“I cry out with my whole heart. Hear me, O Lord! I will keep Your statutes. I cry out to You. Save me, and I will keep Your testimonies.” Psalm 119:145-146
David cried out to the Lord with his whole heart. In James 5:17, we read that “Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed EARNESTLY that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months.” Then, in 1 Kings 18:42-45, Elijah prayed EARNESTLY for the rain to return. He “bowed down on the ground, and put his face between his knees.” After he prayed, he sent his servant to “look toward the sea” for a sign of rain. “It came to pass the seventh time, that he [his servant] said, ‘There is a cloud, as small as a man’s hand, rising out of the sea!’” After “that the sky became black with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy rain.” Elijah watched and prayed. When his first through sixth prayer yielded no tangible result, he prayed one more time, then, the little cloud appeared and he knew his prayer was answered.
David expected God to answer. He did not simply pray and walk away. He watched for God’s response. [2] In Mark 13:31 and in Luke 23:49, Jesus taught us to watch and pray.
David directed his prayers to God. Just as a child naturally turns to his father when he is in need, we should turn to our heavenly Father when we are in need. [3]
Amidst asking God for mercy, David promised to keep His statutes and testimonies. In essence, he prayed, “Save me from my sins, my corrupt desires, my temptations, and every obstacle that keeps me from obeying You, so that I may keep Your testimonies.” Proverbs 28:9 states, “One who turns away his ear from hearing the Law, even his prayer is an abomination.” [4] David, like us, needed God’s prevenient grace, His saving grace and His sanctifying grace to obey God.
“I rise before the dawning of the morning, and cry for help. I hope in Your Word. My eyes are awake through the night watches, that I may meditate on Your Word.” Psalm 119:147-148
The Bible and prayer were God’s pipeline to resource David with help, hope and health. His soul, like a thirsty infant, desired to feed on communion with God day and night. God’s Word teaches us what to pray for and how to pray according to His will.
Martin Luther often emphasized that heavy responsibilities required deeper reliance on prayer rather than less. He is quoted as saying, “I have so much to do that I shall spend the first three hours in prayer.”
When I served with Revival Christian Church in Hong Kong, Pastor Dennis Balcombe urged all church staff and associated missionaries to spend one hour per day in prayer. He had recently read the book by Dick Eastman entitled, “The Hour That Changes the World.” In this book, there are numerous testimonies of answered prayers. The Holy Spirit convicted and inspired me to adopt the one-hour-per-day prayer habit. The longer I lingered with the Lord, the more prayer concerns He gave to me. I did not run out of things to pray about. Nowadays, I break my hour into segments between morning, noon and night. At least one of my prayer times per day is a prayer walk where I walk 1-2 miles and pray as I walk. My wife often joins me on these walks.
Prayer is a burden lifter not a burden giver. In Psalm 55:22, David prayed, “Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you. He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.”
Job’s faith in God was severely tested by Satan. The devil stole his belongings and attempted to assassinate his witness for God. How did Job outlast all the trials sent against him? In Job 23:12, he declared, “I have esteemed the words of His [God’s] mouth more than my necessary food.” His desire for fellowship with God was greater than his desire for comfort.
No matter how busy he was, David made time for God. Being king, he had many responsibilities, yet he did not neglect private prayer. If necessary, he gave up some sleep rather than neglect his time with God. This teaches us that communion with God is worth every sacrifice. [5]
There is also great comfort in knowing that we can pray at any hour. We never come to God at an inconvenient time. Unlike the false god Baal, who was imagined to sleep, the God of Israel never slumbers. His throne of grace is always open, and we may come to Him with confidence whenever we are in need. [6]
“Hear my voice according to Your lovingkindness. O Lord, revive me according to Your justice.” Psalm 119:149
David knows he is speaking to God Almighty Creator of heaven and earth. He wants God to respond to request according to His love. He is like an empty cup asking God to fill him. Spiritual strength is not self-manufactured. Spiritual strength is received as a gift from God to us.
“They draw near who follow after wickedness. They are far from Your Law. You are near, O Lord, and all Your commandments are truth.” Psalm 199:150-151
David’s life was in danger. His enemies were closing in on him. In 1 Samuel 20:3, David said, “There is but a step between me and death.” [7] His enemies had no regard for God’s law of love. They were unreasonable. They enjoyed afflicting pain and death on God’s people.
All God’s commandments are truth. David’s enemies assumed they could sabotage his faith by lying to him and about him. They set stumbling blocks before him so that he would fall and his friends would forsake him. They did not play by the golden rule of doing unto others as you would have them to do unto you.
“Concerning Your testimonies, I have known of old that You have founded them forever.” Psalm 119:152
God Himself has established His testimonies to last forever. Even when heaven and earth pass away, every testimony of God will remain. David knew God’s testimonies are true because he had seen them work in his own life. [8]
Everyone who has sincerely walked with God and placed their trust in Him can testify to the truth that God is always faithful. His Word is trustworthy. [9]
[1] From Googles sources and Bible Gateway: “Psalm 119 is an acrostic poem. It contains 176 verses divided into 22 sections, with each section named after one of the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Instead of just one line per letter, all eight verses in a given section begin with that specific letter. For example, verses 145–152 start with the ק QOPH, and this exact pattern continues sequentially all the way through the final letter, Tau (ת).
קָרָ֣אתִי בְכָל־לֵ֭ב עֲנֵ֥נִי יְהוָ֗ה חֻקֶּ֥יךָ אֶצֹּֽרָה׃
קְרָאתִ֥יךָ הוֹשִׁיעֵ֑נִי וְ֝אֶשְׁמְרָ֗ה עֵדֹתֶֽיךָ׃
קִדַּ֣מְתִּי בַ֭נֶּשֶׁף וָאֲשַׁוֵּ֑עָה ׳לִדְבָרֶיךָ׳ ״לִדְבָרְךָ֥״ יִחָֽלְתִּי׃
קִדְּמ֣וּ עֵ֭ינַי אַשְׁמֻר֑וֹת לָ֝שִׂ֗יחַ בְּאִמְרָתֶֽךָ׃
ק֭וֹלִי שִׁמְעָ֣ה כְחַסְדֶּ֑ךָ יְ֝הוָ֗ה כְּֽמִשְׁפָּטֶ֥ךָ חַיֵּֽנִי׃
קָ֭רְבוּ רֹדְפֵ֣י זִמָּ֑ה מִתּוֹרָתְךָ֥ רָחָֽקוּ׃
קָר֣וֹב אַתָּ֣ה יְהוָ֑ה וְֽכָל־מִצְוֺתֶ֥יךָ אֱמֶֽת׃
קֶ֣דֶם יָ֭דַעְתִּי מֵעֵדֹתֶ֑יךָ כִּ֖י לְעוֹלָ֣ם יְסַדְתָּֽם׃
Historically, each letter name corresponds to a concrete object. Over time, these pictures evolved into the letters used today. For example, ק QOPH was originally the symbol for monkey.
[2-9] Material developed, added to and edited from Matthew Henry’s Commentary
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