Psalm 69:21
They also gave me gall for my food, and for my thirst, they gave me vinegar to drink.
This verse expresses the anguish of a righteous sufferer who is surrounded by hostility, mockery, and unjust persecution.
Throughout Psalm 69, the psalmist suffers not for wrongdoing but for faithfulness to God, a pattern that finds its perfect embodiment in Jesus. Matthew 27:34 says, They offered Him wine to drink, mixed with gall; but when He tasted it, He would not drink it. John also writes, A jar full of sour wine stood there, so they put a sponge full of the sour wine on a hyssop branch and held it to His mouth (John 19:29).
Gall, a bitter substance, and vinegar, sour wine often given to the poor or to soldiers, symbolize mockery. Instead of compassion, Jesus received scorn; instead of relief, He was given bitterness. Psalm 69 repeatedly emphasizes reproach, shame, and rejection, stating, Reproaches have broken my heart (Psalm 69:20). Jesus was despised by religious leaders, abandoned by His disciples, and mocked by those who passed by. When God came near in Christ, He was met with hostility rather than welcome. Indeed, He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him (John 1:11).
When Jesus said, I thirst (John 19:28), it was a conscious act of obedience, ensuring that every detail of God’s Word is accomplished. By receiving the sour wine, Jesus demonstrates His submission to God’s plan. This is the same obedience that led Him to pray: O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will (Matthew 26:39).
While Psalm 69 speaks of personal anguish, the New Testament reveals that Jesus’ suffering is vicarious. He endures bitterness so that we may receive grace. The One who thirsts on the cross later offers living water to all who believe. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21). What was meant as an insult becomes an instrument through which redemption is accomplished.
Jesus’ death was the fulfillment of God’s long-declared purpose. This fulfillment assures us that God’s promises are trustworthy. Even in the smallest and most painful details, God was at work bringing salvation to the world.
In the gall and vinegar offered to Jesus, we see both the depth of human sin and the greater depth of divine love, faithfully carried out according to the Word of God.
Ask God to:
- Shape your heart to trust that God’s is at work even in what feels most painful.
- Transform what wounds you into opportunities to reflect the grace of Christ.
