Psalm 69:28 is a prayer for justice. The psalmist asks God to remove those who are persecuting him from the company of the faithful, so that they no longer share in the blessings and standing God gives to the righteous. The words are spoken by David, traditionally identified as the author of the psalm, who is suffering under the hostility of enemies and asking God to act on his behalf.
Let them be blotted out of the book of life, and not be written with the righteous.
Psalm 69:28 (WEB)
What Psalm 69:28 Means
The phrase “blotted out of the book of life” draws on an image of a register kept by God, in which the names of those who belong to him are recorded. To be blotted out is to be erased from that record, which in the psalmist’s world meant losing a place among God’s people and a share in the life he gives. The psalmist is not asking for ordinary punishment but for a spiritual and communal exclusion from God’s favor.
The second half of the verse makes the same request in different words: that these people would “not be written with the righteous.” It is a prayer that the wicked would not be counted among those who walk with God. The verse expresses a strong desire for God’s justice to be seen, but it does not describe how the psalmist himself should take revenge or what he would do with his enemies. It is a plea that leaves the outcome in God’s hands.
The Context of Psalm 69:28
Psalm 69 is a lament, a cry from someone in deep trouble. The psalmist describes being sunk in deep water, worn out from calling for help, and treated with contempt because of his devotion to God. Verse 28 belongs to a section where he asks God to bring judgment on those who oppress him. Just before it, in verses 25 and 26, he describes his enemies’ homes as desolate and speaks of them persecuting one whom God himself has struck.
The verse is followed immediately by a turn in the psalm. In verse 29 the psalmist says, “But I am in pain and distress,” and asks for God’s salvation to protect him. The curse in verse 28 therefore sits inside a prayer of need rather than a calm statement of judgment. Reading it this way helps us see that the psalmist’s strong language comes from real suffering and a longing for God to vindicate him.
Key Phrases in Psalm 69:28
Romans 12:19
Don’t seek revenge yourselves, beloved, but give place to God’s wrath. For it is written, “Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay, says the Lord.”
(WEB)
Paul echoes the same confidence that vengeance belongs to God. Like the psalmist, he speaks to believers who are wronged, but he calls them to leave justice in the Lord’s hands rather than repaying evil themselves. Together the two passages show that longing for justice and trusting God to provide it belong together.
Psalm 37:9
For evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait for the LORD shall inherit the land.
(WEB)
This verse promises that those who wait on the Lord will inherit the land, while the wicked are cut off. It offers the same assurance that God will bring justice for his people, encouraging patient trust rather than despair when the wicked seem to prosper.
A Short Prayer From Psalm 69:28
Lord, you see the injustice I face and the pain it brings into my life. I bring my anger and my hurt before you, trusting that you know the truth of every situation. Help me to leave the work of judgment with you rather than trying to carry it myself. Keep my heart from bitterness, and draw me closer to your people, that I may remain among those who walk with you in faithfulness. Thank you that you hear the cries of those who suffer and that you are a God who vindicates the righteous in your time. Amen.
