Psalm 35:22-27 meaning

Psalm 35 is a prayer of David offered to the LORD, imploring Him to deliver him from enemies who unjustly seek his destruction. This portion of Psalm 35 concludes David, the psalmist's, third and final litany. 

Psalm 35 is outlined as follows:

• First Litany (Psalm 35:1-8)
• First Praise (Psalm 35:9-10)
• Second Litany (Psalm 35:11-17) 
• Second Praise (Psalm 35:18)   
• Third Litany (Psalm 35:19-27)   
• Third Praise (Psalm 35:28)   

Psalm 35:22-27 as David's Prayer

The third and final litany (list of petitions) of Psalm 35 consists of seven petitions to the LORD and makes an accusation against David's enemies. It spans vv 19-27. Verses 19-21 are covered in the prior section of commentary, while this section covers the remaining verses, vv 22-27. 

With his first petition of this litany, David had asked the LORD to not let his enemies win (Psalm 35:19). 

This was followed by David's accusation that they are enemies of "shalom" (God's peace, His perfect harmony of justice and love) and how they shout against the LORD's anointed who is responsible for cultivating "shalom" (Psalm 35:20-21).

After making this accusation against his enemies, David resumes petitioning the LORD to come to his aid in various ways.

The second petition of the third litany of Psalm 35 is:

You have seen it, O LORD, do not keep silent;
O Lord, do not be far from me (v 22).
Stir up Yourself, and awake to my right
And to my cause, my God and my Lord (v 23).

There are two parts to this petition. 

It begins with a short statement:

• You have seen it,

This short statement is followed by three expressions calling upon God's help: 

• O LORD, do not keep silent;
• O Lord, do not be far from me.
• Stir up Yourself, and awake to my right and to my cause, my God and my Lord

David addresses God by name and title in this petition. In the first line of his petition, the psalmist addresses God as O LORD, which was the name God used to describe Himself to Moses, the "I AM" (Exodus 3:14). The psalmist also addresses God by His title—"Adonai" (Master)—the King of the Universe, which is translated as O Lord.

In this short statement, David directly tells the LORD—You have seen it. The pronoun—it—generally refers to the accusations of Psalm 35, and specifically what David just said concerning his enemies—how they are against "shalom" (peace), devise deceit, shout against him, and celebrate when they think he has fallen into their trap (Psalm 35:22). The LORD knows of their wickedness. He has seen all of it.

Because the LORD has seen it and knows it, David asks Him for help. The psalmist express this petition three ways. 

• He asks the LORD to not keep silent about it. He is asking the LORD to speak up, intervene, and advocate on his behalf. He is asking the LORD to be His lawyer and defense. 
• He asks the Lord (Adonai, King of the Universe) to not be far from me. This request is similar to David's request in Psalm 22, the psalmist petitions the LORD: "Be not far from me, for trouble is near; For there is none to help" (Psalm 22:11). This implies that David is asking the One who has authority over all to use His power to intervene on his behalf. 
• He asks that the Lord stir up Yourself, and awake to my right and to my cause. This image likens the Lord's lack of apparent help to a mighty warrior or powerful king who has been sleeping and is unaware that his ally is under attack. The word translated right can also be rendered "judgement." He calls upon the Lord to wake up and come quickly to defend his right (judgement) and to support his cause. Combining the psalmist's right and cause equates to my right cause or my righteousness in this case. 

This request is similar to David's petition at the beginning of Psalm 35, where David asks God to "rise up for my help" (Psalm 35:2-3a).

David, the psalmist, concludes this third petition with a personal appeal to my God and my Lord: 

Judge me, O Lord my God, according to Your righteousness (v 24a).

In the previous petition (v 22) David asked the Lord to not keep silent but to advocate on his behalf as a lawyer might do. With this petition, the psalmist appeals to the Lord (Adonai, King of the Universe) to judge his case and cause. 

As the King of the Universe, the Lord is the perfect judge because He knows everything about every situation (Psalm 139:4, Proverbs 15:3, Hebrews 4:13). He is also perfectly just (Deuteronomy 32:4, Isaiah 30:18b). David is appealing to the King of the Universe to decide his case according to the moral laws that the King established. If the Lord does this, then David believes he will win his case against his enemies who "hate him without cause" (Psalm 35:19). They have no case against him.

"The judgments of the LORD are true; they are righteous altogether."
(Psalm 19:9)

"The LORD performs righteous deeds
And judgments for all who are oppressed."
(Psalm 103:6)

The fourth petition of the third litany of Psalm 35 is:

And do not let them rejoice over me.
Do not let them say in their heart, "Aha, our desire!"
Do not let them say, "We have swallowed him up!" (v 24b-5).

