Albert Barnes Commentary Psalms 102:2

"Hide not thy face from me in the day of my distress: Incline thine ear unto me; In the day when I call answer me speedily." — Psalms 102:2 (ASV)

Hide not your face from me - The Septuagint and the Latin Vulgate render this, “Do not turn away your face from me.” The sense is essentially the same. The prayer is that God would not refuse to look graciously upon him, that He would turn His attention to him, and that He would regard his supplications. See the notes at (Psalms 10:1); compare (Psalms 13:1), (Psalms 27:9), (Job 13:24), (Job 34:29), and (Deuteronomy 31:17).

In the day when I am in trouble - When sorrows come upon me; when I need your gracious help. Literally, “When there is distress to me.”

Incline your ear to me - See (Psalms 5:1, note) and (Psalms 17:6, note); compare (Psalms 17:1), (Psalms 55:1), (Psalms 86:6), and (Psalms 39:12).

In the day when I call, answer me speedily - Grant my requests at once; give me immediate evidence that my prayer is heard. The psalmist believed in an immediate answer to prayer.

He often had evidence that his prayer was answered at once: his mind became calm; he had comfort and peace; he obtained the blessing which he earnestly sought.

No one can doubt that prayer may be answered at once; no one who prays can fail to find such answers in his own case—in his peace, his calmness, his joy. In multitudes of cases, blessings are granted in such a way that there can be no doubt that they have come in answer to prayer. Compare the notes at (Daniel 9:20–23).