Psalm 25:22 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles.

NIV: Deliver Israel, O God, from all their troubles!

NASB: Redeem Israel, God, From all his distress.

CSB: God, redeem Israel, from all its distresses.

NLT: O God, ransom Israel from all its troubles.

KJV: Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles.

NKJV: Redeem Israel, O God, Out of all their troubles!

David's prayer included intercession. He prayed not only for his own deliverance but also for Israel's deliverance. He prayed, "Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles." Interestingly, this psalm is an acrostic which uses a different letter of the Hebrew alphabet for the beginning of each line. However, this verse begins with the same Hebrew letter that David used to begin verse 16. Perhaps verse 22 was added so the psalm could be used in Israel's worship times.

Israel's troubles have been severe through the ages as anti-Semitic violence has flared up often. However, God has preserved Israel, even when Haman tried to destroy the Jews in Persia, an incident recorded in the book of Esther. God even saved a remnant of the Jewish people when Nazi Germany tried to exterminate the Jews. God turned the tables on Haman and enabled the Jewish people to survive the Holocaust.

Also, God plans to revive Israel in the end time and restore her to Himself as His redeemed people. Zechariah predicts: "On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness" (Zechariah 13:1). Verses 8 and 9 foretell that the Lord will keep a remnant of Jews alive in the tribulation period. He will bring them through the fire and refine them. Then they will call on His name, and He will answer them and call them "my people" (Zechariah 13:8–9). He will answer David's prayer for Israel.

Psalm 25:15–22 records more of David's prayer. He is facing multiple dangers, but he trusts the Lord to deliver him. In this regard, his plea resembles that of his prayer for deliverance in Psalm 22. The concluding section of Psalm 25 naturally follows David's description of the Lord's steadfast love and mercy. The Lord cares for those who obey Him, so He will not disappoint David in David's time of great need.

This prayer of David uses the Hebrew alphabet as a pattern. This is an acrostic, where verses each begin with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The final verse, however, repeats the letter used in verse 16. David declares his trust in God and the value of the Lord's wisdom. Mixed into these praises of God's truth are multiple requests that David be forgiven of his sins. The psalm ends with David asking for rescue from his enemies, and for a similar redemption for the nation of Israel.

The book of Psalms is composed of individual songs, hymns, or poems, each of which is a ''Psalm'' in and of itself. These works contain a wide variety of themes. Some Psalms focus on praising and worshipping God. Others cry out in anguish over the pain of life. Still other Psalms look forward to the coming of the Messiah. While some Psalms are related, each has its own historical and biblical context.