In this petition, the psalmist appeals to God to not let his enemies triumph over him in his defeat. If the Lord judges David's cause according to His righteousness, then His verdict will be against David's adversaries. 

This petition is for David's adversaries to lose their case and fail to achieve their wicked goal of destroying him.

This particular petition is expressed three ways:

• And do not let them rejoice over me (v 24).
• Do not let them say in their heart, "Aha, our desire!" (v 25).
• Do not let them say, "We have swallowed him up!" (v 25).

All three of these expressions ask God to not give his enemies any satisfaction in David's defeat. 

The first expression—Do not let them rejoice over me—begs God to not give his adversaries an opportunity to gloat that they have destroyed him. 

The second expression—Do not let them say in their heart, "Aha, our desire!"—asks God to not grant their heart's desire, which is destroying David.

The third expression—Do not let them say, "We have swallowed him up!"—asks God to not let them celebrate that they have successfully defeated David. 

Underlying the psalmist's expressions asking God to block his enemies' desires is the idea that the reason his enemies will not rejoice or find satisfaction in their heart, or celebrate how they swallowed David up, is because David is asking God to not let him be destroyed in the first place. 

The fifth petition of the third litany of Psalm 35 is:

Let those be ashamed and humiliated altogether who rejoice at my distress;
Let those be clothed with shame and dishonor who magnify themselves over me (v 26).

This petition is an extension of the previous petitions which asked God to judge David's case according to the Lord's standard of righteousness (v 24a) and to not let his enemies rejoice at David's distress (v 24b-25). 

If the Lord judges David's cause according to His righteousness, then David's opponents will lose their case against him. In verse 26, David goes further and asks God to expose the unjust malice of David's enemies to their embarrassment. 

He asks God to let them be ashamed and altogether humiliated. David wants them to publicly wear their shame and dishonor. 

The psalmist describes his enemies as those who rejoice at my distress and those who magnify themselves over me. The fact that David's enemies would be/are rejoicing and magnifying themselves over him suggests that at least for a time, they are successful in causing him distress, which they believe will lead to his utter doom. 

But they are mistaken and overestimate the outcome of the distress they bring without cause upon the Lord's anointed king. Though they afflict David with distress, they fail to destroy him. 

The fifth petition of Psalm 35 is an echo of his petition in Psalm 35:4,

"Let those be ashamed and dishonored who seek my life;
Let those be turned back and humiliated who devise evil against me."
(Psalm 35:4)

Once again, this petition is an indirect way of asking God to let him live unharmed. If David's enemies are altogether humiliated and their evil exposed, it will mean that David escaped their wickedness and likely continues to reign as the Lord's anointed. 

The sixth petition of the third litany of Psalm 35 is:

Let them shout for joy and rejoice, who favor my vindication (v 27a).

The psalmist's final request asks God to let his friends celebrate and rejoice with him because he has been saved and vindicated by the LORD.

This request is the final extension of the previous petitions, where the psalmist requested the Lord, King of the Universe to judge David's case according to His standard of righteousness (v 24a); to rule against the wishes of his enemies who wish to destroy him (v 24b-25); and to expose and shame them for their corrupt intentions and unjust accusations against David (v 26).  

As David's enemies who hated him without cause (Psalm 35:19) are bitterly disappointed at the Lord's ruling, David's loyal supporters who favor his vindication will shout for joy and rejoice. 

Upon the Lord's judgement—David will be vindicated and saved. David did not seek to vindicate himself, rather he entrusted his vindication to the Lord. This is what the Bible tells us to do as well, whenever we are unjustly maligned. 

The Lord declares: "Vengeance is Mine, and retribution" (Deuteronomy 32:35). 

Jesus taught His disciples:

"But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also."
(Matthew 5:39)

Beginning with the very first verse of Psalm 35 when David opened with "Contend, O LORD, with those who contend with me" (Psalm 35:1a) until its conclusion, David has entrusted his case to the Lord and left the judgment and his vindication up to the King of the Universe.

The seventh and final petition of the third litany of Psalm 35 is:

And let them say continually, "The LORD be magnified,
Who delights in the prosperity of His servant" (v 27b).

This petition is a request for all of God's people to perpetually and forever celebrate the LORD's exaltation and prosperity of His servant—i.e. His anointed king. When the anointed king of the LORD's kingdom prospers all the citizens of the LORD's kingdom share in the prosperity of the king. That is one of the reasons they delight in the king's prosperity. 

