The Meaning of Psalms 69:28 Explained

Psalms 69:28

KJV: Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous.

YLT: They are blotted out of the book of life, And with the righteous are not written.

Darby: Let them be blotted out of the book of life, and not be written with the righteous.

ASV: Let them be blotted out of the book of life, And not be written with the righteous.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Let them be blotted  out of the book  of the living,  and not be written  with the righteous. 

What does Psalms 69:28 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalms 69:18-36 - "jehovah Heareth The Needy"
In Psalms 69:19-21 the psalmist again spreads out his griefs before God. He had looked for pity, but his foes only aggravated his sufferings. Both Matthew and John had these verses in mind in describing our Lord's sufferings on the Cross, Matthew 27:48; John 19:29. The next section, Psalms 69:22-28, is full of imprecations. We cannot bring these terrible words within the scope of our Lord's teachings. They show, like a pillar which marks the farthest recession of the tide, how great a difference there is between the standard of the Old Testament ethics and that by which we shall be judged.
Psalms 69:29-36 are full of anticipations of deliverance and vows of thanksgiving. The psalmist is sure that God's salvation will lift him above his enemies, and that his thanks will be sweeter to God than any sacrifice. Notice that sudden address to seekers after God, Psalms 69:32. Let us draw lessons from our own experiences of God that will hearten others. Seekers will certainly be finders where God is concerned! Matthew 7:7. The news of God's restoring power will circle out in ever-widening waves of glory, till heaven and earth and sea catch up the story and respond. [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalms 69

1  David complains of his affliction
13  He prays for deliverance
22  He devotes his enemies to destruction
30  He praises God with thanksgiving

What do the individual words in Psalms 69:28 mean?

Let them be blotted out of the book of the living and with the righteous not be written
יִ֭מָּחֽוּ מִסֵּ֣פֶר חַיִּ֑ים וְעִ֥ם צַ֝דִּיקִ֗ים אַל־ יִכָּתֵֽבוּ

יִ֭מָּחֽוּ  Let  them  be  blotted 
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: מָחָא 
Sense: to wipe, wipe out.
מִסֵּ֣פֶר  out  of  the  book 
Parse: Preposition-m, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: סֵפֶר 
Sense: book.
חַיִּ֑ים  of  the  living 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: חַי 
Sense: living, alive.
וְעִ֥ם  and  with 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition
Root: עִם  
Sense: with.
צַ֝דִּיקִ֗ים  the  righteous 
Parse: Adjective, masculine plural
Root: צַדִּיק  
Sense: just, lawful, righteous.
יִכָּתֵֽבוּ  be  written 
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: כָּתַב  
Sense: to write, record, enrol.