Outline of Chapter 56:

       Inscription       Psalm 56 Inscription

       vv.    1–2        David’s Enemies Trample Over Him

       vv.    3–4        David Trusts in God

       vv.    5–7        Man’s Continuous Attacks Against David

       vv.    8–9        God is Cognizant of David’s Tribulations

       vv.   10–13      Old Testament Spirituality

Charts and Maps:

IntroductionAlternate Outline of Psalm 56

       v.      7           Various Translation of Psalm 56:7

       v.     13           The Concept of Light and Light Vs. Darkness in Scripture

       v.     13           The Structure of Psalm 56

I ntroduction: Psalm 56 was first inspired when David was grabbed by the soldiers in the palace of Achish, king of Gath. David had been in Nob and lied to the priest about his reason for being there. He was on the run from Saul, but did not disclose that. Then he went to Gath, under the philosophy, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. However, as David had killed thousands of Philistines, he was seized wither on his way to, or while he was in the palace of Achish, king of Gath. Now, in his mind begins to form this psalm, which is applicable to both David’s situation at Gath and with Saul.

I should warn you that the translation, and therefore the interpretation of this psalm will be quite difficult in places. The Septuagint at times barely sounds like the Masoretic text; and the English translations very greatly.

The general theme of the psalm is simple. David is out of fellowship, placing himself and many of those in Israel in danger. In between I Sam. 21 and 22, David rebounds—that is, he confesses his sin to God—and this psalm is a record of that. The result is that he walks before God in the light of life (Psalm 56:13b).

Psalm 56 Inscription

This verse is Psalm 56:1 in the Hebrew. All of the other verses are similarly shifted in the Hebrew.

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Early translations:

The Septuagint                      For the end, concerning the people that were removed from the sanctuary, by David for a memorial, when the Philistines caught him in Geth.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

CEV                                       [For the music leader: To the tune “A Silent Dove in the Distance.” A special psalm by David when the Philistines captured him in Gath.]

NJB                                        For the choirmaster Tune: ‘The oppression of distant princes’ Of David In a quiet voice When the Philistines seized him in Gath.

NLT                                For the choir director: A psalm of David, regarding the time the Philistines seized him in Gath. To be sung to the tune “Dove on Distant Oaks.”

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

The Emphasized Bible           To the Chief Musician. Upon “The Dove of God from the distant Sea.” David’s. A precious Psalm. When the Philistines seized him in Gath.

God’s Word™                         For the choir director; according to yonath elem rechokim; a miktam by David when the Philistines captured him in Gath.

JPS (Tanakh)                        For the leader; on jonath elem rehokim. Of David. A michtam; when the Philistines seized him in Gath.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

The Amplified Bible                To the Chief Musician: to the tune, Silent Dove Among Those Far Away. Of David. A record of memorable thoughts, when the Philistines seized him in Gath.

NASB                                    For the choir director; according to Jonath elem rehokim. A Mikhtam of David, when the Philistines seized him in Gath.

NKJV                                     To the Chief Musician. Set to “The Silent Dove in Distant Lands.” A Michtam of David when the Philistines captured him in Gath.

NRSV                                    To the leader: according to The Dove on Far-off Terebinths. Of David. A Miktam, when the Philistines seized him in Gath.

Young's Updated LT              To the Overseer. “On the Silent Dove afar off.” A secret treasure of David, in the Philistines’ taking hold of him in Gath.

What is the gist of this verse? The title or inscription for this psalm establishes the author (David); the situation which inspired the psalm (when the Philistines seized David in Gath); the recipient of the psalm (the Preeminent One); and its melody (probably).

Translation: To the Preeminent One. As you can see, there are a variety of renderings for this Piel participle, including music leader, overseer, choirmaster, and chief musician. This psalm could be dedicated to God and it could be for the Overseer of the Music. What we have in Psalm 59, if you recall, is that David wrote: To the Preeminent One: do not destroy [me]! Although we could interpret this as being dedicated to Saul, who was out to destroy David, or to God, Who has the power to destroy David; this would hardly be applicable to the Chief Musician or to the Choir Director. Given the use of this word in Psalm 59, which was written prior to Psalm 56, we may reasonably give nâtsach a similar meaning here as found in Psalm 59; hence, the psalm is dedicated or written to God. Now, if we go with this understanding, the first question would be, why not dedicate this psalm to Elohim or to Jehovah? In the psalms, there are a number of style differences and word usage tends to be different as well. This does not preclude the use of Elohim or Jehovah, it simply recognizes that there may be words used in the psalms which also refer to God, but are not used elsewhere in that manner. Again, go back to Psalm 59—there are few traditional interpretations of the word nâtsach which make sense. However, as a dedication to God, this makes perfect sense.

