◄ Psalm 71:5 ►
For You are my hope, O Lord GOD, my confidence from my youth.
Study Bible
For You are my hope
The Hebrew word for "hope" here is "תִּקְוָה" (tiqvah), which conveys a sense of expectation and trust. In the context of the Psalms, hope is not a passive wish but an active reliance on God's promises and character. The psalmist acknowledges that God is the source of his hope, emphasizing a deep, personal relationship with the divine. This hope is not based on circumstances but on the steadfast nature of God, who has proven faithful throughout history.

O Lord GOD
The phrase "O Lord GOD" combines two significant names of God: "Adonai" (Lord) and "Yahweh" (GOD). "Adonai" reflects God's sovereign authority and lordship, while "Yahweh" is the covenant name of God, highlighting His eternal, self-existent nature and His faithfulness to His promises. This dual reference underscores the psalmist's recognition of God's supreme power and His intimate, covenantal relationship with His people.

my confidence
The Hebrew word for "confidence" is "מִבְטָח" (mivtach), which implies a sense of security and trust. This term suggests a firm reliance on God, akin to a refuge or stronghold. The psalmist's confidence is not in human strength or wisdom but in the unchanging character of God. This confidence is a recurring theme in the Psalms, where the faithful find their security in God's protection and provision.

from my youth
The phrase "from my youth" indicates a lifelong relationship with God. The psalmist reflects on a history of trust and reliance on God that began in his early years. This suggests a foundation of faith built over time, through experiences of God's faithfulness. It also implies that the psalmist's confidence in God is not a recent development but a deeply ingrained aspect of his life, cultivated through years of walking with the Lord. This lifelong trust serves as an encouragement to believers to nurture their relationship with God from an early age, building a legacy of faith that endures through all seasons of life.

Persons / Places / Events
1. The Psalmist
Traditionally attributed to David, the psalmist is expressing a deep, personal relationship with God, characterized by trust and reliance.

2. Lord GOD (Yahweh Elohim)
The covenant name of God, emphasizing His eternal nature and His relationship with His people.

3. Youth
The psalmist reflects on a lifelong journey of faith, indicating a history of trust in God from an early age.
Teaching Points
Hope in God
Our ultimate hope should be placed in God, who is unchanging and faithful.

Reflect on how God has been your hope throughout different stages of life.

Confidence from Youth
Encourage young believers to cultivate a strong foundation of faith early in life.

For those who came to faith later, recognize that God redeems time and can instill confidence at any stage.

Lifelong Faithfulness
God’s faithfulness is evident throughout our lives; we should strive to remain faithful to Him in return.

Consider journaling or documenting instances of God’s faithfulness as a reminder of His constant presence.

Covenant Relationship
Understanding God as Yahweh Elohim reminds us of His promises and our relationship with Him.

Engage in regular study of God’s covenant promises to strengthen your faith.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the concept of hope in God, as expressed in Psalm 71:5, influence your daily life and decisions?

2. Reflect on your own journey of faith. How has God been your confidence from your youth, or how has He become your confidence over time?

3. In what ways can you encourage younger believers to develop a strong foundation of trust in God?

4. How do the themes of hope and confidence in Psalm 71:5 connect with other scriptures you know? Can you identify a pattern or principle?

5. What practical steps can you take to deepen your understanding of God as Yahweh Elohim and His covenant relationship with you?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Psalm 22:9-10
This passage also speaks of trust in God from birth, highlighting a lifelong relationship with the Lord.

Jeremiah 17:7
This verse emphasizes the blessing of trusting in the Lord, reinforcing the theme of hope and confidence in God.

2 Timothy 1:12
Paul speaks of his confidence in God, similar to the psalmist's trust, showing a New Testament parallel of faith and assurance.
Sermons
God Our Hope in YouthJ. Thain Davidson, D.D.Psalm 71:5
The Suffering Righteous Man in His Old AgeC. Short Psalm 71:1-13
A Picture of a Pious Old ManHomilistPsalm 71:1-24
Godly Old AgeW. Forsyth Psalm 71:1-24
The Vow of FaithR. C. Ford, M. A.Psalm 71:1-24
People
Psalmist, Solomon
Places
Jerusalem
Topics
Confidence, Faith, Hope, O, Sovereign, Trust, Youth
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Psalm 71:5

     5746   youth
     5914   optimism
     8340   self-respect
     9612   hope, in God
     9613   hope, as confidence

Psalm 71:5-6

     4016   life, human
     5029   knowledge, of God
     8107   assurance, and life of faith

Psalm 71:5-7

     8215   confidence, results
     8331   reliability

Library
December 22. "My Tongue Also Shall Talk of Thy Righteousness all the Day Long" (Ps. Lxxi. 24).
"My tongue also shall talk of Thy righteousness all the day long" (Ps. lxxi. 24). It is a simple law of nature, that air always comes in to fill a vacuum. You can produce a draught at any time, by heating the air until it ascends, and then the cold air rushes in to supply its place. And so we can always be filled with the Holy Spirit by providing a vacuum. This breath is dependent upon exhausting the previous breath before you can inhale a fresh one. And so we must empty our hearts of the last breath …
Rev. A. B. Simpson—Days of Heaven Upon Earth

More and More
David had not been slack in praise: indeed, he was a sweet singer in Israel, a very choir-master unto the Lord yet he vowed to praise him more and more. Those who do much already, are usually the people who can do more. He was old. Would he praise God more when he was infirm than he had done when he was young and vigorous? If he could not excel with loudness of voice, yet would he with eagerness of heart; and what his praise might lack in sound, it should gain in solemn earnestness. He was in trouble …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 17: 1871

