Psalms 55:0 ¶ To the chief Musician on Neginoth, Maschil, A Psalm of David.
It is noted that this is another psalm of David sent to the chief Musician and designated to be played on a stringed instrument (from Hebrew for Neginoth). Maschil makes reference to an instructive poem.
Psalms 55:1 ¶ Give ear to my prayer, O God; and hide not thyself from my supplication.
Psalms 55:2 Attend unto me, and hear me: I mourn in my complaint, and make a noise;
Psalms 55:3 Because of the voice of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked: for they cast iniquity upon me, and in wrath they hate me.
As with many of David’s psalms, this one opens as a prayer. He is again asking God to pay attention to what he is saying. He knows that God can hear him, but it seems to him that God is not listening. He is anxious for his prayer to be answered. I can relate!
As one translation puts it, David is overwhelmed by his troubles. His enemies are treating him with cruel injustice (from the Hebrew for “oppression”). They are persistent in their wickedness because they hate him.
Sweet quote from Spurgeon: “From the Great Elder Brother down to the very least of the divine family, all of them delight in prayer. They run as naturally to the mercy seat in time of trouble as the little chickens to the hen in the hour of danger. But note well that it is never the bare act of prayer which satisfies the godly, they crave an audience with heaven, and an answer from the throne, and nothing less will content them.”
Psalms 55:4 My heart is sore pained within me: and the terrors of death are fallen upon me.
Psalms 55:5 Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror hath overwhelmed me.
I like the CJB for these two verses: “My heart within me is pounding in anguish, the terrors of death press down on me, fear and trembling overwhelm me, horror covers me.”
David is in fear for his life.
Psalms 55:6 And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest.
Psalms 55:7 Lo, then would I wander far off, and remain in the wilderness. Selah.
Psalms 55:8 I would hasten my escape from the windy storm and tempest.
David expresses his desire to escape; if only he had wings like a dove and could fly away and go somewhere alone.
Selah – a pause, an opportunity for meditation
Spurgeon: “After such a flight well may the mind rest. When we are going too fast, and giving way too freely to regrets, it is well to cry, "halt," and pause awhile, till more sober thoughts return.”
David’s desire is to escape from all his trouble as quickly as possible.
Good quote from Coffman: “Who is there who never experienced such a yearning as this? Just to say ‘good-bye’ to all the problems, just to walk out of the mess and never return - attractive as such thoughts may seem to be, God's servants must stand up to life like it is.”
Psalms 55:9 ¶ Destroy, O Lord, and divide their tongues: for I have seen violence and strife in the city.
Psalms 55:10 Day and night they go about it upon the walls thereof: mischief also and sorrow are in the midst of it.
Psalms 55:11 Wickedness is in the midst thereof: deceit and guile depart not from her streets.
Regarding his enemies, David asks God to destroy them and cause a split in their unity against him.
I like the wording of the NLT: “…for I see violence and strife in the city. Its walls are patrolled day and night against invaders, but the real danger is wickedness within the city. Murder and robbery are everywhere there; threats and cheating are rampant in the streets.”
How sad it is that the truth for those that place their faith in the LORD is that the greatest dangers often come from within—be it church, family or friendships. Jesus warned us about this truth.
Luke 12:51–53 “Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division: For from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three. The father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the father; the mother against the daughter, and the daughter against the mother; the mother in law against her daughter in law, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.”
John 15:18 “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.”
Psalms 55:12 For it was not an enemy that reproached me; then I could have borne it: neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me; then I would have hid myself from him:
Psalms 55:13 But it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide, and mine acquaintance.
Psalms 55:14 We took sweet counsel together, and walked unto the house of God in company.
David is especially hurt because his enemy was one accounted among his friends, one with whom he had enjoyed fellowship at the house of God. Ahithophel comes to mind (2Samuel 15). In fact, the whole psalm seems to fit that time in David’s life.