David, as the LORD's anointed king, is His servant. David rules Israel on behalf of the LORD. The citizens of the LORD's kingdom are those who continually serve the LORD.  Citizens of the His kingdom will continually worship and say: "The LORD be magnified…" 

The LORD is He who delights in the prosperity of His (own) servant. As the servant of the LORD prospers, the LORD prospers because His servant is obedient to the LORD's will. The LORD is pleased and delighted when His servant is successful and enjoys prosperity. 

Isaiah writes of the LORD's servant: "the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His [the Servant's] hand" (Isaiah 53:10b).

The final petition of Psalm 35 in verse 27b is like the first two petitions within the patterned prayer Jesus taught His disciples, known as "The Lord's Prayer" (Matthew 6:9-13).

Jesus's prayer begins: "Our Father who is in Heaven, Hallowed be Your name" (Matthew 6:9b). Jesus's line is essentially the same as what anyone who delights in the prosperity of the LORD's servant would say: "The LORD be magnified." 

And the heart of the final petition of Psalm 35 is expressed in the second petition of "The Lord's Prayer," which is: "Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:10).

David's final petition of Psalm 35 is a fervent wish for "shalom" (peace)—for God's justice to reign forever—for the Lord's kingdom to be permanently established—and for His people to prosper and delight in the goodness of the Messiah's kingdom.

How David's litany of Psalm 35:22-27 corresponds to Jesus, the Messiah

The Bible Says commentary for this section of scripture will continue its numbering of the various ways Psalm 35 is prophetic of Jesus, the Messiah. The listing of Psalm 35's Messianic prophecies begins in The Bible Says commentary for Psalm 35:1-3. This section of scripture begins with the 24th Messianic prophecy of Psalm 35. 

24.   The LORD sees the Messiah's sufferings and He does not keep silent.

You have seen it, O LORD, do not keep silent;
O Lord, do not be far from me (v 22).

God saw what Jesus's adversaries did to His Son. The LORD broke His silence when Jesus gave up His spirit. Upon the death of Jesus, the veil of the temple was ripped from top to bottom; the earth shook violently, rocks were split, tombs were opened and some of the righteous dead came back to life (Matthew 27:51-53). These supernatural events were heavenly expressions to what the LORD had seen. Even the battle-hardened Roman centurion, took notice (Matthew 27:55).

In the Garden of Gethsemane, no more than a few hours before He was arrested, slandered, and condemned, Jesus prayed to the LORD for strength (Luke 22:40:42) and His prayers were answered,

"Now an angel from heaven appeared to Him, strengthening Him."
(Luke 22:43)

Moreover, the author of Hebrews tells us of Jesus:

"In the days of His flesh, He offered up both prayers and supplications with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His piety."
(Hebrews 5:7)

These scriptures indicate how even though Jesus was forsaken for a time (Matthew 27:45-46), that the LORD was not far from Him.

25.   The Messiah's case will be judged by God.

Judge me, O Lord my God, according to Your righteousness (v 24a).

The LORD approved of Jesus the Messiah:

"For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such an utterance as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory, 'This is My beloved Son with whom I am well-pleased'—and we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain."
(2 Peter 1:17-18)

GOD saw Jesus's case and approved of His sacrifice:

"It was the Father's good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross."
(Colossians 19-20a)

Because Jesus was judged and approved by God, "He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high" (Hebrews 1:3).

26.   The Messiah's adversaries will not rejoice over Him.

And do not let them rejoice over me (v 24b).

Even though Jesus the Messiah's adversaries successfully put Him to death on a cross, they do not rejoice over Him. Death did not stop Jesus. He returned to life from the grave more powerful than before, with all authority on heaven and earth given to Him (Matthew 28:18).  

The fears of the religious leaders who condemned Jesus to death only increased upon His resurrection (Matthew 28:11-15, Acts 4:15-17, 5:33). They could no longer rejoice over Him. They will be even less able to rejoice over Jesus the Messiah when He returns to judge the living and the dead (Matthew 25:31-32).

27.   The Messiah's enemies will fail to defeat Him.

Do not let them say in their heart, "Aha, our desire!"
Do not let them say, "We have swallowed him up!" (v 25)

The adversaries of Jesus desired to discredit and destroy Him. They (correctly) perceived that He was a threat to their exploitative power over the people of Israel (Matthew 16:6, 21:45, 23:2-36).  

