NOTES for Psa 141:7

The subtitle, or inscription, of this psalm says: "His prayer, when he was in the cave." David is hiding in a cave from his pursuing enemies and, of course, prays for help. But for us now what matters is not what he asks to be delivered from, but for what purpose. In the language of the Old Testament, the soul is the whole earthly, biological, as we would now say, life of a person. During this prayer David experiences his state as being in darkness, as a likeness of death, for a cave is the main way of burial, and he asks God to bring him out of the "grave," to return him to life. But why? What is he going to do when he comes out into the light? What can he not do while remaining in the cave? David's answer is: glorify God. What, can he not praise Him from there? Is God less holy and good if I am in a cave? One can and should praise God, but there is a difference between "praising" and "glorifying." Praising is between me and God, while glorifying, giving glory, is before others and for others. In the darkness of the cave, in the "grave," David experiences the strongest loneliness, which hinders the prayer of glorification. "Bring me out, and those before whom I can glorify You will gather around," David says.