Spurgeon: “None are such real enemies as false friends. Reproaches from those who have been intimate with us, and trusted by us, cut us to the quick; and they are usually so well acquainted with our peculiar weaknesses that they know how to touch us where we are most sensitive, and to speak so as to do us most damage.”
Psalms 55:15 Let death seize upon them, and let them go down quick into hell: for wickedness is in their dwellings, and among them.
We must remember that David was a warrior that lived under the law. In his mind, his enemies deserved to die and go to hell for all their wickedness.
Psalms 55:16 ¶ As for me, I will call upon God; and the Lord shall save me.
Psalms 55:17 Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.
Psalms 55:18 He hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me: for there were many with me.
David was confident that God would answer his prayer and save him. He was determined to be constant in prayer as he waited for that answer. He was confident of God’s salvation, no matter how great the odds might be against him.
Psalms 55:19 God shall hear, and afflict them, even he that abideth of old. Selah. Because they have no changes, therefore they fear not God.
David was just as confident that God would answer his prayer to punish his enemies.
Selah – a pause, an opportunity for meditation
These men would never change; they had no fear of God.
That is still so true today. Those that speak out against God and blatantly defy His word have no fear of Him. Because He does not strike His enemies down immediately, they seem to think He is powerless against them. Oh, how sad the day when they are made to realize how wrong they were and bow before Him!
Isaiah 45:22–23 “Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.”
Romans 14:11–12 “For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.”
Psalms 55:20 He hath put forth his hands against such as be at peace with him: he hath broken his covenant.
Psalms 55:21 The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart: his words were softer than oil, yet were they drawn swords.
These verses describe the character of those that are his enemies. They are hypocrites and traitors. They speak flattering words of deceit, while inside they are planning evil against you.
Sad to say, this characteristic is prevalent throughout our culture today—especially in government and politics!
Spurgeon: “Beware of a man who has too much honey on his tongue; a trap is to be suspected where the bait is so tempting.”
Psalms 55:22 Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.
What a beautiful promise! David knew His LORD as his sustainer—the One who sustains, nourishes, provides for and upholds those that belong to Him.
There is a beautiful counterpart to this verse in the New Testament.
1 Peter 5:6–7 “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.”
It should be noted that one can choose to continue to try to carry his/her own burdens. One has to make the choice to throw them off and give them to the LORD. Only then will one benefit from His willingness to carry the weight of those burdens for us.
Important observation from the New Bible Commentary: “Sustain, the promise is not to remove the burden but to sustain the person.”
Psalms 55:23 But thou, O God, shalt bring them down into the pit of destruction: bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half their days; but I will trust in thee.
Just as surely as David knew that he could give all his burdens to the LORD and experience His sustenance, he knew that God would destroy the wicked; they will never truly experience a good life in God’s presence.
David was committed to trusting in God; he was unwavering in his faith.
Psa. 56:0 To the chief Musician upon Jonathelemrechokim, Michtam of David, when the Philistines took him in Gath.
According to what I can gather from Strong’s, this long word Jonathelemrechokim identified a specific tune for this song. The word Michtam is the word for poem. This seems to be saying that this was a poem written by David in the land of the Philistines that he composed to match an existing melody. The only time I could find that David was afraid in the land of the Philistines is described in 1Samuel 21. He had gone there for refuge and ended up pretending to be mad in order to escape.
Psa. 56:1 Be merciful unto me, O God: for man would swallow me up; he fighting daily oppresseth me.
Psa. 56:2 Mine enemies would daily swallow me up: for they be many that fight against me, O thou most High.
These verses would be appropriate to the incident in 1Samuel 21 when David was fleeing Saul and hoped to find refuge in Gath.
David is positioning himself as dependent upon the kindness of his LORD. Even though he has been anointed as the next king of Israel, he is a man on the run. Saul is trying to kill him and preserve the throne for Jonathan in rebellion against God. Saul commanded the armies of Israel, and David was traveling with approximately 600 men (1Sam 23:13). He knew that the odds against him were terrible, but with God on his side he would be invincible.