After they failed to discredit Him in the Temple courtyard with their questions and traps (Matthew 21:23 - 22:46), they decided to destroy Him (Matthew 26:3-5). Their heart's desire was to swallow Him up. But even though they killed Him on the cross, they failed to defeat Jesus. 

Because the religious leaders were able to put Jesus to death, but were still unable to have their heart's desire of defeating Him, Psalm 35:25 alludes to the Messiah's resurrection.  

Among the adversaries of the Messiah were Sin and Death. Jesus overcame both.

• Jesus overcame the power of sin through His obedient faith (Hebrews 2:18, 4:15), by trusting God through every temptation (Hebrews 12:2).
• Jesus destroyed the penalty of sin on the cross (Colossians 2:14) when the righteousness of God became sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21).
• Jesus defeated death through His resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:21-22) by becoming mortal flesh to suffer death (Hebrews 2:9).

In Jesus, the penalty and power of Sin and Death are destroyed. 

Sin is unable to boast: "Aha, our heart's desire, we have tempted God to commit evil!" Death cannot gloat: "We have swallowed Him up!" for "death is swallowed up in victory" (1 Corinthians 15:54b).

Instead of death boasting over Jesus, Jesus boasts over death: "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" (1 Corinthians 15:55),

"The sting of death is sin…but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."
(1 Corinthians 15:56-57)

28.   The Messiah's enemies will be humiliated and dishonored.

Let those be ashamed and humiliated altogether who rejoice at my distress;
Let those be clothed with shame and dishonor who magnify themselves over me (v 26).

What can likely be gleaned from the twenty-seventh Messianic fulfillment (enemies fail to defeat Jesus), is made even more plain by its twenty-eighth fulfillment: the Messiah's enemies will not only be defeated, they will be ashamed and altogether humiliated.

Those who rejoiced at the distress of His death will be clothed with shame and dishonor at His second coming. They will be ashamed for having plotted against the Messiah. They will be altogether humiliated for having illegally condemned and crucified the King of the Universe. 

God will render to each person according to their deeds (Romans 2:6). Each person includes those who rejoice at the Messiah's distress. To those who are selfishly ambitious and do not obey the Messiah or the truth, and who choose to obey the path unrighteousness, wrath, and indignation (Romans 2:8), these will suffer tribulation and distress for their evil upon the righteous judgment of God (Romans 2:9). 

29.   The Messiah will be vindicated.

Let them shout for joy and rejoice, who favor my vindication (v 27a).

To have vindication, means to be proved or demonstrated to have been correct—often in the face of adversity or persecution. 

The LORD will vindicate the Messiah of all the evils that were maliciously slandered against Him. 

Jesus was put to death for the charge of blasphemy when He claimed He was both the Messiah and God (Matthew 26:63-66).

But Jesus was vindicated in this claim, because He actually is the Messiah and God. 

Jesus was initially vindicated by God through His resurrection from the dead, 

"[Jesus] was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead."
(Romans 1:4)

Jesus was vindicated by His ascension into Heaven,

"[Jesus] was vindicated in the Spirit,
Seen by angels,
Proclaimed among the nations,
Believed on in the world,
Taken up in glory."
(1 Timothy 3:16)

Jesus will be vindicated by God at His exaltation at the end of the age,

"For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
(Philippians 2:9-11)

30.   The Messiah's followers will shout for joy at His vindication.

Let them shout for joy and rejoice, who favor my vindication (v 27a).

Jesus the Messiah's followers were overjoyed at His resurrection. Jesus's resurrection was the beginning of His vindication. 

A few hours before He was arrested, condemned, and executed, Jesus encouraged His disciples:

"Truly, truly, I say to you, that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; you will grieve, but your grief will be turned to joy."
(John 16:20)

Jesus then explained:

"Whenever a woman is in labor she has pain, because her hour has come; but when she gives birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy that a child has been born into the world. Therefore you too have grief now; but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you."
(John 16:21-22)

When Jesus's disciple, Mary, first realized that Jesus was alive again she shouted, "Rabboni!" in joy and rejoiced over Him (John 20:16).

31.   The Messiah's followers will worship Him forever.

And let them say continually, "The LORD be magnified… (v 27a).

Jesus is the LORD.

Those who favor Jesus's vindication will continually say: "The LORD be magnified…" Upon His vindication, starting with His resurrection and lasting until His kingdom comes to earth, Jesus's followers have magnified Him as LORD. Upon the completion of His vindication resulting in His powerful return and exaltation by His Father, Jesus will be magnified as LORD (Philippians 2:9-11). The Book of Revelation gives a glimpse of Heaven where Jesus, as the Lamb of God, is continually magnified as LORD forever and ever:

"And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, 'To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.'"
(Revelation 5:13)

These verses show how those who rejoice and find joy in Jesus and His vindication will continually worship the LORD. In scripture, worship is generally when someone acknowledges who God is, and walks in His ways. The new earth will be filled with righteousness (2 Peter 3:13) meaning that all who dwell in it will follow God's ways, which is living in continual worship of Him. 

