4 May those who seek my life
    be disgraced and put to shame;
may those who plot my ruin
    be turned back in dismay.
5 May they be like chaff before the wind,
    with the angel of the Lord driving them away;
6 may their path be dark and slippery,
    with the angel of the Lord pursuing them.

7 Since they hid their net for me without cause
    and without cause dug a pit for me,
8 may ruin overtake them by surprise –
    may the net they hid entangle them,
    may they fall into the pit, to their ruin.
9 Then my soul will rejoice in the Lord
    and delight in his salvation.
10 My whole being will exclaim,
    ‘Who is like you, Lord?
You rescue the poor from those too strong for them,
    the poor and needy from those who rob them.’ NIVUK

”True prayer is sure of a hearing…We can doubt the value, power and sincerity of our own asking, but not God’s hearing…It is because it is heard that we pray, and not because we are so skilled in asking.” Karl Barth

Tom Hale points out that the remainder of Psalm 35 consists of three petitions addressed to David’s ‘Warrior God’, and each one concludes with a vow to praise Him (9,10,18,22). David obviously prays with the confidence of being heard.

” If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.’’ Matthew 21:22 NIVUK

On two occasions, as I read today’s passage, my mind went back to sections of Psalm 34, and I’ve highlighted them in bold above. Verses 5, 6 correspond to 34:7, and verse 10b to 34:6.

The truth of verses 7,8 comes up often in Scripture. We reap what we sow. Someone said that sin has a ‘boomerang effect’. Tom Hale helpfully points out, ‘David is not showing personal malice here; he has no idea to take personal revenge on his enemies. He is leaving the matter in God’s hands. He is calling on God to judge the wicked and defend the innocent. Here David, as God’s servant, is praying according to God’s will; in asking God to vindicate him, David is essentially asking God to vindicate Himself.’