November 23, 2015

Tom Lowe

 

PSALM 57

 

Title: THE SOUL AMONG LIONS

(To the chief Musician, Altaschith {2], Michtam of David, when he fled from Saul in the cave.)

 

Theme: the theme of this psalm, like that of Psalm 56, is an appeal of a godly soul to the Most High for deliverance from the plots of bloodthirsty enemies.  Both psalms begin with the same words “Be merciful unto me, O God,” followed by an affirmation of trust in God’s good will, and both end with expressions of strong confidence that the answer to their prayers is at hand.

 

 

 

Psalm 57 (KJV)

 

1 Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast.

2 I will cry unto God most high; unto God that performeth all things for me.

3 He shall send from heaven, and save me from the reproach of him that would swallow me up. Selah. God shall send forth his mercy and his truth.

4 My soul is among lions: and I lie even among them that are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword.

5 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; let thy glory be above all the earth.

6 They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down: they have digged a pit before me, into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves. Selah.

7 My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.

8 Awake up, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early.

9 I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people: I will sing unto thee among the nations.

10 For thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds.

11 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens: let thy glory be above all the earth.

 

 

Introduction

 

In Psalm 57 the psalmist makes it known that he feels as if he is in the severest peril.  Danger and disgrace stand at his door.  Deadly enemies want to take his life.  He compares them to ravenous lions who are all set to spring upon the prey.  They slander him with words which he equates to piercing weapons.  Moreover, they set a cruel trap for him.  But his soul is alive with the certainty of his own innocence.  There are two ever-present realities before him—the gracious God and the formidable foe.  The Psalm see-saws between the two, but faith in the former is greater than fear of the latter and tilts the see-saw in that direction.

This is another of those psalms wrung from the soul of David in the dark days when he was fleeing from Saul.  It is a “michtam” psalm, that is, David wished to have it engraved deeply upon his heart.  The psalm covers one day in David’s life as a fugitive, for verse 4 records his lying down and verse 8 his waking up to greet the dawn. It is a lament coupled with a hymn of thanksgiving to God for his expected help.

We cannot be sure of the exact occasion where this psalm was written.  We know that David was “in the cave,” but whether it was the cave at Adullam {3] or, later, in the cave of En-gedi{4] on the western shores of the Dead Sea we cannot be certain.  In view of the triumphant note which rings out in the last five verses it is probable that it was written in the cave of En-gedi, but we cannot be certain.  In view of the triumphant note which rings out in the last five verses it is probable that it was written in the cave of En-gedi.

The psalm contains no new truths.  One commentator says, “We have, once more, the familiar truths that God hears prayer, that he punishes the wicked, and that he justifies the righteous.”  Another commentator summarizes the teaching of the psalm: “Faith does not free us from trial, but it does enable us to triumph over it.  Moreover, faith lifts us high above the purely personal sense of pain, and creates a passion for the exultation of God among the nations.”

Unlike Psalm 56 this psalm is a cry to God for help, made by one who knows God will answer, for God has already done so, many times.  A number of Christian Churches recite this psalm on Easter morning.

Since verses 7-11 are identical with 108:1-5, it has been supposed that this psalm is a combination of two other psalms or sections of psalms.  However, it is more likely that psalm 108 is the combination, having borrowed from 57. 

 

 

 

Commentary

 

The first section includes verses 1-3, and the heading is “THE CALAMITIES WHICH PLAGUED HIM.” David has a three-fold prayer in this opening stanza.  “Lord!  Hide me! (v. 1) Hear me! (v. 2) Help me!” (v. 3) How often we have found the same three words being torn out of our souls by circumstances which are quite beyond us.

 

1 Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast.

 

The repetition of the expression “Be merciful unto me”implies both the greatness of his danger and the zeal of his spirit, and in spite of all that that involves, his whole trust and hope was in God’s mercy.  He strengthens himself with faith and hope in God, and prayer to Him (vs. 1, 2). Seeing himself surrounded by his enemies, he looks up to God with that appropriate prayer: “Be merciful unto me, O God!”which he again repeats and it is no vain repetition: “Be merciful unto me.”It was the psalmist’s prayer, and the prayer of the tax collector: "But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, 'O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.'” (Luke 18:13).  It is with devout love for his Master that David prays, “Be merciful unto me, O Lord!”  Look with compassion upon me and with the eye of love and pity redeemed me.” The verse indicates that it has been the habit of the psalmist to make God his refuge.  His appeal therefore is not the cry of one who in a time of trouble suddenly thinks of God.

