Psalm 25:21
ESV
May integrity and uprightness preserve me, for I wait for you.
NIV
May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope, Lord, is in you.
NASB
Let integrity and uprightness protect me, For I wait for You.
CSB
May integrity and what is right watch over me, for I wait for you.
NLT
May integrity and honesty protect me, for I put my hope in you.
KJV
Let integrity and uprightness preserve me; for I wait on thee.
NKJV
Let integrity and uprightness preserve me, For I wait for You.
What does Psalm 25:21 mean?
David refers to integrity and uprightness as the attributes that will preserve him. We do not know whether he was referring to his own attributes or to the Lord's. Certainly, David exhibited both integrity and uprightness (Psalm 7:8; 26:1, 11; 41:12). His enemies were trying to discredit him, but the Lord knew David was righteous. However, in this verse, David may have been appealing to the Lord's integrity and uprightness, not his own.David certainly could trust the Lord to do what was right and keep him safe. Once again, David states in this verse that he was waiting on the Lord. The word "wait" indicates that David was trustfully expecting the Lord to fulfill His promises. Perhaps he was thinking of the promises the Lord had made to him in his covenant:, to make a great name for David, to give him rest from his enemies, to give him a heritage, and to establish his kingdom forever (a messianic promise) (2 Samuel 7:9–16).
Psalm 25:15–22 records more of David's prayer. He is facing multiple dangers, but he trusts the Lord to deliver him. In this regard, his plea resembles that of his prayer for deliverance in Psalm 22. The concluding section of Psalm 25 naturally follows David's description of the Lord's steadfast love and mercy. The Lord cares for those who obey Him, so He will not disappoint David in David's time of great need.
This prayer of David uses the Hebrew alphabet as a pattern. This is an acrostic, where verses each begin with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The final verse, however, repeats the letter used in verse 16. David declares his trust in God and the value of the Lord's wisdom. Mixed into these praises of God's truth are multiple requests that David be forgiven of his sins. The psalm ends with David asking for rescue from his enemies, and for a similar redemption for the nation of Israel.
