The Great Reversal: From Curses to Blessing Text: Psalm 109:21-31
Introduction: The Great Pivot
We come now to the great pivot of Psalm 109. The first twenty verses are a white hot blast of imprecation. They are some of the most ferocious prayers in all of Scripture, calling down covenantal curses on the head of a covenantal traitor. And as we have noted before, these are not the angry, vindictive rantings of a man with a temper. These are inspired prayers, surrendered to God, asking the Judge of all the earth to do right. They are prayers that can only be safely prayed by those who have first said, "Father, forgive them." The New Testament apostles understood this, which is why Peter applies these very curses directly to Judas Iscariot, the son of perdition (Acts 1:20).
But after this torrent of righteous imprecation, the psalmist turns. He pivots from the head of his enemy to the face of his God. This is the crucial move. It is one thing to hand your enemies over to God for justice; it is another thing entirely to then hand yourself over to God for mercy. And you must do both. If you only do the first, your prayers for justice can curdle into personal vengeance. If you only do the second, your prayers for mercy can curdle into sentimentalism, a cheap grace that refuses to acknowledge the stark reality of evil and the necessity of judgment.
The psalmist here shows us the proper pattern. Having dealt with the justice God owes to the wicked, he now appeals to the mercy God has promised to the righteous. He moves from demanding the wages of sin for his foe to pleading for the gift of grace for himself. This section is a master class in how the afflicted saint should pray. He is weak, needy, and despised, but he is not without a prevailing argument. His argument is not his own righteousness, but rather the character and reputation of God Himself. He appeals to God's name, to His lovingkindness, and to His sovereign power. And in doing so, he lays the foundation for the great reversal that the gospel always brings: shame for the proud, honor for the humble; curses for the rebellious, but blessing for the servant of God.
The Text
But as for You, O Yahweh, O Lord, deal with me for Your name’s sake; Because Your lovingkindness is good, deliver me; For I am afflicted and needy, And my heart is pierced within me. I am passing like a shadow when it is stretched out; I am shaken off like the locust. My knees are feeble from fasting, And my flesh has grown lean, without fatness. As for me, I have become a reproach to them; They see me, they wag their head. Help me, O Yahweh my God; Save me according to Your lovingkindness. And let them know that this is Your hand; You, O Yahweh, have done it. Let them curse, but You bless; They arise and will be put to shame, But Your slave shall be glad. Let my accusers be clothed with dishonor, And let them wrap themselves with their own shame as with a robe. With my mouth I will give thanks abundantly to Yahweh; And in the midst of many I will praise Him. For He stands at the right hand of the needy, To save him from those who judge his soul.
(Psalm 109:21-31 LSB)
An Appeal to God's Character (v. 21-22)
The psalmist begins his personal plea by grounding it not in his own merit, but in God's reputation and covenant faithfulness.
"But as for You, O Yahweh, O Lord, deal with me for Your name’s sake; Because Your lovingkindness is good, deliver me; For I am afflicted and needy, And my heart is pierced within me." (Psalm 109:21-22)
The "But as for You" marks the dramatic turn. He has just laid out what justice demands for his enemies. Now he turns to God. His plea is, "deal with me for Your name's sake." This is the highest form of prayer. He is not saying, "Vindicate me because I'm a good fellow who has been wronged." He is saying, "Act in a way that is consistent with Your own revealed character." God has attached His name, His reputation, to His people. When they are crushed, His name is profaned among the nations. When He delivers them, His name is glorified. The psalmist is concerned, first and foremost, with the glory of God.
He then appeals to God's "lovingkindness," the great Hebrew word hesed. This is not a sentimental, squishy affection. It is covenantal loyalty. It is steadfast, rugged, committed love. The psalmist says God's hesed is "good." It is not just a feeling; it is an effective, powerful, and beautiful attribute. "Because your covenant love is good, act on it. Deliver me."
And what is his condition? He is "afflicted and needy." The Hebrew is ani w'ebyon, the classic description of the humble poor who have no one else to rely on. This is not a posture of self-pity but of realism. He is at the end of his rope. His heart is "pierced," or wounded, within him. This is the man God is drawn to, the one who is poor in spirit, the one who has no other hope. God resists the proud, but He gives grace to the humble.
A Portrait of Frailty (v. 23-25)
He continues to describe his desperate state, using a series of powerful and evocative images.
"I am passing like a shadow when it is stretched out; I am shaken off like the locust. My knees are feeble from fasting, And my flesh has grown lean, without fatness. As for me, I have become a reproach to them; They see me, they wag their head." (Psalm 109:23-25 LSB)
His life feels insubstantial, fading away like a late afternoon shadow. He is being brushed aside as an insignificant pest, "shaken off like the locust." This is a picture of utter helplessness and contempt. His physical condition matches his social standing. His knees are weak from fasting, likely a fast forced upon him by his circumstances, and his body is emaciated. He has wasted away under the pressure.
