But I, as a deaf man, heard not; and I was as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth.
Not only the severity of his affliction, but also, as he here shows, his manner of bearing it-namely, silently and patiently-is a plea for deliverance.
But I, as a deaf man, heard not; and I was as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth. Instead of impatient self-justification, whereby men take away the vindication of their cause out of the hand of the Righteous Judge, he committed his cause to God (Psalms 38:9; Psalms 38:15). His enemies would give no candid hearing to the quiet representation of his right; to speak in angry excitement, under such circumstances, would not persuade them, and would only injure his own spirit. So when Shimei cursed David in his flight from Absalom, and when Abishai wished to kill the curser, the king replied, "So let him curse, because the Lord hath said unto him, Curse David. Who shall then say, Wherefore hast thou done so?" So the antitypical David, Messiah (Isaiah 42:2; Isaiah 53:7).