Be not far from me; for trouble is near; for there is none to help.
The verse is a cry for God not to stay far off, because trouble is close and closing in and there is no one near who can give the help that is needed. It had a first application to David in what he himself went through, but his experience pointed beyond himself to his greater Son, finding its full and final fulfillment in Christ in His agony and sacrifice, though not every line of such psalms belongs to Him. It stands as prophecy of His sufferings at His first coming, above all of the Lord in His humiliation as the lowly and dying Savior, whose lament, prayer, praise and thanksgiving show the faith, love and hope of the true Israelite. What was foretold was fulfilled literally from the manger to Calvary in His lowly life, betrayal, unjust trial, rejection, crucifixion with criminals, cruel death and burial, even His very words on the cross, as He lived out all that was written to witness that the Father had sent Him. In the flesh He bore this for sinners, standing in the sinner's place under the weight of the world's sins and passing through their agony, helplessness and even the lot of the lost, with strong crying and tears unto death, yet without distrust, leaving His case with God and coming through victorious as the sympathizing fellow-sufferer and helper who shows that those who trust in Him can overcome.
Plea and Prophetic Setting
The cry is for God not to stay far off or remain distant, because trouble is pressing close and winding tight around the sufferer when no one stands near who can bring the help that is needed. It is the prayer of one who feels distress crowding in and human aid entirely absent, asking only that God Himself draw near.
The psalm found a primary place in David's own life, for he in a measure passed through what it pictures, yet his experience was typical of that of David's greater Son. Its final antitypical fulfillment came in Christ in full agony and sacrifice, giving a grand view of what He endured in the flesh when the sins of the world were laid upon Him. That such psalms point to Christ does not mean every verse in them belongs to Him, for to press Psalm 69:5 upon Him would make Him a sinner, even though Psalm 69:9 and 21 were fulfilled in Him.
The verse stands inside a prophecy of Christ's sufferings at His first coming, a prophetic depicting of what Jesus would suffer. It describes the experience of Jesus Christ and is preeminently prophetic of the Lord in His humiliation as the lowly, dying Savior. It belongs to the prophetic picture of the Messiah's life and work foretold before His coming, including His cruel death, and to those psalms whose speech of lamentation, prayer, praise, and thanksgiving breathes the faith, love, and hope of the true Israelite.
What was foreseen was fulfilled literally from the manger to the cross at Calvary, as the Gospel accounts of His closing acts make plain. God therein foresaw His betrayal, condemnation, and crucifixion, and the psalm stands as witness to the agony, rejection, death, and very words of Jesus on the cross. Its foretelling embraces His lowly life, rejection by His people, injustice in His trial, death brought about by Jews and Gentiles together, death with criminals, burial with the rich, and the agony of a life bearing the sins of men upon His heart. His appeal to the Scriptures after His resurrection shows He was fulfilling all that was written from Genesis to Malachi, so that God's word predicted His life and He lived it out as witness that the Father had sent Him.
Suffering Borne for Sinners
The verse expresses the experience in the flesh of Jesus Christ when the sins of the world were laid upon Him. It belongs to a psalm filled with His experience as He stood in the sinner's place on earth. For sinners' sake He passed through the trouble and helplessness that sinners face, even the experience of the lost as He gave Himself to die on the cross. He passed through the same agony, trouble, and helplessness the sinner passes through in overcoming sinful habits, pouring out His soul with strong crying and tears even unto death.
It is part of the prophetic picture of Christ's inner experience in suffering and struggle with the enemy. It belongs to the prophetic description of His prayers of agony, offered on humanity's behalf as He suffered and stood in humanity's place. It shows the depth of His suffering under temptation, when He felt seemingly forsaken and faced distress without human help. It reflects His intense human suffering, when He questioned whether He Himself was sufficient for His work, without distrusting God, and left His case in God's hands. Yet He came through the struggle victorious, showing that those who trust in Him can also overcome temptation.
Joined to the preceding verses, it presents Him as dependent on God from birth. God brought Him from the womb and taught Him trust from infancy, and in trouble, when no human help was available, He prayed that God would remain near. The verses show His lifelong reliance on God for keeping and strength.
His sufferings shown in the psalm reveal the eternal justice and holiness of God, the unchanging excellence and binding force of God's law, and the grave guilt of sin. His suffering honors the divine law; it does not grant sinners liberty to despise it.
In facing trouble and feeling that no one is available to help, while appealing for God to remain near, He shares the trials, conflicts, and loneliness that His followers also face. He is their fellow-sufferer, sympathizer, and helper. His permitting hard battling rather than always instant removal of craving forms character and fits His children to help others.
