Psalm 141: A Prayer for God’s Help and Protection

141:1 O Lord, I cry out to you. Come quickly to me! Pay attention to me when I cry out to you! 141:2 May you accept my prayer like incense, my uplifted hands like the evening offering! 141:3 O Lord, place a guard on my mouth! Protect the opening of my lips! 141:4 Do not let me have evil desires, or participate in sinful activities with men who behave wickedly. I will not eat their delicacies. 141:5 May the godly strike me in love and correct me! May my head not refuse choice oil! Indeed, my prayer is a witness against their evil deeds. 141:6 They will be thrown down the side of a cliff by their judges. They will listen to my words, for they are pleasant. 141:7 As when one plows and breaks up the soil, so our bones are scattered at the mouth of Sheol. 141:8 Surely I am looking to you, O sovereign Lord. In you I take shelter. Do not expose me to danger! 141:9 Protect me from the snare they have laid for me, and the traps the evildoers have set. 141:10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets, while I escape. Psalm 142 A well-written song by David, when he was in the cave; a prayer.

Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NET) are from the NET Bible®, copyright ©1996, 2019 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.

David cries out to the Lord for a hearing, asks God to guard his words and desires, welcomes the correction of the godly, and trusts the Lord to protect him from the traps of wicked people.

Psalm 141 is an urgent prayer from a man under pressure. He asks the Lord to listen quickly and receive his prayer like incense and the evening offering. This shows that prayer is meant to rise to God as holy worship.

The psalm also shows that the danger is not only outside the man, but inside him too. He asks God to put a guard over his mouth. He also asks not to be drawn into evil desires or sinful acts with wicked people. He will not join their feast or their way of life.

The psalmist is willing to be corrected by godly people. He sees their rebuke as loving and helpful, not harmful. He does not want to follow the wicked or join their evil deeds.

The psalm then turns to judgment language. The exact wording is difficult in places, but the meaning is clear: God will judge evil, and wicked schemes will not stand forever. The psalmist does not take vengeance into his own hands. He leaves justice with the Lord.

At the end, he again confesses trust in the sovereign Lord. He asks God to protect him from hidden traps and nets. His final plea is that the wicked would fall into their own traps while he is kept safe.

• God hears urgent prayer.
• Prayer may be offered as worship, like incense and sacrifice.
• God must guard both our speech and our inner desires.
• Fellowship with wicked people is spiritually dangerous.
• Loving correction from the righteous is good.
• The Lord is the one who judges evil and preserves his people.

• Cry out to the Lord in distress.
• Ask God to guard your mouth.
• Do not give yourself to evil desires or sinful actions.
• Do not join the wicked in their table fellowship or their schemes.
• Receive loving rebuke from the godly.
• Trust the Lord for protection rather than taking revenge.
• The wicked may fall into their own nets.
• God can keep his people from hidden traps.

This psalm belongs to Israel’s covenant worship world, where prayer and sacrifice are joined together. It presents the Davidic righteous sufferer who depends on the Lord in the face of evil. In the wider Bible, it fits the pattern of a righteous servant whose mouth, desires, and conduct are kept pure by God, and whose vindication comes from the Lord rather than from self-defense.

When you are under pressure, pray quickly and honestly to God. Ask him to guard your words, because speech can become sinful under stress. Ask him to keep your heart from evil desires. Welcome correction from godly people instead of resisting it. Do not chase the ways of the wicked. Leave justice and protection in the Lord’s hands.

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