In A Turtle on a Fencepost, Allan Emery tells of accompanying Ken Hansen to visit an employee who was recovering from an eight-hour surgery. Hansen whispered, “You know, I have had several serious operations. I know the pain of trying to talk. I think I know what questions you’re asking. There are two verses I want to give you – Genesis 43:26 and Romans 8:28. We have the options of these two attitudes. We need the perspective of the latter.” He read the passages, prayed, and left. 

Every day, we choose one of two attitudes. To say with Jacob in Genesis 42:36: “All these things are against me.” Or say with Paul in Romans 8:28: “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” We should adopt an attitude of confidence in God. 

Psalm 119:121-128 models what it means to trust that God is working for you when everything seems to work against you. In the previous stanza, the writer pledges to choose what is right and reject what is wrong. In this section, he prays his way through the fact that things can still go wrong when you do what is right. But when things go wrong, you do not have to go with them. Trust God to do right when everything goes wrong. How do you pray when you are mistreated? 

Pray for Personal Deliverance. 

The psalmist was mistreated by those verse 121 calls “oppressors.” It was undeserved and unprovoked oppression. The psalmist had done nothing to cause his oppressors to threaten and attack him. He did not do anything after they threatened and attacked him. He did not take matters into his own hands. He prayed with confidence that God is good, holy, and faithful.  

God is Holy. Verse 121 says, “I have done what is just and right; do not leave me to my oppressors.” This is not a claim of sinless perfection. All of us are victims of the Fall and participants in sin. No one can claim unblemished justice or absolute righteousness. We are not sinless. We can be blameless. The psalmist did not claim to have a perfect record. He claims to have a clear conscience. 

• Doing what is just, he treated people the way he should. 
• Doing what is right, he treated the Lord the way he should. 

The psalmist prayed, “Do not leave me to my oppressors.” Having fallen into the hands of his oppressors, he tells the Lord, “I have done what is just and right. Now I need you to do what is just and right.” This is not an attempt to manipulate God. It is confidence in the holiness of God. Hebrews 6:10 says, “For God is not unjust as to overlook your work and the love that you have shored for his sake in serving the saints, as you still do.”  

God is Good. Verse 122 says, “Give your servant a pledge of good; let not the insolent oppress me.” Proud, arrogant, hardhearted men oppressed the psalmist. He responded by asking the Lord for “a pledge of good.” A pledge of good is surety, a guarantee, a security deposit for someone else’s debt. In the Old Testament, God instructs his people not to be surety for others. Proverbs 11:15 says, “Whoever puts up security for a stranger will surely suffer harm, but he who hates strikes hands in pledge is secure.” But the psalmist asks God to be a guarantor for him: “Give your servant a pledge of good; let not the insolent oppress me.”

 Ungodly people threatened and attacked the psalmist. He was not able to overcome them on his own. So, he appealed to heaven’s credit union. He prayed that God would cover him against his oppressors when he came up short. How much more can we live with that confidence in Christ? Hebrews 7:22 declares that Jesus is “the guarantor of a better covenant.” The crucifixion and resurrection of Christ are all the pledges we need to trust God to deliver us when we are oppressed. Matthew Henry says, “Christ is our surety with God; and, if he be so, providence shall be our surety against the world.”

God is Faithful. Verse 123 says, “My eyes long for your salvation and for the fulfillment of your righteous promise.” “Longing eyes” describes watching, waiting, and weeping for deliverance. The psalmist’s eyes strained from looking for delayed deliverance. This is an honest prayer. The psalmist says, “I’m tired of waiting on you.”W. Graham Scroggie said, “Long delayed help puts a strain upon faith.” He did not wait until his resources ran out and then looked to God. From the beginning, he looked to God alone for deliverance. Now, even though his eyes were fainting, he continued to look to God for help. 

Even though his faith was strained, the psalmist believed the faithfulness of God would not let him down. He says, “My eyes long for your salvation and for the fulfillment of your righteous promise.” There is a twofold expectation here. He expected God to save him. This reference to salvation is not about the forgiveness of sin. It is relief and rescue from trouble. He was tired of waiting. Yet he looked up with the expectation that God would deliver him. Likewise, he expected God to fulfill his righteous promise. This is another way of speaking of salvation. The emphasis is on the faithfulness of God. 

• God’s promises are righteous.
• God always fulfills his promise. 

Lamentations 3:22-23 says: “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”  

Pray for Spiritual Enlightenment. 

Verses 124-125 record a prayer for spiritual enlightenment. In his oppression, the psalmist asked the Lord to make his conflict a classroom. The Lord orchestrates life so that difficult circumstances become teachable moments. When mistreated, seek the favor and wisdom of God. 

Seek the favor of God. There are two requests in verse 124. The first request says: “Deal with your servant according to your steadfast love.” The psalmist identified himself as “your servant.” Yet he did not ask God to treat him according to the faithfulness of his service. This sheds further light on verse 21, where he claims to have done what is just and right. At our best, our goodness is not good enough to merit divine approval. The writer did not ask God to deal with him based on his service record. He asked God to deal with him according to his “steadfast love.” It is the loyal love of God, which is unconditional, unchanging, and unending. 

George Matheson was fifteen when he began losing his sight. Matheson enrolled in the University of Glasgow and graduated at nineteen. As he pursued graduate studies, he lost his sight. His fiancée broke off their engagement. Matheson never married. Out of this experience, he wrote:

O love that will not let me go, 
I rest my weary soul in Thee. 
I give thee back the life I owe, 
That in Thine ocean depths its flow 
May richer, fuller be. 

