Verse 10, “O God, how long shall the adversary reproach? Shall the enemy blaspheme thy name for ever?” The sinner never leaves his sin until his sin first leaves him; if death did not put a stop to his sin, he would never cease from sin. This may be illustrated by a similitude thus: A company of gamesters resolve to play all night, and accordingly they sit down to their card-table; their candle is accidentally put out, or burns out, and they are forced to give up their game and go to bed in the dark; but had the candle lasted all night they would have played all night. This is every sinners case with regards to sin; did not death put out the candle of life, the sinner would sin still. If the sinner should live for ever he would sin for ever, and, therefore, it is a righteous thing with God to punish him for ever in hellish torments. Every impenitent sinner would sin to the days of eternity, if he might live to the days of eternity. The psalmist implicitly says, Lord, if Thou dost but let them alone for ever, they will certainly blaspheme Thy name for ever and ever.
Verse 13. “Thou didst divide the sea by thy strength: thou brakest the heads of the dragons in the waters.” Infinite power split the Red Sea in twain. Israel delighted to rehearse this famous act of the Lord. Monsters long accustomed to the deep found themselves left high and dry. Huge things of the sea-cave and coral grot were deprived of their vital element, and left with crushed heads upon the dry channel bed. There, too that old dragon Pharaoh was utterly broken, and Egypt herself had the head of her power and pomp broken with an Almighty blow. Even thus is that old dragon broken by Him who came to bruise the serpent's head, and the sea of wrath no longer rolls before us, so that we can pass through it dry-shod. Our present faith is often revived by glad memories of the past.
Verse 19. “O deliver not the soul of thy turtledove unto the multitude of the wicked: forget not the congregation of thy poor for ever.” The people of God are here taught how to sharpen the edge of their prayers, and make them vigorous – to wit, by disclaiming any ability or sufficiency in themselves; by styling themselves a congregation of poor, silly, weak doves, in no way able to encounter an army of bestial, crafty enemies. This plea the people of God make use of: “With thee the fatherless findeth mercy.”
Verse 19. “O deliver not ...” Prayer: - An arrow, if it be drawn up but a little way in the bow, does not go very far; but if it be pulled up to the head, it flies swiftly and pierces deep. Thus prayer, if it be only dribbled forth from careless lips falls at our feet. It is the strength of the ejaculation of strong desire which sends a prayer to heaven and makes it pierce the clouds. It is not the arithmetic of our prayers – how many they are; nor the rhetoric of our prayers – how eloquent they be; nor the geometry of our prayers – how long they be; nor the music of our prayers – how sweet our voice may be; nor the logic of our prayers – how argumentative they may be. Fervency of spirit is that which availeth much.
Verse 20. “Have respect unto the covenant: for the dark places of the earth are full of the habitations of cruelty.” Those persons and preachers who decline to think and speak of gospel mercies and free salvation as secured by covenant, deprive themselves and others of much needed and blessed comforts from God's Word.
Verse 22. “Arise, O God, plead thine own cause: remember how the foolish man reproacheth thee daily.” The strength of our heart is when we know that the cause we are engaged in is really the Lord's own cause in the gospel and any reproach that we endure is truly a reproach for righteousness sake. Then we can lean on such a word as this and know that God Himself will intervene in His own good and appointed time As old John Newton has it: -
“Rejoice believer in the Lord,
Who makes your cause His own;
The hope that's built upon His Word,
Can n'er be overthrown.”
Verse 23. “Forget not the voice of thine enemies: the tumult of those that rise up against thee increaseth continually.” If we are compelled to close our most solemn and urgent devotions, and our most earnest supplications, without seeing one ray of light beaming upon our path, it may comfort us to remember that so this pious psalmist closed this complaint. To hope against hope is the most blessed kind of hope.