Let the righteous smite me; it shall be a kindness: and let him reprove me; it shall be an excellent oil, which shall not break my head: for yet my prayer also shall be in their calamities.
David cried out with fervency, knowing that God hears the earnest prayer of faith. He desired above all that his prayers ascend before God like incense and the evening sacrifice, a spiritual offering that pleases Him far more than the loudness of his voice.
AI summary
Commenting on Psalm 141:1-10
Let the righteous smite me; it shall be a kindness. He prefers the bitters of gracious company to the dainties of the ungodly. He would rather be smitten by the righteous than feasted by the wicked. He gives a permit to faithful admonition, he even invites it—"let the righteous smite me." When the ungodly smile upon us their flattery is cruel; when the righteous smite us their faithfulness is kind.
Here, I. David desires to be told of his faults. His enemies reproached him with that which was false, which he could not but complain of; yet, at the same time, he desired his friends would reprove him for that which was really amiss in him, particularly if there was any thing that gave the least colour to those reproaches (Psa 141:5): let the righteous...
Commenting on Psalm 141:5-10