In his darkest hour when there is no other place for him to go for help, he turns to “the shadow of thy wings.”The reference is either to (1) the Temple, where from the sanctuary he can see into the most holy place; there, above the wings of the cherubim the invisible God sits on His throne, or to (2) God’s protection.  In his grim crisis he prays unto the Lord.  As the hills were David’s refuge from Saul, so was God the cave of refuge for his soul—a safe hiding place for us all.  Israel has not as yet come under His wings.  Are you ready to come under His wings?  In other words, be obedient to Him, to love him—Jesus said, “If ye love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15)—and to walk in the Spirit?

Our Bible tells us that our life is hid in Christ with God.  Think of that!  The mighty heart of the Eternal beats for us.  Anyone who wants to do us hurt or harm, including all the threats of the world, must first get past Him!

Our thoughts go to Jesus.  His mighty arms are outstretched over Jerusalem and His loving heart aches over that great city.  He sees its foes gathering down through the years.  He would save it if He could: “Oh Jerusalem!  Jerusalem!  How often would I have gathered you as a hen gathering her chicks and ye the would not!” Could any tragedy be greater than that?

“Until these calamities be overpast” (until the danger passes; the storm blows over) implies that the psalmist was confident his troubles would end well, and at the appropriate time they will be “overpast”; the storm will blow over.  The word “calamities”means “a destructive storm that could engulf me.”

We are in much the same position as David.  Forces are martialed against us—not just physical forces, but ominous spiritual forces.  They would like to tear us apart.  But instead of running to Jesus, all too often we’ve run to the doctor, the psychologist, or the lawyer. Or we try to forget our troubles by turning on the television.  David was wiser than that: “Lord, hide me!” I don’t know about you, but my prayer is the same as David’s, “O God, be merciful unto me.” I want God to be “merciful to me.”  I don’t want Him to be just and fair and righteous with me.  If He is, I am going to get a whipping.  I want Him to be “merciful”and gracious to me.  He is that kind of a God—rich in mercy.  He has enough for me—and I’m going to require a lot of it—but there will be enough for you also.

 

 

2 I will cry unto God most high; unto God that performeth all things for me.

 

The psalmist is certain that he is innocent of any charge.  But his deliverance, exoneration, and the consequent humiliation of his enemy accusers can come only from God.  At just the right moment God will show His hand and rescue him.  Trust and prayer mingle as the psalmist speaks with the Almighty.  From his privileged place of conscious nearness, he cries to “God Most High”with the confidence that no one and nothing can hinder Him from accomplishing His purposes in the lives of His people.  God is transcendent (superior, supreme, unmatched, divine, perfect), elevated far above His creation and all powerful.

“I will cry unto God most high.” “God Most High” is the name of the deity who spoke with Abraham on the first occasion that Jerusalem is mentioned in the Bible (Genesis 14:18, where it is called Salem).  This name for God occurs only here and in the previous psalm.  Usually the compound name is Jehovah Elyon or El Elyon.  Here it is Elohim Elyon—the Creator Most High, God the Supreme Ruler, the Final Authority.  He is “God Most High . . . that performeth all things for me.” The word translated “performeth”is gomer, which occurs only five times in the Bible—all of them in the psalms.  It is rendered “perfect,” “bring to an end,” “cease.” “God Most High” can certainly perform!  He can bring our threatening circumstances to a sudden end anytime He wills it.  In the meantime, He puts all His people to work!  Which is just what Paul is saying: “All things work together for good for them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.” Tell me, is there any reason why we should not let God do “all things”for us and through us?  (Hebrews 13: 20, 21). I DON’T THINK SO!

I believe that this verse contains three teachings that the psalmist wants us to learn:

(1)   In everything that happens to us we ought to see and acknowledge that the hand of God was involved; whatever is done is performed by Him; in it His will is accomplished and the scripture is fulfilled.  God’s transcendence never removes Him from intimate involvement in His people’s lives.

