To the choirmaster: according to Do Not Destroy. A Miktam of David, when Saul sent men to watch his house in order to kill him.
1 Deliver me from my enemies, O my God;
protect me from those who rise up against me;
2 deliver me from those who work evil,
and save me from bloodthirsty men.
3 For behold, they lie in wait for my life;
fierce men stir up strife against me.
For no transgression or sin of mine, O Lord,
4 for no fault of mine, they run and make ready.
Awake, come to meet me, and see!
5 You, Lord God of hosts, are God of Israel.
Rouse yourself to punish all the nations;
spare none of those who treacherously plot evil. Selah
6 Each evening they come back,
howling like dogs
and prowling about the city.
7 There they are, bellowing with their mouths
with swords in their lips—
for “Who,” they think, “will hear us?”
8 But you, O Lord, laugh at them;
you hold all the nations in derision.
9 O my Strength, I will watch for you,
for you, O God, are my fortress.
10 My God in his steadfast love will meet me;
God will let me look in triumph on my enemies.
11 Kill them not, lest my people forget;
make them totter by your power and bring them down,
O Lord, our shield!
12 For the sin of their mouths, the words of their lips,
let them be trapped in their pride.
For the cursing and lies that they utter,
13 consume them in wrath;
consume them till they are no more,
that they may know that God rules over Jacob
to the ends of the earth. Selah
14 Each evening they come back,
howling like dogs
and prowling about the city.
15 They wander about for food
and growl if they do not get their fill.
16 But I will sing of your strength;
I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning.
For you have been to me a fortress
and a refuge in the day of my distress.
17 O my Strength, I will sing praises to you,
for you, O God, are my fortress,
the God who shows me steadfast love. – Psalm 59:1-17 ESV
Saul’s hatred for David was intense, and it didn’t help that he was occasionally possessed by an evil spirit that fueled his hatred. In this psalm of lament, David recalls a particularly distressful occasion when Saul sent men to his house to murder him. It was part of a series of disturbing events that began when Saul’s son Jonathan discovered his father’s plot to assassinate David. Upon discovering this distressing news, Jonathan warned his friend.
“Tomorrow morning,” he warned him, “you must find a hiding place out in the fields.I’ll ask my father to go out there with me, and I’ll talk to him about you. Then I’ll tell you everything I can find out.” – 1 Samuel 19:2-3 NLT
True to his word, Jonathan met with his father and tried to persuade him to spare David’s life.
“The king must not sin against his servant David,” Jonathan said. “He’s never done anything to harm you. He has always helped you in any way he could. Have you forgotten about the time he risked his life to kill the Philistine giant and how the Lord brought a great victory to all Israel as a result? You were certainly happy about it then. Why should you murder an innocent man like David? There is no reason for it at all!” – 1 Samuel 19:4-5 NLT
Saul listened to his son’s counsel and called off the assassination, stating, “As surely as the Lord lives, David will not be killed” (1 Samuel 19:6 NLT).
David returned to Saul’s court and participated in a battle with the Philistines, where he “attacked them with such fury that they all ran away” (1 Samuel 19:8 NLT). This victory rekindled Saul’s jealousy of David and caused him to renege on his earlier vow. One evening, while David played his harp in Saul’s presence, the king became enraged at the sight of the young warrior and attempted to pin him to the wall with a spear.
As David played his harp, Saul hurled his spear at David. But David dodged out of the way, and leaving the spear stuck in the wall, he fled and escaped into the night. – 1 Samuel 19:9-10 NLT
David must have known that Saul’s actions that evening resulted from “the tormenting spirit from the LORD” (1 Samuel 19:10 NLT). He reasoned that the king was not himself and could not control his actions. This was the second time Saul had tried to run David through with a spear (1 Samuel 18:10-11). But rather than running away, David returned home and went to bed. Saul, still enraged and determined to rid himself of David once and for all, sent troops to his home to arrest him. David’s wife, Michal, helped him escape and then arranged his bed to appear as if he were sound asleep under the covers. When Saul’s troops returned and discovered that David was not there, they informed Saul of his escape.
So David escaped and went to Ramah to see Samuel, and he told him all that Saul had done to him. Then Samuel took David with him to live at Naioth. When the report reached Saul that David was at Naioth in Ramah, he sent troops to capture him. – 1 Samuel 19:18-20 NLT
This was the occasion that prompted David to write Psalm 59. I’ve had bad days, but I’ve never had someone who was out to kill me (at least that I know of). I’ve never been hunted down like a wild animal or had armed mercenaries lying in wait outside my home, just waiting for me to show up so they could take me out. But David had, and he wrote this psalm because of it.
David knew what it meant to be hated, harassed, hounded, and hunted. He had experienced what it means to fear for your life. Every time he woke up, he knew it would be another day filled with more of the same thing. But he also knew something that I too easily forget. He knew that God was with him, for him, and would rescue him, no matter what he faced that day. That is why he could say, “But as for me, I will sing about your power. Each morning I will sing with joy about your unfailing love. For you have been my refuge, a place of safety when I am in distress” (Psalm 59:16 NLT).
David had experienced God's unfailing love on previous occasions, so he knew that he could trust God to show up no matter what he faced that day. He believed that God loved him and His love never failed. While his friends had turned their backs on him, David’s God was faithful and true, and would never let David down.
In his unfailing love, my God will stand with me.
He will let me look down in triumph on all my enemies. – Psalm 59:10 NLT
Not only was God unfailing in his love and unwavering in His support for David, but He was incomparable in power. In other words, God loved David, and that love was backed by a strength that could protect David from anything and everything he faced. Love alone is not enough to prevent calamity from happening to someone dear to us. Many have had to watch helplessly as their loved ones died right before their eyes. Soldiers have had to watch, powerless to help, as their comrades died on the battlefield. Their love for their brothers, while strong, was incapable of preventing their deaths. But God’s love for us is backed by a boundless power. He not only loves us, but is capable of protecting, rescuing, and saving us. His power to save us is motivated by His desire to protect and preserve us. He rescues us because He loves us. He saves us, not just because He can, but because His love demands it.
David knew about God’s love because he had experienced it. But it was more than a sentimental, sappy kind of love. It was love expressed in power, exhibited in strength, and proven in acts of divine intervention. David knew he was loved because he was still alive, despite all those who wanted him dead. His next breath was a reminder of God’s love. Seeing the sun come up in the morning was an opportunity to thank God for His love and deliverance.
But as for me, I will sing about your power.
Each morning I will sing with joy about your unfailing love.
For you have been my refuge,
a place of safety when I am in distress. – Psalm 59:16 NLT
David’s problems still existed, and his enemies were still determined to end his life. But He knew that God would see him through the day, because God loved him, and that love was backed by a power to preserve and protect him from any trial he may face.
O my Strength, to you I sing praises,
for you, O God, are my refuge,
the God who shows me unfailing love. – Psalm 59:17 NLT
Father, how easy it is to forget that You love me – unceasingly. Somehow I know You are all powerful but I sometimes doubt that You love me enough to make that power available to me each and every day. I fail to recognize that the very fact that I am alive is proof of Your power and Your love for me. Without Your sustaining power and unfailing love, I would cease to exist. You give me the strength I need to make it through the day. You lovingly sustain me, helping me make my way through the trials of life. May I learn to sing Your praises each and every morning, grateful for another day to serve You and watch You work in my life. Amen
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.