Psalm 35:11–18 (NKJV)

11 Fierce witnesses rise up;
They ask me things that I do not know.
12 They reward me evil for good,
To the sorrow of my soul.
13 But as for me, when they were sick,
My clothing was sackcloth;
I humbled myself with fasting;
And my prayer would return to my own heart.
14 I paced about as though he were my friend or brother;
I bowed down heavily, as one who mourns for his mother.

Psalm 35:11-14

• Even when I strive to be holy and shun sin, my enemies accuse be falsely.
• They testify with passion against me, and I cannot answer them for I am innocent.
• They punish me for sins I have not committed.
• I am sorrowful and pained in my soul.
• When my friends or even my enemies are sick, I pray for them and mourn with them in their loss.
• I fast for the good of all people, but my prayers for them are unanswered in my time of affliction.
• I worried, pacing over the floor as their lives were in peril, bowing down and crying out on their behalf.
• Yet my compassion is unrequited and no one returns my love and care back to me.

15 But in my adversity they rejoiced
And gathered together;
Attackers gathered against me,
And I did not know it;
They tore at me and did not cease;
16 With ungodly mockers at feasts
They gnashed at me with their teeth.

17 Lord, how long will You look on?
Rescue me from their destructions,
My precious life from the lions.
18 I will give You thanks in the great assembly;
I will praise You among many people.

Psalm 35:15-18

• It gets worse, God.
• Not only do they accuse me and refuse to pray for me, they also rejoice over my pain.
• They gather together to attack me behind my back.
• They tried without fail to tear me down and tear me apart.
• They mock at my trials and troubles, and cheer when I seem to lose. They even bite at me and make faces when they see me.
• I am a curse in their mouth and a laugh from their belly in my pain.
• Lord, will you ignore my bad treatment forever? How long will You allow me to suffer this indignity and suffering?
• Rescue me, O LORD, from these wild animals, seeking to tear me limb from limb.
• They would destroy me, and I cannot survive their attacks much longer.
• I will give You thanks before the assembly of my godly brothers and sisters, and praise You among even the heathens.
• However, I cannot praise You if I am dead. Save me, Lord, and I will praise You greatly with my mouth and from my heart.
• In my distress, I know You are there and You will answer my prayer!

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