Psalms 86: You Are Good and Forgiving
A personal prayer of the poor and needy that leans on God's mercy, asks for an undivided heart, and trusts him to answer.
Psalms 86 (WEB)
1 Hear, Yahweh, and answer me, for I am poor and needy.
2 Preserve my soul, for I am godly. You, my God, save your servant who trusts in you.
3 Be merciful to me, Lord, for I call to you all day long.
4 Bring joy to the soul of your servant, for to you, Lord, do I lift up my soul.
5 For you, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive; abundant in loving kindness to all those who call on you.
6 Hear, Yahweh, my prayer. Listen to the voice of my petitions.
7 In the day of my trouble I will call on you, for you will answer me.
8 There is no one like you among the gods, Lord, nor any deeds like your deeds.
9 All nations you have made will come and worship before you, Lord. They shall glorify your name.
10 For you are great, and do wondrous things. You are God alone.
11 Teach me your way, Yahweh. I will walk in your truth. Make my heart undivided to fear your name.
12 I will praise you, Lord my God, with my whole heart. I will glorify your name forever more.
13 For your loving kindness is great toward me. You have delivered my soul from the lowest Sheol.
14 God, the proud have risen up against me. A company of violent men have sought after my soul, and they don’t hold regard for you before them.
15 But you, Lord, are a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness and truth.
16 Turn to me, and have mercy on me! Give your strength to your servant. Save the son of your handmaid.
17 Show me a sign of your goodness, that those who hate me may see it, and be shamed, because you, Yahweh, have helped me, and comforted me.
Psalms 86 (KJV)
1 Bow down thine ear, O Lord, hear me: for I am poor and needy.
2 Preserve my soul; for I am holy: O thou my God, save thy servant that trusteth in thee.
3 Be merciful unto me, O Lord: for I cry unto thee daily.
4 Rejoice the soul of thy servant: for unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
5 For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.
6 Give ear, O Lord, unto my prayer; and attend to the voice of my supplications.
7 In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee: for thou wilt answer me.
8 Among the gods there is none like unto thee, O Lord; neither are there any works like unto thy works.
9 All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord; and shall glorify thy name.
10 For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: thou art God alone.
11 Teach me thy way, O Lord; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name.
12 I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart: and I will glorify thy name for evermore.
13 For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell.
14 O God, the proud are risen against me, and the assemblies of violent men have sought after my soul; and have not set thee before them.
15 But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth.
16 O turn unto me, and have mercy upon me; give thy strength unto thy servant, and save the son of thine handmaid.
17 Shew me a token for good; that they which hate me may see it, and be ashamed: because thou, Lord, hast holpen me, and comforted me.
Psalms 86 (ASV)
1 Bow down thine ear, O Jehovah, and answer me; For I am poor and needy.
2 Preserve my soul; for I am godly: O thou my God, save thy servant that trusteth in thee.
3 Be merciful unto me, O Lord; For unto thee do I cry all the day long.
4 Rejoice the soul of thy servant; For unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
5 For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive, And abundant in lovingkindness unto all them that call upon thee.
6 Give ear, O Jehovah, unto my prayer; And hearken unto the voice of my supplications.
7 In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee; For thou wilt answer me.
8 There is none like unto thee among the gods, O Lord; Neitherare there any workslike unto thy works.
9 All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord; And they shall glorify thy name.
10 For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: Thou art God alone.
11 Teach me thy way, O Jehovah; I will walk in thy truth: Unite my heart to fear thy name.
12 I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with my whole heart; And I will glorify thy name for evermore.
13 For great is thy lovingkindness toward me; And thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest Sheol.
14 O God, the proud are risen up against me, And a company of violent men have sought after my soul, And have not set thee before them.
15 But thou, O Lord, art a God merciful and gracious, Slow to anger, and abundant in lovingkindness and truth.
16 Oh turn unto me, and have mercy upon me; Give thy strength unto thy servant, And save the son of thy handmaid.
17 Show me a token for good, That they who hate me may see it, and be put to shame, Because thou, Jehovah, hast helped me, and comforted me.