(2)   Whatever God does that concerns His people, it will appear to have been performed for them and for their benefit.  Though God is high, “most high,” yet He loves us so much that He stoops to make sure that all things are made to work for good.

(3)   This is a good reason why we should, in all our desperate straits and difficulties, cry unto Him; not only pray, but pray earnestly.  David didn’t pray only at bedtime, as too many people do, but all day long; however, he closed the day with a special time of worship and commitment.

 

Can’t you hear David cry out, “Lord, hear me!” Of course He heard!  But David still had some lessons to learn, some edges to be smoothed, some patience to develop.

 

 

3 He shall send from heaven, and save me from the reproach of him that would swallow me up. Selah. God shall send forth his mercy and his truth.

 

This will be literally fulfilled for the faithful remnant when Christ returns in power and great Glory; and they will say, “. . . Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the LORD, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation” (Isaiah 25:9).

The Psalmist finds himself in peril from calamities (v. 1) brought about by those who “would swallow”him “up”(v. 3), raging like “lions” (v. 4) and aflame with hatred and animosity toward him (v. 4).  His plea is for protection “in the shadow of thy wings” (1). 

“He shall send from heaven, and save me from the reproach of him that would swallow me up. Selah. God shall send forth his mercy and his truth.” It’s only natural for David to want to be saved from injury.  He was branded a traitor with a price on his head.  He was treated as a notorious criminal, was under constant “reproach” and in desperate danger.  He wanted God to save him, and God would save him.  David was overwhelmed with the thought that God Most High might suddenly give the command to one of His many ambassadors to act from His highest Heaven on behalf of a young shepherd boy who was now a fugitive from the spiteful malice of his country’s king.  That God Most High in yonder Heaven would help him!  God is good in Himself and faithful to every word that He has spoken, and that’s how it appears when He brings about His people’s deliverance.  All we need to make us happy is to have the benefit of the “mercy”and “truth”of God (Psalm 25:10). 

Then he adds: “God shall send forth His mercy [His loving kindness] and His truth.” He wanted to be saved from injustice as well.  The charges against him were false. Saul had no more loyal subject than David.  He wanted “mercy”and “truth” to prevail.  It is almost as though David personifies “mercy” and “truth” as two of God’s angels (messengers) sent to deliver him.  They are seen by David as spirits sent forth to minister to those who are the heirs of salvation.

But then David speaks of the calamities which constantly assailed him and like the sensible, spiritual man he was, he simply puts God between himself and his calamities

 

“Swallow me up”is “trample me down,” which Saul planned to do to David.

 

 

 

The second section includes verses 4-6, and the heading is “THE CRISIS WHICH THREATENED HIM.” He has not yet finished with the difficulties.  He has introduced God into the picture, but the scene has not changed much.

 

4 My soul is among lions: and I lie even among them that are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword.

 

He knows that he is in danger because of the falsity and the abusive slander of their accusations.  And he is convinced that their wicked and deadly dealings will come back upon them and will eventually be the cause of their destruction.  In the midst of all this, with a calm confidence and spiritual poise, he lays himself down, knowing that God will protect him.  Then he says, “My soul is among lions: and I lie even among them that are set on fire;”—an expression of the courage of faith.  Satan goes up and down this world like a roaring lion seeking whom he made devour (1 Peter 5:8), and he has a lot of little “lions” helping him, by the way.

We need to go back to the first book of Samuel and think of the chain of threatening circumstances through which David had passed.  Let us assume that the psalm was written while David was in the cave of En-gedi.  The following events had occurred:

(1)   David had escaped from Gath (as we saw in the previous psalm) and had come to the cave of Adullam (1 Samuel 22:1).  There his numbers increased until he had around 600 men.  Later he would move to a cave in En-gedi (1 Samuel 24; see Psalm 142).  It is better to be in the will of God in a cave than out of His will in a king’s palace.

(2)   He took his family to Moab; it was no longer safe for his parents to stay on their Bethlehem farm.  Jesse’s grandmother was Ruth, the Moabites, so the family would have some grounds for going to Moab.

(3)   The prophet Gad warned David not to stay in the cave of Adullam, for he was not save there.  But as verse 1 shows, David counts on the mercy of God.  The cave did turn out to be a less than reliable hiding place, but God is a constant refuge.  Disasters will come and go, and during the worst of times the best place to be is in the shadow of God’s wings (see Psalm 17:8 and commentary).  Saul’s army is pursuing David, but he is also being followed by God’s love and faithfulness (v. 3).