Of Four Things which Bring Great Peace
"My Son, now will I teach thee the way of peace and of true liberty." 2. Do, O my Lord, as Thou sayest, for this is pleasing unto me to hear. 3. "Strive, My Son, to do another's will rather than thine own. Choose always to have less rather than more. Seek always after the lowest place, and to be subject to all. Wish always and pray that the will of God be fulfilled in thee. Behold, such a man as this entereth into the inheritance of peace and quietness." 4. O my Lord, this Thy short discourse …
Thomas A Kempis—Imitation of Christ

Of the Day of Eternity and of the Straitnesses of this Life
Oh most blessed mansion of the City which is above! Oh most clear day of eternity which the night obscureth not, but the Supreme Truth ever enlighteneth! Day always joyful, always secure and never changing its state into those which are contrary. Oh would that this day might shine forth, and that all these temporal things would come to an end. It shineth indeed upon the Saints, glowing with unending brightness, but only from afar and through a glass, upon those who are pilgrims on the earth. …
Thomas A Kempis—Imitation of Christ

For Old Age. --Ps. Lxxi.
For Old Age.--Ps. lxxi. Lord, I have put my trust in Thee, Turn not my confidence to shame; Thy promise is a rock to me, A tower of refuge is Thy name. Thou hast upheld me from the womb; Thou wert my strength and hope in youth; Now trembling, bending o'er the tomb, I lean upon Thine arm of truth. Though I have long outlived my peers, And stand amid the world alone, (A stranger left by former years), I know my God,--by Him am known. Cast me not off in mine old age, Forsake me not in my last hour; …
James Montgomery—Sacred Poems and Hymns

They all Hold Swords, Being Expert in War; Every Man Hath his Sword Upon his Thigh Because of Fear in the Night.
They all hold swords to engage in combat with the soul which, by a secret presumption, attributes to self what belongs to God only; and this causes them to exclaim with united voice; Who is like unto God? The Divine Righteousness is the first that comes to fight with and destroy the self-righteousness of the creature, and then comes strength to bring to naught the power of man, and causing him to enter by experience of his own infinite weakness into the strength of the Lord (Psalm lxxi. 16), teaches …
Madame Guyon—Song of Songs of Solomon

Letter Xlv (Circa A. D. 1140) to the Canons of Lyons, on the Conception of S. Mary.
To the Canons of Lyons, on the Conception of S. Mary. Bernard states that the Festival of the Conception was new; that it rested on no legitimate foundation; and that it should not have been instituted without consulting the Apostolic See, to whose opinion he submits. 1. It is well known that among all the Churches of France that of Lyons is first in importance, whether we regard the dignity of its See, its praiseworthy regulations, or its honourable zeal for learning. Where was there ever the vigour …
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux—Some Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux

The Baptismal Covenant Can be Kept Unbroken. Aim and Responsibility of Parents.
We have gone "to the Law and to the Testimony" to find out what the nature and benefits of Baptism are. We have gathered out of the Word all the principal passages bearing on this subject. We have grouped them together, and studied them side by side. We have noticed that their sense is uniform, clear, and strong. Unless we are willing to throw aside all sound principles of interpretation, we can extract from the words of inspiration only one meaning, and that is that the baptized child is, by virtue …
G. H. Gerberding—The Way of Salvation in the Lutheran Church

But Concerning True Patience, Worthy of the Name of this virtue...
12. But concerning true patience, worthy of the name of this virtue, whence it is to be had, must now be inquired. For there are some [2650] who attribute it to the strength of the human will, not which it hath by Divine assistance, but which it hath of free-will. Now this error is a proud one: for it is the error of them which abound, of whom it is said in the Psalm, "A scornful reproof to them which abound, and a despising to the proud." [2651] It is not therefore that "patience of the poor" which …
St. Augustine—On Patience

The Christian's Hope
Scripture references: 1 Timothy 1:1; Colossians 1:27; Psalm 130:5; 43:5; Proverbs 10:8; Acts 24:15; Psalm 71:5; Romans 5:1-5; 12:12; 15:4; 1 Corinthians 9:10; Galatians 5:5; Ephesians 1:18; Philippians 1:20; Colossians 1:5; 1 Thessalonians 1:3; 2:19; Titus 1:2; 2:13; 3:7; Psalm 31:24; 71:14,15. HOPE IN THE PRESENT LIFE That which a man ardently hopes for he strives to realize. If he desires fame, office or wealth he will seek to set forces in motion, here and now, which will bring him that which …
Henry T. Sell—Studies in the Life of the Christian

Let Thus Much have Been Said with Regard to Charity...
20. Let thus much have been said with regard to charity, without which in us there cannot be true patience, because in good men it is the love of God which endureth all things, as in bad men the lust of the world. But this love is in us by the Holy Spirit which was given us. Whence, of Whom cometh in us love, of Him cometh patience. But the lust of the world, when it patiently bears the burdens of any manner of calamity, boasts of the strength of its own will, like as of the stupor of disease, not …
St. Augustine—On Patience

Psalms
The piety of the Old Testament Church is reflected with more clearness and variety in the Psalter than in any other book of the Old Testament. It constitutes the response of the Church to the divine demands of prophecy, and, in a less degree, of law; or, rather, it expresses those emotions and aspirations of the universal heart which lie deeper than any formal demand. It is the speech of the soul face to face with God. Its words are as simple and unaffected as human words can be, for it is the genius …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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