Spurgeon: “The open mouths of sinners when they rage against us should open our mouths in prayer. We may plead the cruelty of men as a reason for the divine interposition—a father is soon aroused when his children are shamefully entreated.”
Psa. 56:3 What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.
David wasn’t afraid to admit that he needed help. Although he had proven himself as a mighty warrior, he did not let his pride prevent him from admitting fear. His experiences with God had proven to him that God was sufficient to protect him against any enemy he might face. By this time, he had experienced God’s deliverance many times, and his faith in God was strong. That is one reason it is important to “remember” what the LORD has done for us. The LORD had commanded His people to remember all that He had done for them as an encouragement to obedience and faith in Him.
Deuteronomy 5:15 “And remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the LORD thy God brought thee out thence through a mighty hand and by a stretched out arm: therefore the LORD thy God commanded thee to keep the sabbath day.”
Deuteronomy 7:18 “Thou shalt not be afraid of them: but shalt well remember what the LORD thy God did unto Pharaoh, and unto all Egypt….”
Joshua 1:13 “Remember the word which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, saying, The LORD your God hath given you rest, and hath given you this land.”
Psalm 105:5 “Remember his marvellous works that he hath done; his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth….”
Isaiah 46:9 “Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me….”
Spurgeon: “It is possible, then, for fear and faith to occupy the mind at the same moment….It is a blessed fear which drives us to trust. Unregenerate fear drives from God, gracious fear drives to him.”
Psa. 56:4 In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.
I thought it was interesting that David’s focus at this time was on praising God’s Word—His promises. I am sure that David was familiar with the words of Moses in the Torah:
Deuteronomy 8:2-3 “And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no. And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live.”
I am sure that he had memorized the words given to Joshua and clung to that promise just as we do today.
Joshua 1:8-9 “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”
David never lost his faith in the power of the Word of God as shown by words spoken towards the end of his life.
2Samuel 22:31 “As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is tried: he is a buckler to all them that trust in him.”
Praising the Word of God is evidence of faith in the God that spoke the words. David had no doubt of God’s faithfulness to His word and to the one who submitted to Him as LORD of his life. The fact that David feared (v3) indicated that he knew harm could come to him in the flesh. But—David did not fear such harm, because he knew it could only come as God allowed it and that his eternal future was secure in the LORD. He was as sure as Job that he would one day see God face to face.
Job 19:25-27 “For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me.”
I think this belief was at the root of his words at the death of his first child with Bathsheba.
2Samuel 12:22-23 “And he said, While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept: for I said, Who can tell whether GOD will be gracious to me, that the child may live? But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.”
Psa. 56:5 Every day they wrest my words: all their thoughts are against me for evil.
Psa. 56:6 They gather themselves together, they hide themselves, they mark my steps, when they wait for my soul.
Evidently, David’s enemies were adept in the corrupt practices of the media today. The Hebrew for the word wrest means “to fabricate or fashion.” They would use David’s words against him by taking them out of context to deceive and mislead or even totally lie about what he said to achieve their agenda.
I can’t help but make comparisons to events of today. It sounds like they don’t want to credit David with one good character trait, much like the liberal media and political left act today towards President Trump. They are constantly in collusion seeing what they can come up with next to undermine him and his policies. They are ready to jump on any misstep. David’s enemies were hoping to kill him, just as those on the left and in the media today are vocal in hoping for the death of President Trump.
Psa. 56:7 Shall they escape by iniquity? in thine anger cast down the people, O God.
This question seems to be rhetorical. The obvious answer is, “No.” David is calling for God to defeat his enemies.
David is secure in his position as one beloved by God. He is convinced that those who are his enemies are also the enemies of God. He knew from God’s word that vengeance belonged to God and was not hesitant to ask God to judge his enemies.