(4)   Saul, in a fit of rage, murdered the priests who had helped David flee to Gath.  Abiathar, one of the sons of the murdered high priest, fled to David.  David then rescued the people of Keilah from a Philistine siege, but all the thanks he received was their betrayal of him to Saul.

(5)   At this point Jonathan came down to give David a little encouragement.  The Ziphites betrayed him and Saul almost captured him.  However, a Philistine incursion in a different part of the country forced Saul to leave his hunt for David and turn to other matters.

(6)   David then moved into the wilderness of En-gedi in the desolate region on the western shores of the Dead Sea but.  Once again someone told Saul where David was and Saul came with 3000 men, determined to make an end of David once for all.

That is the background of this psalm.  David relates these dangers to the Lord, speaking of the seriousness of his situation.  Humanly speaking, it was very serious indeed for he had few places left to which he could flee.  After the betrayal in Keilah, David had been forced to disband his irregular little army of outlaws.  He and the few men that remained with him were at their wit’s end.

“My soul is among lions” compares his enemies with hungry beasts of prey “whose teeth are”actually their “spears and arrows” and whose “tongue”is a “sharp sword,” speaking slander. “Whose teeth are spears and arrows” suggests that the “teeth”of the enemy may be considered, either, (1) as instruments of destruction, as they are in “lions.”  Or rather, (2) as instruments of speech as they are in men.  “Spears and arrows,” refers to the slanderous words which they hope will grievously wound David’s good name.  David might feel like he’s amongst beasts, but according to a verses 7-8, he expects to awaken at dawn with a steadfast heart and a song on his lips.  He is eager to praise God and declare to other nations and peoples what God has done for him.  God’s love and faithfulness are unlimited, reaching to the heavens (vs. 9-10).

 

 

5 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; let thy glory be above all the earth.

 

“Be thou exalted”; glorify thy power, and goodness, and justice, and faithfulness by delivering me from my present danger. Exalt Yourself!  That was David’s plea.  David wanted God to manifest Himself.  He felt that his present circumstances were a slur on God Himself.  A truly godly person wants God’s glory to be exhibited more than he wants his own personal problems to be solved.

God is over everything “in the heavens”and on “earth.”His “glory”is his own presence.

 

 

6 They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down: they have digged a pit before me, into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves. Selah.

 

Verses 6-11 reveal that peril is still present, but confidence of deliverance grows. 

We know what happened at En-gedi.  Saul was sure he had David trapped, for three thousand men were drawn up in a tight cordon around David.  In the morning David would be taken and executed.  Saul flung himself down on a couch, surrounded by his guard, satisfied that he had his man at last and went to sleep.

What Saul did not know was that David and his men were actually hiding in that very cave, flattened in the darkest corner against the wall, hardly daring to breathe.  Finally, the campfire died down, Saul’s men grew quiet, the king slept.  The minutes ticked slowly by.  Presently the guard on watch began to nod and dozed off too.  David’s men whispered to him: “Now’s your chance, David.  This is it! This is the day you’ve been waiting for.  God has delivered your enemy into your hand.  kill him and make an end of it.”

Not David!  Beckoning his men, they tiptoed out of the cave.  On the way past Saul, David stopped to look down at the man who hated him so much.  He picked up Saul’s sharp spear while his men waited for the fatal blow to be struck.  Instead, David simply cut off the skirt of Saul’s robe.  Then, typically, he was sorry for what he had done.

Eventually the business of the day commenced and Saul’s 3000 men fanned out over the hills and the rocks of the wild goats.  Then he heard a shout.  It was David!  Over yonder!  David bowed to the king, told him how close he had been to death the night before, and produced the piece of skirt as evidence.

Saul was overcome.  “You are more righteous than I!” he exclaimed.  “Now I know, that the kingdom will be yours.  But promise me this, that when you come into the kingdom you will have mercy on my family.” Having secured David’s pledge, Saul went home.  But not David.  He knew Saul better than that.  David went to the hold {1] (1 Samuel 24).

