Why repeat part of Psalm 40?
Repetition makes proven prayer available for a new setting and teaches that inspired material can be arranged liturgically without losing integrity.
PSALM 70 — O LORD, DO NOT DELAY
Why repeat part of Psalm 40? Study Psalm 70 with context, apologetic analysis, and cross-references.
Psalm 703 questions
Source linked
Commentary provenance
Dr. Lucas D. Shallua Commentary · PSALM 70 — O LORD, DO NOT DELAY
The precise difficulties
- Why repeat part of Psalm 40?
- Does asking God to hurry show impatience or weak faith?
- Is shame an appropriate request?
Verse and question study
Does asking God to hurry show impatience or weak faith?
It shows honest dependence under danger. Biblical faith submits timing to God while telling him how delay is experienced.
Is shame an appropriate request?
The requested shame exposes people who delight in another's destruction. It seeks moral reversal rather than personal license to humiliate.
Historical and literary context
This Davidic memorial petition is nearly identical to Psalm 40:13–17, with small changes in divine names and wording. Its extraction as a separate psalm shows that Scripture's worship tradition could reuse an earlier prayer for a focused liturgical need. “For remembrance” may indicate a memorial offering or prayer bringing distress before God. English Psalm 70 is Psalm 69 in Greek/Latin numbering.
Apologetic note
Psalm 70's brevity respects crisis. Scripture does not require sufferers to produce elaborate explanations before receiving permission to pray. A few truthful petitions can embody complete reliance and morally ordered hope. Its repeated use in Israel's worship shows that spiritual maturity does not outgrow urgent dependence. A faith that cannot say ‘hurry' would have little language for emergencies, persecution, or the final longing for God to set the world right.
Chapter cross-references
- Psalm 35:4, 21, 26–27 Shame for attackers and joy for the righteous
- Psalm 38:21–22 God is asked not to delay
- Psalm 40:13–17 The near-identical source passage
- Psalm 54:4 God is helper and sustainer
- Psalm 69:29–33 The afflicted poor praise the saving God
- Isaiah 41:13–14 God helps the weak and needy
- Luke 18:7–8 God brings justice for those crying day and night
- Romans 12:19 Vengeance remains with God
- Philippians 4:4–6 Rejoicing and urgent prayer coexist
- Hebrews 4:16 The needy approach for timely help
- 1 Peter 5:6–7 The humble cast anxiety on God
- Revelation 22:20 The church prays for the Lord to come
Source and editorial status
Dr. Shallua’s Commentary
This study preserves the hard questions, explanations, context, apologetic note, and references from Dr. Shallua's Commentary.