Psalm 70 is a short, urgent prayer of David asking God to act quickly against his enemies and to help him in his need. These questions are built for a small group, a Sunday class, or personal study. Each set moves from what the text says, to what it means, to how it shapes daily life, so a leader can work through the chapter without a separate summary.
Psalm 70 at a Glance
The psalm opens with a plea in its first verse: “Hurry, God, to deliver me.” The writer is under threat from people who want to shame and ruin him, and he asks that they be turned back in disgrace. In the middle verses he widens the frame, praying that everyone who seeks God would rejoice and keep saying that God is great.
The psalm ends by turning to the writer’s own condition. He admits he is poor and needy, and he sets his hope on God as his help and deliverer. The movement runs from urgent request, to a wider desire for God to be honored, to a quiet confession of dependence.
Observation Questions
Use these questions first, before anyone offers an opinion. Ask the group to point to the actual words in the text and resist the urge to explain yet. Short answers keep the room focused on what the psalm says.
Psalm 70:1
Hurry, God, to deliver me. Come quickly to help me, the LORD.
(WEB)
Read this verse first to set the urgency of the whole psalm. It gives the group a clear, short prayer they can echo together before the discussion begins.
Psalm 70:2-3
2 Let them be disappointed and confounded who seek my soul. Let those who desire my ruin be turned back in disgrace. 3 Let them be turned because of their shame Who say, “Aha! Aha!”
(WEB)
These verses carry the psalm’s sharpest language about enemies. Reading them aloud helps the group face the honest, uncomfortable part of the prayer before discussing it.
Psalm 70:4
Let all those who seek you rejoice and be glad in you. Let those who love your salvation continually say, “Let God be exalted!”
(WEB)
This verse widens the prayer to all who seek God. Reading it aloud reminds the group that the psalm is not only about one person’s crisis but about God being praised by everyone who loves him.
Psalm 70:5
But I am poor and needy. Come to me quickly, God. You are my help and my deliverer. The LORD, don’t delay.
(WEB)
The final verse brings the psalm to rest on need and trust. It is a good place to pause and let the group sit with the honesty of asking God not to delay.
Psalm 70:1-5
1 Hurry, God, to deliver me. Come quickly to help me, the LORD. 2 Let them be disappointed and confounded who seek my soul. Let those who desire my ruin be turned back in disgrace. 3 Let them be turned because of their shame Who say, “Aha! Aha!” 4 Let all those who seek you rejoice and be glad in you. Let those who love your salvation continually say, “Let God be exalted!” 5 But I am poor and needy. Come to me quickly, God. You are my help and my deliverer. The LORD, don’t delay.
(WEB)
Reading the whole psalm once at the end lets the group hear its shape from beginning to end. It works well as a closing reading before the prayer.
Memory Verse for Psalm 70
A Closing Prayer for the Group
Father, we come to you in the same urgency this psalm expresses, asking you to hurry and to help us quickly. We admit that we are often poor and needy, and we ask you not to delay in our lives. We pray for those who oppose us or wish us harm, and we ask that you would turn their plans toward your purposes. We pray that all who seek you would rejoice in you and keep saying that you are great. You are our help and our deliverer, and we place our trust in you today. Amen.