32.   The LORD will delight in the Messiah's success.

And let them say continually, "The LORD be magnified,
Who delights in the prosperity of His servant" (v 27).

In the context of Psalm 35, prosperity means success in the Messiah accomplishing His desired objective.

His servant refers to the Messiah—God's Anointed King. The prophet Isaiah uses the term—servant—to describe the Messiah, particularly in his so-called "Servant Songs" (Isaiah 42:1-4, 49, 50:4-11, 52:13 - 53:12). 

Because the Messiah is the LORD's servant, the LORD is He Who delights in the prosperity of His servant. Stated more plainly: The LORD delights in the success of the Messiah. 

As Isaiah wrote: "the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His [servant's] hand" (Isaiah 53:10b).

Jesus is the Messiah, the LORD's servant. 

The LORD is He Who delights in the prosperity of Jesus.

Jesus prospered and was successful in all He came to earth to accomplish:

• In His first advent, Jesus successfully fulfilled His mission to fulfill the law and offer Himself as a sacrifice to redeem creation. (Matthew 5:17, John 3:16, 12:27, Hebrews 10:5-7)
• Jesus was obedient to the LORD's will for His life. (Luke 22:42, John 16:3)
• Jesus was successful (i.e. prospered) in His mission. (John 19:30, Philippians 2:8; Hebrews 2:9-10)
• And the LORD was delighted in the prosperity (i.e. success) of Jesus His servant. (Matthew 3:17, Hebrews 1:5, 8, 13, 10:9-12).

Jesus, the Messiah's obedience even to death on the cross was a part of His prosperity because it opened a path to redemption for everyone (Isaiah 53:10-12, Philippians 2:8, 1 John 2:2).  

"As a result of the [obedient] anguish of His [the Messiah's] soul, He [The LORD] will see it and be satisfied."
(Isaiah 53:11a)

33.   The Messiah will be victorious.

What is obvious from these Messianic prophecies at the end of David's final litany (list of petitions) of Psalm 35 is that the Messiah will be victorious. This is prophetically apparent, even though it may perhaps not be explicitly stated here. 

Consider how: 

• The Messiah's adversaries will not rejoice over Him. (Prophecy # 26—Psalm 35:24b)
• The Messiah's enemies will fail to defeat Him. (Prophecy #27—Psalm 35:25)
• The Messiah's enemies will be humiliated and dishonored. (Prophecy # 28—Psalm 35:26)
• The Messiah will be vindicated. (Prophecy # 29—Psalm 35:27a)
• The Messiah's followers will shout for joy at His vindication. (Prophecy # 30—Psalm 35:27a)
• The Messiah's followers will worship Him forever. (Prophecy # 31—Psalm 35:27a)
• The LORD will delight in the Messiah's success. (Prophecy # 32—Psalm 35:27)

When taken together, these prophecies clearly portray Jesus's victory over His enemies. These prophecies were fulfilled in Jesus's first advent to earth and will be realized physically in His second. 

• Jesus the Messiah "disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him" (Colossians 2:15).
• Jesus the Messiah has "overcome the world" (John 16:33).
• Jesus the Messiah will overcome all who "will wage war against the Lamb" (Revelation 7:14).

Jesus's victory is a victory for everyone who believes in Him. 

• Jesus's followers "overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us" (Romans 8:37).
• "Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Corinthians 15:57)

Jesus leads His followers from victory to victory. This is true in the seemingly small (but actually epic) daily battles we face against our adversary, the Devil, and the temptations of our flesh to rely on our limited wisdom and appetites (1 Peter 2:11, 5:8, James 1:2-12, Matthew 6:13). And it is true in God's cosmic war against all evil. 

However, just as Jesus's life did not have the circumstances Jesus' preferred, but because He obeyed, He fully accomplished His Father's will, and gained the victory. His life is the example we are to follow, to set aside the rejection of the world and focus on the joy set before us of pleasing God and being rewarded by reigning with Him (Hebrews 12:1-2; Revelation 3:21). 

In Jesus, we are more than conquerors when we walk in His ways, which is why we who rejoice in His vindication, will say continually, "The LORD be magnified, Who delights in the prosperity of His servant."