3. Vindicate Me (vv. 19-28). The trial was about to end, and the enemy was confident of victory. “Aha, aha, our eyes have seen it” (David’s defeat, v. 21 nasb). In his imagination, David saw Saul’s men winking at each other arrogantly (Prov. 6:13; 10:10), as if to say, “He’s done for!” They would never accept a truce or even talk about peace, but this was God’s way of judging Saul for his sins and eliminating him from the political equation in Israel. After Saul’s death, David had seven years of trouble with Saul’s son (2 Sam. 1–4), but the Lord eventually solved that problem. David prayed that God would vindicate him, because David’s cause was God’s cause and the Lord’s reputation was at stake (v. 24). In verse 26, he repeated his request from verse 4 and asked that the enemy be shamefully defeated. David’s desire was that the Lord be magnified in His own way and His own time.

In contrast to the shame of the enemy in their defeat are the joyful shouts of the righteous in David’s victory. Unlike Elijah, who felt he was fighting all alone (1 Kings 19:10-18), David knew that many people in Israel supported him, those who were living “quietly in the land” (v. 20). Even in the darkest days of Israel’s history, there has always been a faithful remnant that stayed true to the Lord and prayed for His will to be done. David closed the psalm with a song of confidence and joy, witnessing to God’s righteousness and power. The word translated “prosperity” (v. 27) is the familiar Hebrew word shalom (“peace”), which means much more than a mere cessation of hostilities. It carries the idea of well-being in every aspect of life, including peace with God, with others, with yourself, and with the circumstances of your life.

David’s experience reminds us of Jesus Christ, the son of David, who was also hated without a cause (John 15:25) and falsely accused and attacked by those for whom He had shown nothing but kindness and love. God delivered David from his enemies, but the Father “spared not his own Son” (Rom. 8:32) but willingly gave Him to die for the sins of the world.