Psalm 143

¹¹ Revive me, O Lord, for Your name’s sake!
For Your righteousness’ sake bring my soul out of trouble.

¹² In Your mercy cut off my enemies,
And destroy all those who afflict my soul;
For I am Your servant.

Early Jewish attribution identifies the occasion for this psalm as the time when David was forced to flee Jerusalem by his son Absalom (2 Samuel 15-18). Whether or not this tradition is true, it is worth noting that (1) in verses 2 and 7 David clearly affirms the possibility that his persecution by the enemy may be an expression of God’s just chastisement, which is consistent with his view of Absalom’s coup (2 Samuel 16:8-11), and (2) David is unusually restrained with respect to imprecation in this psalm, focusing primarily on God’s deliverance and spiritual guidance (vs.8 and 10) and making only one very general imprecatory statement in v.12 concerning his collective “enemies,” all of which is consistent with his loving attitude towards Absalom. — Wechsler, page 342.

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David begins his prayer by imploring God to hear him, not because David himself merits a hearing, but on the basis of God’s own faithfulness and righteousness. This spiritually honest (and accurate) attitude of self-introspection—which is one of the main qualifiers of David as “a man after (God’s) own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14)—is further borne out by this affirmation in v.2 that his current persecution by “the enemy” (v.3) may well be intended as an expression of … chastisement. — Wechsler, page 343.

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The extremely close parallels between elements of the phraseology in v.5 and that in Psalm 44:1-2 indicates that the specific “work” of God to which David here refers is the exodus. … By his statement “I remember … I meditate …” David is thus affirming his confidence in God’s faithfulness: just as He upheld His promise to the Israelites through the patriarchs, so too would He uphold His promise to David (2 Samuel 7:8-16). — Wechsler, page 343.

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Most important to David was … that God’s glory be manifested in his life (v.11) … as the result of David’s obedience and devotion. For this reason he affirms the potential necessity of God’s chastisement, though in affirming its necessity—which implies, of course, a recognition of his sin—he nonetheless asks God to bring that chastisement to an end, while at the same time imploring God to teach him to do His will (v.10). — Wechsler, page 244.

Williams’ take:

As in the two prior Psalms so here Messiah prays from out of the depths and darkness of Sheol. … In the second verse He pleads for the justification of His people, and in the last verses for the destruction of their enemies. … The enemy of verses 3 and 4 is death—the last enemy that is to be destroyed. In these two verses are fore-told Messiah’s death on the cross. … The depth of anguish was deepened by the remembrance of the glory which He had with the Father before and at creation (v.5). The language of intense suffering, of full subjection of will, and of confident expectation of the promised resurrection, are all expressed in verses 6-11.

God’s true servants in all dispensations may, with David, use the words of this Psalm as a vehicle of prayer and faith in times of deep trial; but only One could suffer fully the sorrows here revealed. — Williams, pages411-412.

I think I agree with Williams here that the psalm is Messianic, but at the same time reflects a prayer of David and one that we can use when facing hardship.