Psalms 69:10-11
“When I wept, and chastened my soul with fasting, that was to my reproach. 11. I made sackcloth also my garment; and I became a proverb to them.” Now what’s He referring to? Did He walk up and down the streets and highways of Israel in the apparel of the kings and queens? NO! But what? As almost one who had nothing.
And I think He put it best when He said that birds have nests and animals have dens but He does not have a place to lay His head. See, He was absolutely the poorest of the poor from the physical aspect, so that no one could use that as an excuse for rejecting Him. He was right on their level, and yet, they hated Him. Verse 11 again:
Psalms 69:11
“I made sackcloth also my garment; (He dressed and He walked and He lived like the lowest of the low.) and I became a proverb to them.” Now, a proverb in Scripture is a word of scorn. And not only that, but you come down a little further and He was the subject of the drunkards’ singing.
Well, I’ve never been around drunkards. Thank goodness. Even in service, I was spared that. I’ve had very little contact with drunks. But I can about imagine that if you get a bunch of them together, they start singing their ribald type songs and all of the filth associated with it. And you see, that’s what He’s saying, that even the drunks of Israel—and don’t think there weren’t any—the drunks of Israel even used His name as part of their drunken singing.
Psalms 69:12a
“They that sit in the gate speak against me;…” Now in Old Testament language, what did that refer to? To the city fathers. To the Magistrates. They were the ones who were referred to as sitting in the gates.
Psalms 69:12b-14a
“…and I was the song of the drunkards. (as I’ve already mentioned.) 13. But as for me, my prayer is unto thee, O LORD, in an acceptable time: O God, in the multitude of thy mercy hear me, in the truth of thy salvation. 14. Deliver me out of the mire,…” In other words, out of this place of reproach and out of this position of being so hated.
Psalms 69:14b-15
“…let me be delivered from them that hate me, and out of the deep waters. (That is the waters of emotional despair.) 15. Let not the waterflood overflow me, neither let the deep swallow me up, and let not the pit shut her mouth upon me.”
In other words, what He’s pleading with the Father is that He will be able to sustain life until He can fulfill the work of the cross. Because that’s what He set His mind as flint, remember, to fulfill. He had to fulfill the work of the cross.
Psalms 69:16-18
“Hear me, O LORD; for thy lovingkindness is good: turn unto me according to the multitude of thy tender mercies. 17. And hide not thy face from thy servant; (But did He? Yes. God turned from Him. He couldn’t look on all that sin.) for I am in trouble: hear me speedily (or instantly). 18. Draw nigh unto my soul, and redeem it: deliver me because of mine enemies.”
Now I’m curious. As I’m teaching these for the last several programs, I haven’t heard too much except good. But even for you in the studio, have any of you ever read these Psalms with this concept? No. I’m sure most of you haven’t. But this is what the whole idea is. That David was being inspired to write the very things that would be fulfilled in the life of Christ. And that’s the beauty of the Psalms in this light.
Psalms 69:18-19
“Draw nigh unto my soul, and redeem it: deliver me because of mine enemies. (Who were attempting and preparing to crucify Him.) 19. Thou hast known my reproach, and my shame, and my dishonor: mine adversaries are all before thee.” Now again, was it His personal reproach? No. It was the reproach that was poured on Him because of who He was taking the place of.
Now that wasn’t very good grammar, was it? But here we have this whole concept. He became my what? Substitute! He took my place. But not just mine, but every one of you in this room and not just us in Oklahoma—but for every human being around the planet, He became their substitute.
But again, as I’ve always mentioned, how much good is it until you appropriate it by faith. We have to appropriate it by faith. For our salvation in this Age of Grace we must believe in our heart that Jesus died for our sins, was buried, and rose again—as we are taught in I Corinthians 15:1-4. And that’s what most of the world doesn’t want to have anything to do with. They want nothing to do with these things. Okay, reading on, verse 20.