Deuteronomy 32:35, 39-43 “To me belongeth vengeance….See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal: neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand. For I lift up my hand to heaven, and say, I live for ever. If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand take hold on judgment; I will render vengeance to mine enemies, and will reward them that hate me. I will make mine arrows drunk with blood, and my sword shall devour flesh; and that with the blood of the slain and of the captives, from the beginning of revenges upon the enemy. Rejoice, O ye nations, with his people: for he will avenge the blood of his servants, and will render vengeance to his adversaries, and will be merciful unto his land, and to his people.”
Psa. 56:8 Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book?
This is quite a precious verse. It was inspired by the Holy Spirit just as surely as any other verse in scripture. David knew that God was intimately concerned with all that affected David in life. The Hebrew for the word wanderings references times of mourning. David knew that God was aware of every tear that he shed and that they were recorded in a book evidently written for that specific purpose—to record the tears of those who put their faith in Him.
I remember hearing a teaching that it was a custom of Jewish women to keep a bottle of her tears, which she would eventually present to her husband as a most precious gift. I did a search on the internet and found that collecting tears in a bottle was a custom in Egypt and many middle eastern countries. In ancient Roman times these bottles were placed in burial tombs as symbols of love and respect.
As I reflect back on life and the times I have poured out my tears before the Lord, I am embarrassed to reflect on the situations that prompted those tears at times. I take great comfort in knowing that God knows my heart and considers all my tears from the motivations of my heart for those tears and not from the relative unimportance of those times as I reflect from an older and more spiritually mature perspective.
Psa. 56:9 When I cry unto thee, then shall mine enemies turn back: this I know; for God is for me.
David evidently had faith as “the grain of a mustard seed.” He was confident that God would turn back his enemies when he called out to God in faith for deliverance. I struggle with calling out to God with that kind of confidence because I am so aware that God’s purposes are often different than our desires—e.g., Job, Paul and his thorn in the flesh, Jesus in Gethsemane, etc. I don’t want to ask for anything that would be less than His perfect will for my life. Still, I want to have the kind of faith that David had. Maybe David struggled a little bit in the same way in that he knew that “flesh” could do him harm (v4), yet still he was confident in God’s deliverance.
Psa. 56:10 In God will I praise his word: in the LORD will I praise his word.
Psa. 56:11 In God have I put my trust: I will not be afraid what man can do unto me.
I think the key is that David had learned the importance of keeping his mind stayed on the LORD instead of his circumstances. It’s just like Peter when he walked on the water (Matthew 14)—when his focus was on the LORD, he walked on water; when he took his eyes off the LORD, he started to sink.
David’s words were full of confidence as long as his focus was on God and His Word. When he started to look at the circumstances surrounding him, he experienced fear and depression. I believe this is probably the most important lesson for each child of God to learn—to keep our minds stayed on the LORD.
Psa. 56:12 Thy vows are upon me, O God: I will render praises unto thee.
What vows were David referencing? I believe it must be the vows to praise His word and rest in his faith in God as declared in this Psalm. David is committed to keeping his focus on the LORD. God does not want us to waiver in our faith. He does not want us to doubt.
Matthew 14:30-31 “But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?”
Mark 11:23 “For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.”
1Timothy 2:8 “I will therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.”
Psa. 56:13 For thou hast delivered my soul from death: wilt not thou deliver my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living?
As usual, David’s Psalm ends on a victorious note. David is confident that God will preserve his life. I like the translation from the Complete Jewish Bible for this verse: “For you rescued me from death, you kept my feet from stumbling, so that I can walk in God’s presence, in the light of life.”
The wording is from the position of an overcomer, a man of unshakeable faith in God for this life and life to come for eternity.
Spurgeon: “Here is the loftiest reach of a good man's ambition, to dwell with God, to walk in righteousness before him, to rejoice in his presence, and in the light and glory which it yields.”