentary

19 How great is Your goodness, Which You have stored up for those who fear You, Which You have worked for those who take refuge in You, Before the sons of men!

David begins this section with an exclamation of wonder. The goodness of God is not a small or trivial thing; it is immeasurably great. He describes this goodness in two ways. First, it is a goodness that God has stored up for those who fear Him. This points to the eschatological reality of our inheritance. God has treasures of grace, mercy, and glory laid up for us in heaven, a reserved inheritance that cannot be corrupted. The fear of the Lord is the key to this treasury. This is not a craven, servile fear, but a reverential awe and trust that recognizes God as God. Second, this goodness is not just for the future; it is something God has worked or wrought in the present for those who take refuge in Him. And where does He work it? Before the sons of men. This is crucial. God's deliverance and provision are not done in a corner. He vindicates His people publicly. When a believer trusts God in the midst of a trial, openly and without shame, God loves to show up and act in a way that makes the watching world scratch its head in amazement.

20 You hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the conspiracies of man; You keep them secretly in a shelter from the strife of tongues.

Here David describes the nature of God's protection. It is not necessarily a removal from the physical battlefield, but rather a spiritual sanctuary in the midst of it. The first threat is the conspiracies of man, the proud plots and schemes of the wicked. Against this, God hides His people in the "secret place of Your presence." This is the holy of holies, the place of intimate fellowship with God Himself. When you are hidden there, the plots of men seem small and distant. They can scheme all they want, but they cannot touch the true life of one who dwells with God. The second threat is the strife of tongues. This refers to slander, gossip, accusation, and verbal abuse. It is the constant, grating noise of hostile words. Against this, God keeps His people secretly in a shelter, a pavilion or booth. He provides a quiet place where the soul can find rest from the war of words. In the presence of God, the accusations of men lose their sting. God's verdict is the only one that matters, and He has declared us righteous in Christ.

21 Blessed be Yahweh, For He has made marvelous His lovingkindness to me in a besieged city.

The praise now becomes intensely personal. David moves from general truths about God's care to a specific testimony. "Blessed be Yahweh," he says, which is the language of worship. And why? Because God has made His lovingkindness marvelous to him. The word for lovingkindness is hesed, that great covenant word that means loyal love, steadfast mercy, and unfailing faithfulness. God's hesed is always marvelous, but David experienced it in a particularly wondrous way. And the context makes it all the more stunning: it was in a besieged city. This is a place of confinement, fear, dwindling resources, and constant threat. It is the last place you would expect to experience marvelous grace. But this is our God. He does not just show His goodness when we are on the mountaintop; He makes it shine brightest when we are in the valley, surrounded, with our backs to the wall. His grace is not a fair-weather grace.

22 As for me, I said in my alarm, “I am cut off from before Your eyes”; Nevertheless, You heard the voice of my supplications When I cried to You for help.

David concludes with a moment of raw, honest confession. He remembers his moment of panic. The word for alarm can also be translated "in my haste." In a moment of sheer terror, seeing the walls closing in, he spoke foolishly. He said, "I am cut off from before Your eyes." This is the cry of ultimate despair. It is the feeling that God has not only abandoned you, but has actively expelled you from His sight and care. It is to believe the lie of the circumstances instead of the promise of God. But the verse does not end there. The great word is Nevertheless. Despite David's wavering faith, despite his hasty and unbelieving words, God did not take him at his word. God heard the true voice of his prayer, the cry for help that lay beneath the panic. God is a gracious Father who knows our frame. He distinguishes between the voice of our fear and the voice of our faith, however faint. He responds not according to the weakness of our cry, but according to the strength of His own covenant love.

Application

This passage is a potent tonic for the beleaguered Christian. We live in a world full of conspiracies and strife of tongues. There are plots against the righteous, and the air is thick with slander, mockery, and accusation, whether from the world or, sadly, sometimes from within the church. The temptation is to panic, to believe that we are truly cut off and abandoned. David's psalm teaches us a different way.

First, we must cultivate a deep and abiding appreciation for the sheer greatness of God's goodness. We should meditate on the goodness He has stored up for us in Christ and look for the ways He is working it out in our lives right now, before the sons of men. Our lives are meant to be a theater for the display of God's grace.

Second, we must learn to retreat to the secret place of His presence. This is not a physical location but a spiritual reality accessed through prayer, the Word, and fellowship with the saints. It is in that secret place that the noise of the world is silenced and the plots of men are revealed for the pathetic things they are. We must learn to live our public lives out of that secret strength.

Finally, we must learn to be gracious with ourselves when we, like David, speak foolishly in our alarm. Our security does not rest on the perfection of our faith, but on the perfection of our faithful God. When we panic and say, "I am cut off," the gospel truth is that in Christ, we can never be cut off. Our God heard our cry for help long before we uttered it, and He answered it definitively at the cross. Because of Christ, even when our faith falters, His lovingkindness remains marvelous, and He always, always hears.