Psalms 119:170 Meaning and Explanation
“Let my supplication come before thee: deliver me according to thy word.”
King James Version (KJV)
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Read Full Chapter →Asking for deliverance raises an obvious question: on what basis? Psalm 119:170 answers it in four words, 'according to thy word.' The writer stakes his rescue on what God has said rather than on his own record, and by doing so he gives every reader a way to pray that does not depend on feeling worthy of an answer.
A second petition follows the first: let the plea for favor arrive before God, and let rescue come along the lines God has already promised in his word.
The Context of Psalms 119:170
Verse 170 stands second in the last stanza of the acrostic, verses 169 through 176. It runs parallel to verse 169 in structure, with a request that something come before God followed by a request for what God alone can give. The stanza continues with promised praise in verses 171 and 172, a plea for help in verse 173, longing for salvation in verse 174, and a request for life in verse 175. The final verse admits that the writer has wandered like a lost sheep and asks God to seek him.
What Does Psalms 119:170 Mean?
The opening clause mirrors the previous verse almost exactly, changing one word. Where verse 169 sent up a cry, verse 170 sends a supplication, a term built on the root for grace and favor. The plea appeals to kindness the asker has no claim on. That shift matters after eight verses of confident testimony about kept commandments. Then the second clause asks for deliverance and immediately supplies the standard: 'according to thy word.' Rescue is requested along the lines God himself has drawn. The psalmist is asking God to be consistent with his own promises, which is one of the strongest positions any person can take in prayer.
This phrase, according to thy word, echoes through the whole psalm. It appears with requests to be quickened, to be established, to be dealt with mercifully, to live. Each time it does the same work, anchoring the request to something outside the psalmist's changing circumstances. The pattern reflects how prayer functions across Scripture. Abraham, Moses, David, and Daniel all press their petitions on the basis of what God has already declared or sworn. Deliverance in those prayers rises out of covenant, requested as the natural outworking of a God who keeps his promises, and Psalm 119:170 states that logic plainly for anyone who needs it.
Hebrews describes Jesus offering up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears, and says he was heard. The Greek term for supplication there belongs to the same family of ideas as the Hebrew word used in this verse, a plea thrown entirely on another's mercy. The psalm's prayer therefore finds an answer in a place its writer could not have foreseen. The one who came to deliver prayed for deliverance himself, in a garden, resting on his Father's will and word. Every believer who prays verse 170 stands behind someone who prayed in that same posture and whose rescue opened the way for ours.
Psalms 119:170 in the Original Language
tehinnah (תְּחִנָּה), 'supplication' -- from the root meaning to show favor or be gracious. The noun names a plea that rests on the hearer's kindness, which is why it suits a request for deliverance grounded in God's promise.
Bible Verses Related to Psalms 119:170
“Lord, hear my voice: let thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications.”
- Psalm 130:2
“O my God, incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes, and behold our desolations, and the city which is called by thy name: for we do not present our supplications before thee for our righteousnesses, but for thy great mercies.”
- Daniel 9:18
“Plead my cause, and deliver me: quicken me according to thy word.”
- Psalm 119:154
“Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared;”
- Hebrews 5:7
Where Psalms 119:170 Echoes in Scripture
Daniel 9:18 prays in exactly this posture. Interceding for a ruined city, Daniel says the supplications are presented on the ground of God's great mercies rather than any righteousness of his own people. Psalm 119:170 arrives at the same place from a different direction, after a long record of obedience the writer could have appealed to. He appeals to God's word instead. Two very different situations produce one form of prayer, and both leave the outcome entirely with God's faithfulness.
How to Apply Psalms 119:170 Today
Many of us pray hardest when we feel we have earned a hearing, and go quiet when we know we have not. This verse loosens that grip. The ground of our asking sits in God's promises, which do not move with our performance. A practical step is to find a specific promise that touches the trouble we are in and pray it back to God by name. Doing so trains us to expect rescue shaped by his character. It also keeps our requests honest, since praying God's word slowly reshapes what we ask for.
Reflection & Prayer
Which promise of God would I be praying right now if I really believed he meant it for me? A prayer to borrow: Lord, hear this plea. I bring no leverage and no bargain, only your own words. Deliver me the way you have said you deliver, and let me learn to ask on that ground alone.