The verse is a cry for God not to stay far off, because trouble is close and closing in and there is no one near who can give the help that is needed. It had a first application to David in what he himself went through, but his experience pointed beyond himself to his greater Son, finding its full and final fulfillment in Christ in His agony and sacrifice, though not every line of such psalms belongs to Him. It stands as prophecy of His sufferings at His first coming, above all of the Lord in His humiliation as the lowly and dying Savior, whose lament, prayer, praise and thanksgiving show the faith, love and hope of the true Israelite. What was foretold was fulfilled literally from the manger to Calvary in His lowly life, betrayal, unjust trial, rejection, crucifixion with criminals, cruel death and burial, even His very words on the cross, as He lived out all that was written to witness that the Father had sent Him. In the flesh He bore this for sinners, standing in the sinner's place under the weight of the world's sins and passing through their agony, helplessness and even the lot of the lost, with strong crying and tears unto death, yet without distrust, leaving His case with God and coming through victorious as the sympathizing fellow-sufferer and helper who shows that those who trust in Him can overcome.
Plea and Prophetic Setting
The cry is for God not to stay far off or remain distant, because trouble is pressing close and winding tight around the sufferer when no one stands near who can bring the help that is needed. It is the prayer of one who feels distress crowding in and human aid entirely absent, asking only that God Himself draw near.
The psalm found a primary place in David's own life, for he in a measure passed through what it pictures, yet his experience was typical of that of David's greater Son. Its final antitypical fulfillment came in Christ in full agony and sacrifice, giving a grand view of what He endured in the flesh when the sins of the world were laid upon Him. That such psalms point to Christ does not mean every verse in them belongs to Him, for to press Psalm 69:5 upon Him would make Him a sinner, even though Psalm 69:9 and 21 were fulfilled in Him.
The verse stands inside a prophecy of Christ's sufferings at His first coming, a prophetic depicting of what Jesus would suffer. It describes the experience of Jesus Christ and is preeminently prophetic of the Lord in His humiliation as the lowly, dying Savior. It belongs to the prophetic picture of the Messiah's life and work foretold before His coming, including His cruel death, and to those psalms whose speech of lamentation, prayer, praise, and thanksgiving breathes the faith, love, and hope of the true Israelite.
What was foreseen was fulfilled literally from the manger to the cross at Calvary, as the Gospel accounts of His closing acts make plain. God therein foresaw His betrayal, condemnation, and crucifixion, and the psalm stands as witness to the agony, rejection, death, and very words of Jesus on the cross. Its foretelling embraces His lowly life, rejection by His people, injustice in His trial, death brought about by Jews and Gentiles together, death with criminals, burial with the rich, and the agony of a life bearing the sins of men upon His heart. His appeal to the Scriptures after His resurrection shows He was fulfilling all that was written from Genesis to Malachi, so that God's word predicted His life and He lived it out as witness that the Father had sent Him.
Suffering Borne for Sinners
The verse expresses the experience in the flesh of Jesus Christ when the sins of the world were laid upon Him. It belongs to a psalm filled with His experience as He stood in the sinner's place on earth. For sinners' sake He passed through the trouble and helplessness that sinners face, even the experience of the lost as He gave Himself to die on the cross. He passed through the same agony, trouble, and helplessness the sinner passes through in overcoming sinful habits, pouring out His soul with strong crying and tears even unto death.
It is part of the prophetic picture of Christ's inner experience in suffering and struggle with the enemy. It belongs to the prophetic description of His prayers of agony, offered on humanity's behalf as He suffered and stood in humanity's place. It shows the depth of His suffering under temptation, when He felt seemingly forsaken and faced distress without human help. It reflects His intense human suffering, when He questioned whether He Himself was sufficient for His work, without distrusting God, and left His case in God's hands. Yet He came through the struggle victorious, showing that those who trust in Him can also overcome temptation.
Joined to the preceding verses, it presents Him as dependent on God from birth. God brought Him from the womb and taught Him trust from infancy, and in trouble, when no human help was available, He prayed that God would remain near. The verses show His lifelong reliance on God for keeping and strength.
His sufferings shown in the psalm reveal the eternal justice and holiness of God, the unchanging excellence and binding force of God's law, and the grave guilt of sin. His suffering honors the divine law; it does not grant sinners liberty to despise it.
In facing trouble and feeling that no one is available to help, while appealing for God to remain near, He shares the trials, conflicts, and loneliness that His followers also face. He is their fellow-sufferer, sympathizer, and helper. His permitting hard battling rather than always instant removal of craving forms character and fits His children to help others.