The second request in verse 124 says: “and teach me your statutes.” This is an ongoing petition in Psalm 119. These two petitions are different ways of asking for the same thing. The word of God is a primary means by which the Lord deals with us according to his steadfast love. We often separate the love of God from the will of God. But God’s word expresses God’s love. To know the love of God, get into the word of God. Ask God to teach you his statutes. 

Seek the wisdom of God. Verse 125 says, “I am your servant; give me understanding, that I may know your testimonies.” This is the third time in this stanza the psalmist calls himself “your servant.” Why does he speak of himself this way? It is a statement of humility. The psalmist recognized he was not God’s peer or equal, who had the right to say whatever he wanted to God. He was only a humble servant seeking an audience before his almighty Master.

Likewise, it is a statement of devotion. He willingly submitted to God’s authority and faithfully obeyed God’s commands. This is also a statement of faith. It advertised his dependence on God. He did not have the resources to make it on his own. He needed the Lord to take care of him. This is our privilege in Christ. Vance Havner said, “This is the victory that overcomes the world when we are shipwrecked on God and stranded on Omnipotence!” 

The psalmist called himself a servant. Then he made a request of his Master. He did not ask for anything physical, material, or circumstantial. He prays, “Give me understanding.” “Lord, I do not know when you will get me out of this,” he says. “While I’m in it, help me to know you better.” Why? “Give me understanding, that I may know your testimonies.” This prayer still works if you reverse the wording: “Give me knowledge, that I may understand your testimonies.” But the psalmist prays for understanding that he may know. Spiritual wisdom comes as God fills your mind and heart. There is no true, lasting, and obvious change without the spiritual understanding God alone imparts. 

Pray for Divine Intervention. 

The psalmist was not a deist who believed God created the world and left it to operate on its own. He believed God is alive, awake, alert, and at work, accomplishing his agenda in the world. He prays with confidence that God is able and willing to intervene. There are two things you must remember as you wait on God to intervene to change your situation. 

God’s timing is perfect. Verse 126 says, “It is time for the Lord to act, for your law has been broken.” The psalmist assumed the Lord would act. He was confident the Lord would intervene with sovereignty, truth, and righteousness. J.I. Packer said: “There are few things stressed more strongly in the Bible than the reality of God’s work as Judge.” The writer was confident of the justice of God. He was sure God would act. He was concerned about the timing of God’s justice. He declared, “It is time for the Lord to act.” This may seem to be a presumptuous statement. It is a statement of faith in God’s perfect time. The Hebrew verb translated “act” is the same word translated “done” in verse 121. The sense seems to be: “Lord, I have done all I know to do. It’s time for you to do what only you can do.”

Man’s extremity is God’s opportunity. If you can do it on your own, it is not time for God to act. Verse 126 is the only verse in this section that mentions the name of the Lord. It is also the only verse that does not mention the psalmist. Could it be that it is not time for the Lord to act if you focus on yourself?

Norwegian theologian Ole Hallesby settled on the world helplessness as the best summary of the attitude God accepts as prayer. “Whether it takes the form of words or not, does not mean anything to God, only to ourselves,” he adds. “Only he who is helpless can truly pray.” The psalmist says, “It is time for the Lord to act, for your law has been broken.” He was not concerned about how he was treated. He was concerned about how the word of God was treated. Make the word of God your top priority. And the Lord will act on your behalf.     

God’s truth is perfect. The psalmist draws two conclusions that affirm the perfection of God’s word. 

Treasure God’s word. Verse 127 says: “Therefore I love your commandments above gold, above fine gold.” In verse 125, the writer expresses his desire to understand God’s word. His relationship to scripture was not doctrinal, curious, or legalistic. It was a matter of the heart. 

• Verse 24 says: “I will lift up my hands toward your commandments, which I love, and I will meditate on your statutes.”
• Verse 97 says: “Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day.” 
• Verse 113 says: “I hate the double-minded, but I love your law.”

He declares, “I love your commandments.” His love for scripture was not limited to blessings, comfort, and promise. He loved it when God got into his business, demanded changes, and ordered his way of life. To express the sincerity, capacity, and intensity of his love for God’s word, he draws a comparison: “I love your commandments above gold, above fine gold.” There is nothing more precious than the word of God. Psalm 19:10 says, “More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.” God’s word is the greatest treasure. This is proof of the psalmist’s confidence in God’s word. 

• He valued God more than he did gold. 
• He valued the word more than wealth. 
• He valued truth more than money. 

To know the word is to love the word. William MacDonald comments: “One index of how precious the Bible is to us is the amount of time we spend reading it. If we value it above fine gold, its cover will be worn and its pages frayed.” Do you love the word?

Trust God’s word. Verse 128 says, “Therefore I consider all your precepts to be right; I hate every false way.” This verse has grammatical difficulties. But the point is clear: The word of God is always right. 2 Timothy 3:16 says: “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” This is the nature of scripture. A perfect God cannot speak an imperfect word. God is always right; his word is always right. When I began pastoring at the age of 17, I did not know much about being a pastor. But I was utterly convinced of the truthfulness and trustworthiness of scripture. 

• Pastors can be wrong. 
• Deacons and trustees can be wrong. 
• Congregational votes can be wrong. 
• Church by-laws, charters, and constitutions can be wrong. 
• Traditions can be wrong. 

And when people started telling me about how they do things on their job or in the government, I was both cynical and stubborn. I knew that business practices can be wrong. And government policies can be wrong. The word of God is never wrong. Isaiah 40:8 says: “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.”