Summary
This is a prayer of David, marked throughout by humility and trust. He comes before God as one who is poor and needy, asking the Lord to hear and answer, to preserve his soul, and to be merciful to him as he calls all day long. The ground of his confidence is not his own goodness but God's: "For you, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive; abundant in loving kindness to all those who call on you." David exalts the incomparable Lord, the one true God who does wondrous things and before whom all nations will one day come and worship. At the heart of the psalm lies one of Scripture's great prayers: "Teach me your way, Yahweh. I will walk in your truth. Make my heart undivided to fear your name." David then turns to his trouble—violent and proud men have risen up against him—but he answers his fear with worship, rehearsing that the Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, abundant in loving kindness and truth. He pleads for God to turn to him, strengthen him, and show a sign of his goodness. The psalm models how a believer prays under pressure: honest about need, anchored in God's character, and longing above all for a whole heart devoted to the God who saves us in Christ.
Voices
- David, the poor and needy servant — The psalmist who prays humbly as one poor and needy, resting on God's mercy and asking for an undivided heart.
- The Lord, good and forgiving — The incomparable God, merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abundant in loving kindness, ready to forgive all who call on him.
- The proud and violent men — The arrogant company that rises against David's life with no regard for God, the threat that drives him to prayer.
Key Verse
Psalm 86:11 (WEB)
Teach me your way, Yahweh. I will walk in your truth. Make my heart undivided to fear your name.
Lessons Learned
- We can come to God honestly as the poor and needy people we are, and find him ready to help.
- The surest ground of prayer is God's goodness and readiness to forgive, not our own worth.
- A divided heart is the believer's danger; we should pray for our hearts to be made whole and single.
- Even surrounded by enemies, we can steady ourselves by rehearsing God's merciful character.
- Humility is the posture of prayer. "Hear, Yahweh, and answer me, for I am poor and needy" (Psalm 86:1, WEB). We approach God not on our merits but in honest need.
- God's goodness invites us to call. "For you, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive; abundant in loving kindness to all those who call on you" (Psalm 86:5, WEB). His character makes prayer welcome and hopeful.
- Ask for an undivided heart. "Make my heart undivided to fear your name" (Psalm 86:11, WEB). The deepest request is not for circumstances but for wholehearted devotion.
- Preach God's character to your fears. "But you, Lord, are a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness and truth" (Psalm 86:15, WEB). Under threat, David answers fear with worship.
- How does David describe himself before God in this psalm, and what does that teach about prayer?
- On what basis does David expect God to hear him (86:5)?
- What does it mean to ask for an "undivided" heart (86:11), and why is that so vital?
- How does David handle his fear of the violent men in verses 14-17?
- Where is your own heart most divided, and what would it look like to ask God to make it whole?
- David repeatedly calls himself poor, needy, godly, and God's servant who trusts in him (86:1-2). He teaches that prayer flows from honest dependence, not from pretending to be strong or self-sufficient before God.
- He expects to be heard because the Lord is good, ready to forgive, and abundant in loving kindness to all who call on him (86:5). His confidence rests on God's character, not his own performance—the same ground we have in Christ.
- An undivided heart is one not split between God and rival loves, but single in its devotion and fear of God (86:11). It is vital because a divided heart leaves us double-minded and unstable; wholeness in devotion is the source of steady faith.
- He names the threat honestly, then answers it by rehearsing that God is merciful, gracious, slow to anger, and abundant in love and truth (86:14-15). He preaches God's character to himself and asks for a sign of goodness rather than spiraling in fear.
- This is a gentle personal-application question. Invite members to consider rival loves or competing loyalties that fracture their devotion, and to pray verse 11 sincerely. As leader, keep the tone hopeful—God delights to answer the prayer for an undivided heart.