How should Psalm 69:27 influence our prayers for those rejecting God?

Setting the Scene

Psalm 69 is David’s heartfelt cry while suffering unjust hostility. Verse 27 reads,

“Add iniquity to their iniquity; let them not enter into Your righteousness.”

David asks God to intensify judgment on persistent rebels. The words are not a personal vendetta; they are a plea for divine justice against entrenched evil.

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Understanding Imprecation

• Imprecatory verses hand vengeance to God (Psalm 94:1; Romans 12:19).

• They recognize that continued rebellion deserves righteous consequences (Proverbs 11:21).

• They model honest lament instead of suppressing anguish (Psalm 62:8).

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Why This Matters for Our Prayers

1. Honesty before God

• God welcomes our deepest frustrations. Pretending kindness while seething inside breeds hypocrisy (Psalm 51:6).

2. Submission to God’s justice

• Praying “Lord, judge evil” anchors hope in His perfect courtroom, not ours (Deuteronomy 32:4).

3. Release from personal vengeance

• By entrusting judgment to God, we refuse to repay evil with evil (1 Peter 3:9).

4. Room for mercy

• Even as David prays for judgment, later verses anticipate salvation for “Zion” (vv.35-36). Scripture holds both truths: judgment for the stubborn, mercy for the repentant (Isaiah 55:6-7).

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Balancing Justice and Compassion

• Pray for repentance first (2 Peter 3:9; Ezekiel 18:23).

• Yet acknowledge that ongoing hardness may require God’s discipline (Revelation 2:21-23).

• Follow Jesus’ command to bless enemies (Luke 6:27-28) while still longing for truth to prevail (Matthew 23:13-36).

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Practical Guidelines for Today

• Name the wrong honestly before God.

• Ask the Spirit to grant rebels eyes to see and hearts to turn (Acts 26:18).

• If they persist, entrust them to God’s judgment, echoing Psalm 69:27.

• Guard your own heart from hatred; pursue good toward all (Romans 12:20-21).

• Give thanks that final justice and mercy meet at the cross (Colossians 2:15).

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Summary Take-Away

Psalm 69:27 teaches that it is right to pray for unrepentant evildoers to feel the weight of their sin, yet always within a posture that longs for their salvation and leaves vengeance entirely in God’s hands.