“They have prepared a net for my steps . . . they have digged a pit before me, into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves.” The practice in those days was to “dig a pit” on the trail that wild animals were accustomed to follow, place “a net”over it, and camouflage it with branches and leaves.  The animal would then fall in, get entangled in the “net,”and so it would not be able to climb out again.  But this trap was now a man-trap!  The poet’s enemies had “fallen”into their own trap, he declares, just as today a terrorist may inadvertently blow himself up with his own hand-grenade.  Evil is self-destructive, and the wicked fall into their own traps.  Of course, the mention of “nets”and “pits”depicted the attempts of the wicked to catch Him.  Then comes “Selah,”the burst of music to make one pause and think.

 

“Selah”is a word used seventy-four times in the Hebrew Bible—seventy-one times in the Psalms and three times in Habakkuk. The meaning of the word is not known, though various interpretations are given below. (It should not be confused with the Hebrew word “sela” which means "rock".) It is probably either a liturgico-musical mark or an instruction on the reading of the text, something like "stop and listen." Selah can also be used to indicate that there is to be a musical interlude at that point in the Psalm. The Amplified Bible translates Selah as "pause, and think of that." It can also be interpreted as a form of underlining in preparation for the next paragraph.

At least some of the Psalms were sung accompanied by musical instruments and there are references to this in many chapters. Thirty-one of the thirty-nine psalms with the caption "To the choir-master" include the word Selah. Selah may indicate a break in the song, similar in purpose to Amen in that it stresses the importance of the preceding passage. Alternatively, Selah may mean "forever," as it does in some places in the liturgy (notably the second to last blessing of the Amidah). Another interpretation claims that Selah comes from the primary Hebrew root word Salah (סָלָה) which means "to hang," and by implication to measure (weigh).

 

 

The third section includes verses 7-11, and the heading is “CONFIDENCE WHICH THRILLED HIM.” Saul is still not to be trusted, more trials lie ahead, but God has given David a sign.

 

 

7 My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.

 

“Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me”—that is how David began the psalm. “My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed”—this is the new idea he now interjects. The poet’s faith is total.  All doubt and depression were banished.  The old Hebrews did not know that the brain is situated inside the skull; they supposed that one thought with one’s heart. The expression “My heart is fixed”has been interpreted in several ways; literally, “steadfast,” “ready,” “confident,” “resolute.”   So, in the psalms, “heart”should be understood to mean “brain” or “mind.” A “fixed” or “steadfast” heart is one that is a dyed-in-the-wool believer in the Lord’s promises and not wavering between doubt and faith (vs. 10; 108:1; 112:7; 119:5).

“I will sing and give praise,” for God has given him such a token of His good will, of His presence, power, and sovereignty over circumstances that David’s heart simply overflows.  He is sure he will never doubt again.  He will of course, but right now he doesn’t think he ever could.  His was a willing confidence.

Then he says, “Awake”(v. 8) my “liver” (not soul at all).  He might instead have invited his “kidneys” to “praise God” as other writers do; see Jeremiah 11:20, for example.  What he means, of course, is that he must worship “God”with all of his being.

 

 

8 Awake up, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early.

 

The “psaltery”is literally a lyre.  The “harp” and the “psaltery”(lyre) were both stringed instruments, differing only in form.  The “harp”is one of the oldest musical instruments known (Genesis 4:21).  It was apparently small enough to be readily carried (1 Samuel 10:5).  David was famous for his skill with the “harp”(1 Samuel 16:23), the strings of which he apparently plucked with his fingers.  It is thought to have had 8 or 10 strings, stretched across a wooden frame.  The “psaltery”or liar is first mentioned in 1 Samuel 10:5 and from that fact is thought to have been of Phoenician origin.  It may have been larger than the “harp”to supply base notes in the music.

What an overflow there was from David’s full heart over what had happened.  The psalmist cries, “Awake up, my glory.”Since man’s soul is the image of God, it is man’s “glory”; consequently, “Awake up, my glory”— “my inner self” (Amplified OT) or, “Awake, my soul.” To some “my glory” is the tongue,” but never more so than when it is employed in praising God.  To others “my Glory”refers to the mind, that rational, intellectual, emotional part of a person which interacts with and praise is God.

