Psalm 130 A Song of Ascents “In Christian tradition the psalm became one of the seven penitential psalms, the others being Ps. 6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 143” Allen, 195. “This psalm, of course, is a penitential psalm, focusing not on the evil of Israel’s enemies, as does Psalm 129, but on the wrongs Israel has done” Alter, 455.

130:1 Out of the depths- Ps. 30:1; 71:20; Isa. 51:10; Ezek. 27:34; Jonah 2:2-6 This is “a figure of speech suggesting his insurmountable difficulty, even to the point of death:…The exact problem is not specified” B.K, 886.

I have cried to You, O LORD- Ps. 17:6; 86:7. Is the I used of the author individually or the people collectively? “In v. 1, the psalm-singer addresses God by the divine name YHWH: in v. 2, the psalmist uses the more generic Lord (adonay). The pattern (divine name followed by generic name) is repeated in vv. 3-4 and in vv. 5-6. Only in vv. 7-8 is the divine name YHWH used twice” NICOT, 927. 

130:2 Lord, hear my voice!- Ps. 4:1; 64:1;102:2; 119:149; 141:1 .
Let your ear be attentive- II Chron. 6:40; 7:15; Neh. 1:6, 11 “What is clear in all such passages is that self-help is no answer to the depths of distress, however useful it may be in the shallows of self-pity” Kidner, 446. 

To the voice of my supplications- Ps. 28:2; 140:6 “The Hebrew word translated supplications comes from the same root as those render ‘grace’ and ‘be gracious’” Miller, 411.  

130:3 If You, LORD, should mark iniquities- Iniquities “is the primary word used to describe human sin and guilt in the prophetic writings” NICOT, 928. The word iniquities will reappear in vs. 8. “If He should deal with us exactly as we are; if He should overlook nothing, forgive nothing, we could have no hope” Barnes, 259.  

O Lord, who can stand?- Ezra 9:15; Ps. 76:7; Amos 7:2; Nah. 1:6; Mal. 3:2; Rev. 6:17. This is “an adaptation of the question of the entrance liturgy ( ‘who shall stand’ 24:3; 15:1)” Allen, 192.

Compare the thought of I Kings 8:46; Psalm 143:2; Prov. 20:9; Rom. 3:9-20, 23.
130:4 But there is forgiveness with You- Exod. 34:7; Neh. 9:17; Dan. 9:9. “He derives comfort from the known character of Yahweh as a God who forgives (cf. 86:5, 15): this divine quality transcends man’s sinfulness” Allen, 195.

That I may be feared- Jer. 33:8-9 “Forgiveness increases the sinner’s reverent awe of and trust in Yahweh (cf. I Kings 8:38-40)” Allen, 192.

130:5 I wait for the LORD, my soul does wait- Ps. 25:3, 5; 27:14; 33:20; 37:34; 40:1; 52:9; 62:1, 5; Isa. 8:17; 26:8 Notice the shift from 2nd person (vss. 1-4) to 3rd person (verses 5-8).  

And in His word do I hope- Ps. 119:74, 81, 114, 147 The word hope appears in both vs. 5 & vs. 7.  

130:6 My soul waits for the LORD- A similar phrase is used in Judges 5:9 with “my heart goes out to the commanders” Allen, 192.. 

More than the watchman for the morning- “He compared his weight to that of a city’s watchman looking for the first rays of dawn, for then they would be relieved of their duties by other guards” B.K., 886. 

Indeed, more than the watchmen for the morning- The verb waits is missing in the Hebrew text but it added in some translations like the NIV because it is implied- VanGemeren, 802. 

130:7 O Israel, hope in the LORD- 131:3 “The psalmist’s faith and hope impel him…to encourage others to be faithful and hopeful (Pss. 22:22-23; 27:14; 31:23-24; 32:8-11; 34:3, 5, 8-14; 51:13-14; 131:3)” McCann, 1206. “The morning will dawn; the light will break in the east; deliverance and joy will come” Barnes, 260.