Psalm 141: Let My Prayer Rise Like Incense

"LORD, I cry unto thee: make haste unto me; give ear unto my voice, when I cry unto thee. Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice. Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips. Incline not my heart to any evil thing, to practise wicked works with men that work iniquity: and let me not eat of their dainties."

"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… When their judges are overthrown in stony places, they shall hear my words; for they are sweet… But mine eyes are unto thee, O GOD the Lord: in thee is my trust; leave not my soul destitute. Keep me from the snares which they have laid for me."

Incense and the evening offering

Incense was burned morning and evening on the golden altar (Exodus 30:7–8; a four-horned incense altar pictured), and the evening grain offering was made at twilight. The psalmist offers prayer and raised hands in their place, perhaps far from the temple. Revelation 5:8 and 8:3–4 picture the prayers of the saints as incense.

Evening prayer for centuries

John Chrysostom (4th century) records that Psalm 141 (Greek 140) was sung every evening. In Orthodox Vespers it is the central psalm ("Lord, I have cried unto thee"), sung while incense is offered; in the Latin rite v. 2, "Dirigatur oratio mea sicut incensum," is sung at Vespers.

A difficult middle

Verses 5–7 are among the hardest in the Psalter; "When their judges are overthrown in stony places" and "our bones are scattered at the grave's mouth" are uncertain in meaning and translations vary widely. The heading is "A Psalm of David."