The result of all this is that he has become a "reproach." His enemies look at his miserable condition and take it as proof that God has abandoned him. They "wag their head," a gesture of scorn and mockery. We see this very action at the foot of the cross. "He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him" (Matthew 27:43). The suffering of the righteous is always an occasion for the wicked to mock God. This is why the psalmist's plea is so urgent; not only his life, but God's honor, is on the line.
The Plea for Vindication (v. 26-29)
Based on his desperate condition and his appeal to God's character, he now makes his direct request for help and salvation.
"Help me, O Yahweh my God; Save me according to Your lovingkindness. And let them know that this is Your hand; You, O Yahweh, have done it. Let them curse, but You bless; They arise and will be put to shame, But Your slave shall be glad. Let my accusers be clothed with dishonor, And let them wrap themselves with their own shame as with a robe." (Psalm 109:26-29 LSB)
The prayer is simple and direct: "Help me... Save me." Again, the basis is not his deserving, but God's hesed. But notice the purpose of this salvation. It is not just for his own comfort. It is so "that they may know that this is Your hand." He wants his deliverance to be an unmistakable sign of God's intervention. He wants his enemies to see his vindication and have no choice but to conclude, "You, O Yahweh, have done it." This is a prayer for God to make a public statement.
This leads to the great reversal. "Let them curse, but You bless." This is the central equation of the Christian life in a hostile world. The world will curse. That is its nature. But the curse of the world is impotent in the face of the blessing of God. When they arise in their pride and their plans, they will be put to shame. Their enterprise will fail. But God's servant "shall be glad." Their shame and his gladness are two sides of the same coin of God's justice.
He then prays that his accusers would be "clothed with dishonor." Their own shame will become their public uniform, a garment they cannot take off. Just as they sought to heap reproach on him, that same reproach will boomerang and cover them completely, "as with a robe." This is the principle of righteous retribution that runs throughout the Scriptures. God is not mocked; a man reaps what he sows.
The Vow of Public Praise (v. 30-31)
The psalm concludes not with a question mark, but with a confident declaration of praise, spoken in faith before the deliverance has even arrived.
"With my mouth I will give thanks abundantly to Yahweh; And in the midst of many I will praise Him. For He stands at the right hand of the needy, To save him from those who judge his soul." (Psalm 109:30-31 LSB)
This is the result of true, God-centered prayer. It ends in worship. He vows to give abundant, verbal thanks to God. And this will not be a private affair. He will praise Him "in the midst of many," in the public assembly of the saints. His deliverance was public, his shame was public, and so his praise must be public. This is our duty as well. We are not saved to be silent.
And why can he be so confident? The final verse gives the reason. "For He stands at the right hand of the needy." This is a beautiful and direct contrast to the beginning of the psalm. In verse 6, the psalmist prayed that Satan, the accuser, would stand at the right hand of his wicked enemy. The right hand was the position of the prosecutor in an ancient court. But for the needy, for the humble believer, God Himself comes and stands at his right hand, not as a prosecutor, but as his divine defense attorney, his advocate, his champion. God stands there "to save him from those who judge his soul," that is, from those who would condemn him to death.
The Right Hand of the Greater David
As with all the psalms, we must ultimately read this through the lens of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the ultimate afflicted and needy one. He was the one whose heart was pierced. He became a shadow, despised and rejected. His knees were weak from fasting in the wilderness. He became a reproach, and men wagged their heads at Him as He hung on the cross.
He prayed this prayer in its fullest sense. He entrusted Himself to the Father, asking to be delivered for the sake of God's name. And God answered. The world cursed Him, hanging Him on a tree. But God blessed Him, raising Him from the dead. His accusers arose and were put to eternal shame, but God's servant was made eternally glad. Satan and the Sanhedrin and Pilate were all clothed with dishonor, wrapped in their own shame as in a robe.
And now, where is Christ? He has ascended to the right hand of the Father. And what does He do there? He stands at our right hand. "Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died, more than that, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us" (Romans 8:34). When the accuser comes to stand at our right hand to prosecute us, he finds the seat is already taken. Our Advocate is there.
Therefore, we can pray this psalm with confidence. When we are afflicted, when we are reproached for His name, we can appeal to the Father's hesed. We can ask Him to act for His own glory. We can trust that though the world may curse, He will bless. And we can know, with unshakable certainty, that He who stood for Christ will also stand for us. He stands at the right hand of the needy to save us from all who would condemn our souls. And for that, we must give Him abundant thanks, not just in here, but in the midst of the many, for all the world to hear.