Psalm 71 (70):13Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

What were his desires? That they might be confounded and fail. Why might he wish this? Does it weigh upon my spirit? What occupies my spirit? Engaging in some contention. It is said that those who quarrel are those who are compelled to fight. Therefore, we must be cautious of those who influence our spirits. What is it that impacts our souls? Primarily, it is the incitement to rebel against God, so that in our wrongdoings, we do not find favor with Him. When can you say you are righteous, that the God of Israel may show kindness to you and to those with a pure heart? When can you claim righteousness? Will you listen? When the good you perform brings joy to you and to God; yet in the suffering you endure, He finds no pleasure in it.

May those who disparage my spirit be filled with shame and fade away. When they attack me with the notion that I have been abandoned by You and that You will not assist me, they will retreat in disgrace, realizing that the accusations they have made against my soul are groundless. What are these accusations if not the statement: ‘God hath forsaken to eat him’ (Psalm 70:11)?

May all who malign my spirit be filled with disgrace and vanish. Symmachus interprets it: may those who oppose my soul experience shame and perish; may those misled in their efforts be met with disgrace, and may those who unjustly plot my downfall find no success. Let all who aim to harm me be adorned with shame and dishonor. May those who subject me to various tribulations be deserving of contempt and derision.

Let those who malign my spirit be filled with disgrace and vanish. “Let them vanish,” as Simmachus interprets: let them be annihilated, and rather than referring to “my spirit,” he interpreted it to mean “me.” It is typical of all adversaries, both carnal and spiritual, to defame. Let those who wish me harm be enveloped in humiliation and disgrace. Those who aim for my demise should don shame as their attire. These commands, presented in the imperative in Greek, convey a wish: may they experience disgrace and be covered in shame, as elaborated in the previous Psalm 69:3, and as stated in Psalm 108:let those who falsely accuse me be covered in shame and wear their disgrace like clothing.

It is beyond expression to convey the severity and sorrow of the temptation that David faced when the wicked viewed him as one abandoned by God. They maliciously proclaimed, 'God has forsaken him,' fully convinced of David's supposed wrongdoing that led to divine rejection. Despite their unjust accusations, David responded with unwavering courage, placing his trust in the compassion of the Most High and earnestly seeking Him. By identifying the Lord as his God, he was able to withstand the harsh and vicious attacks as though he had a shield. In his plea for divine assistance, he also prayed fervently for his adversaries to be shamed until their ultimate downfall. Since the interpretation of these vows has already been clarified, there is no need for reiteration here.

The descendants of Jonadab are called sons of obedience, as they adhered to their father Jonadab’s command without fail, receiving God's eternal commendation (Jeremiah 35:18-19). They serve as a model of complete faithfulness, contrasting with the first captives of sin, Adam and Eve, who were taken into Babylon due to their disobedience to the divine commandments. The Jews, initially taken captive in Babylon for their transgressions against God’s law, experienced a different kind of captivity compared to the sons of Jonadab. The sons, who heeded their father’s exhortation, are remembered in the title of this psalm, providing encouragement for those who willingly adhere to God’s law, while also offering a call to accountability for those who stray from His commandments.