What does Psalm 25:19 mean?

David feared for his life because his enemies were numerous. The specific occasion is not revealed, but we may be certain it posed a formidable threat. David felt so fiercely hated that he described the hatred as "violent." This word implies injustice and cruelty. David had done nothing to merit such aggressive treatment. As his enemies increased, David became increasingly alarmed, but he turned the situation over to the Lord.

In Exodus 14 we read that the Lord delivered His people from an impossible situation. The Egyptian army prepared to pounce on the fleeing Hebrews, but the Lord came to the defense of His people. We read in verse 24, "And in the morning watch the LORD in the pillar of fire and of cloud looked down on the Egyptian forces and threw the Egyptian forces into a panic, clogging their chariot wheels." Later in the chapter we learn that the Lord drowned all the Egyptians in the sea but gave the Hebrews dry passage through the sea. The Lord was also able to deliver David from his enemies.