He told the Lord, “I myself will awake early.” I will get up early with the full intention of employing all the powers of my soul and body to state publicly God’s praises.  The psalmist cannot wait until morning to praise the Lord for all of His blessings.  He must wake up the dawn (personified) so that he can praise the Lord. David and his men had crept away leaving Saul still sleeping.  They had found a rocky knoll on which to lie.  David had stationed his guard and flung himself down for a few hours’ rest.  “Lord,” he said as his head hit his pillow, “I’m exhausted.  I’m not ungrateful.  I will awake early.  I’ll not forget.  I’ll be up first thing in the morning to give You the praise You deserve.” Sleepless nights and many hours spent in torment and weeping are not endured in vain as far as God is concerned.  Suffering, as you might say, is capital invested with God, booked by Him . . .  collected by Him.

 

 

9 I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people: I will sing unto thee among the nations.

 

“I will praise The, O Lord, among the people”(that was the nation of Israel, of course, his own people); “I will sing unto Thee among the nations” (those were the heathen nations all around them—no doubt Moab was among them and Gath where he had recently had a somewhat negative testimony—the neighbors). The Lord’s goodness to him overflowed in enthusiastic, evangelistic witness.  At home and abroad people were to be told what kind of living God it was whom David served. The great “mercy”of God and His exalted “truth”(faithfulness) are the reason for praise among the people and the nations.  He would praise the Lord’s love (“loyal love”) and faithfulness (v. 3) where others would hear him.  Even Saul had been awed, convicted, and overwhelmed by the events of the past night.  It didn’t do him any good, however.  Before long he was again hard on the trail of David.  David wanted his victory in the Lord to be a witness to the other nations, for as king, he knew that Israel was to be a light to the Gentiles.  His psalms bear witness today of the great things God did for him.

 

 

10 For thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds.

 

A few minutes before he had personified “mercy” and “truth”as God’s commissioned ambassadors to his soul.  Now he sees them as sending back to the highest pinnacle of Glory, to the utmost bounds of the everlasting hills the tremendous results of their mission to his soul.

For he had acted in “mercy”and in “truth” to Saul—in “mercy”by sparing him and in “truth”by acknowledging the fact that Saul was the anointed of God.  One can imagine what the reaction must have been in Glory.  God might well have gathered the ministering spirits around Him to say: “Hast thou considered My servant David that he is a man after mine own heart?”

 

 

11 Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens: let thy glory be above all the earth.

 

David repeats the refrain of verse five: “Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens: let thy glory be above all the earth.” This refrain calls upon the Lord to manifest His greatness in such a way that people had to say, “This is the Lords doing; it is marvelous in our eyes” (118:23, NIV). David could not have concluded this psalm in a more fitting way.  Saul, there in Israel, was sitting upon a throne.  He, David, was destined to set upon that throne which even Saul had been forced to admit. But high and lifted up, beyond all the sons and stars of space, was One exalted in majesty above the very heavens.

What a God he is!  He is tremendous enough to create galaxies, yet tender enough to care for one frightened man as a hen cares for her chicks.  Wesley wrote this:

 

Jesus, Lover of my soul,

Let me to Thy bosom fly;

While the nearer waters role,

While the tempest still is high;

Hide me, O my Savior, hide

Till the storm of life is passed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

END NOTES

{1] Hold. A fortress, the name given to David's lurking-places (1 Samuel 22:4-5; 24:22).

{2]Altaschith.  This is the first time we have encountered this word.  The meaning, as it is used here, is “destroy not.” Some believe it to be only some known tune to which this psalm was to be sung; others apply it to the location and director of the psalm.  “Destroy not”; that is, David would not let Saul be destroyed, when both of them were in the cave, and there was a good opportunity to kill him, and he and his servants would have been justified in doing so. No, says David, destroy him not (1 Samuel 24:4, 6).  Or rather, God would not let David be destroyed by Saul; he permitted him to persecute David, but still under this limitation, “destroy him not.”

{3] Adullam is in the same area as En-gedi.  It is the belief of many expositors that this psalm has reference to that cave of Adullam where David meditated on many of the psalms that he composed.  In them we see that his sufferings foreshadowed the sufferings of Christ and those of the godly remnant during the time of Jacob’s trouble.  Also these psalms speak to us today, which is the wonder of the Word of God.

{4] En-gedi is below sea level and a hot spot during the summer; in the winter it is a delightful place.  It is rugged country.