Psalms 3

Psalms 3:1

Psalm 3: A Study In MoodsIf we are subject to rapidly changing moods, we can take courage from the fact that David was too! In this Psalm he sweeps the scale from dark despair to calm confidence. 3:1, 2 At the outset David is overawed by his enemies. Their superior numbers strike terror to his heart. What is one among so many? Then too, he is stung by their taunting jibes. They insinuate that his sin has cut him off from any hope of divine help. Verse 2 closes with the enigmatical word Selah. Since this is the first of its seventy-one occurrences in the Psalms, we pause to comment on it. Unfortunately, our remarks will be less an explanation than a confession of ignorance! The simple fact is that we do not know what the word means. All we can do is list some of the meanings that have been suggested and let the reader decide which seems best. Selah may mean to intensify voices or instrumental accompaniment; that is, to sing or play louder. Crescendo! It may indicate a pause or a rest, as if to say, “Stop and think about that.” “It is rendered in the Septuagint by diapsalmos, which either means louder playing, forte, or more probably, an instrumental interlude.” Some think it means a repetition, like da capo. It may mean the end of a strophe (a musical section). It may even mean the bending of the body as an act of reverence or respect. 3:3 The mood of the Psalm changes in verse 3. David gets his eyes off his enemies and on the LORD, and that changes his whole outlook. Immediately he realizes that he has in Jehovah a shield, a source of glory, and the One who lifts up his head. As his shield, the Lord gives him complete protection from enemy assaults. As his glory, the Lord gives him honor, dignity and vindication in place of the shame, reproach and slander that were being heaped upon him. As the lifter of his head, the Lord encourages and exalts him. 3:4 Inspired by these great and true thoughts of God, David goes to the LORD in prayer and receives immediate assurance that his petition has been heard and answered. God answers from His holy hill, that is, from the site of the temple in Jerusalem, the place where He dwelt among His people. 3:5, 6 Assured of Jehovah’s protection, the psalmist lies down and goes to sleep. It is the sweetest kind of sleep, a gift of God to those who trust Him in the midst of life’s most distressing circumstances. After a restful night, David awakes with the consciousness that it was the Lord who had calmed the nerves that were taut with fear and foreboding. Now he has courage to face his foes unafraid, even if he is surrounded by ten thousands of them! 3:7 But this does not mean that prayer is no longer necessary. The grace that sustained us last night will not do for today. We need a fresh supply of God’s grace every day. So David comes to the Lord for continuing deliverance, believing that God will strike his enemies on the cheekbone and break their teeth. 3:8 As far as David is concerned, Jehovah is the only One who can deliver anyone; salvation belongs to the LORD alone. So he asks that God will bless His people by continuing to show them His marvelous deliverance. The swirling emotions of this man of God can perhaps be better understood if we look at the heading of the Psalm once more: “A Psalm of David, when he fled from Absalom his son.” The commander of David’s enemies was his own son! It would have been bad enough if the adversaries were foreign invaders, but because they were led by David’s rebel son, his grief and bitterness were compounded.