Translation: According to “A Silent Dove Afar Off.” In the inscription or title of this psalm, this is probably the most difficult phrase. At this point, I am not certain that any interpretation could be unquestionably preeminent, nor does one interpretation necessarily open up a flood of knowledge than another does not. Therefore, I am going to interpret this as set to the melody of a known song of that era called “A Silent Dove Afar Off.” Although Rotherham seems to stay with the interpretation of this being a song’s melody which is preserved only in the title, he also offers “Silent dove among those far away” and “the dove of distant terebinths.”  The title of Psalm 9:1 also appears to reference the melody of another song Death to the son (which, given the text of the psalm, I don’t see as meaning Death to the Son).

If we go with the translation that I have given you, the very name is poetic, as a dove’s call from afar off probably could not be heard anyway; and given that this dove is silent makes him even more quiet. It’s poetry; sometimes, you just can’t understand it.

The word for dove is not disputed, and it is found throughout Scripture: Gen. 8:8–12 Lev. 1:14 5:7, 11, etc). However, this is also the proper name Jonah, which interpretation generally results in the following words to be transliterated rather than interpreted. The only problem with this is, often when a person’s name is used, it will be affixed to his last name (e.g., Jonah ben Amittai), which helps us to better identify him. Therefore, I would suggest that this phrase be translated rather than transliterated.

Translation: [A psalm] belonging to David, a song,... The lâmed preposition is often used in the psalms to identify the author, although we do not find the sort of usage elsewhere. So this is a psalm which is David’s, which would make perfect sense, as the circumstances in the next portion of the inscription fit David to a tee. Given the probably reference to the melody of another song, this is likely a song which David composed, which is consistent with the use of the word mik^etâm.

Translation: ...when the Philistines seized him in Gath. This gives us the occasion of this psalm: when the Philistines seized David while he was in Gath. Most exegetes associate this psalm with I Sam. 21:10–15. To place you into this historic context: David, in I Sam. 21, has made two grievous errors (1) he did not come clean with the priest at Nob, which resulted in the deaths of every person who lived in Nob; and (2) David feigned madness before the king of Gath, which allowed the Philistines to attack Israel, as they had nothing to fear from their greatest enemy. David had left Nob with basic provisions and with Goliath’s sword and he strolled into Gath, demanding to speak to Achish, the king of Gath. Although David was given audience, at some point, the soldiers seized David—either when he walked into the palace, asking to speak to Achish, or, sometime while David was speaking to Achish. They recognized who David is (probably due to the sword that he wore), and grabbed him, even though David had no intention of making any untoward moves to Achish. David’s idea was, if he is an enemy of Saul’s, why not seek asylum with Saul’s greatest enemy, the king of Gath? None of this was according to God’s direction, and David’s actions here resulted in tragedy for those who were innocent.

We do not know exactly when David composed this. Did his mind turn to music when he was seized; did, upon his leaving Gath, think back on being seized by these Philistines, and a song begin to percolate in his head? All we know is that David associated this song (of psalm) with the incident of being seized in Gath. Certainly, there was some proximity to the writing of the psalm and the incident mentioned here.

My thinking is this: David is almost a different person in I Sam. 22. In fact, the chapter of I Sam. 21 and 22 is brilliant, because David does not seem to have any idea as to his direction in I Sam. 21, and by the next chapter, he is allowing himself to be guided by God. My thinking is that this psalm and Psalm 34 marks David’s spiritual turn around since he escaped out of his window back in I Sam. 19. When we are faced with difficulties and problems that seem unsolvable, we often might open up our Bibles and read for comfort, assurance and guidance. David did not have that option. However, he was able to commune with God (i.e., to have fellowship with God) and that included being able to write Scripture himself. So, after leaving Gath, David reviewed this incident in his mind and wrote, as guided by God the Holy Spirit, Psalm 56.

When it comes to interpretation of this psalm, we must keep two things at the forefront of our thinking: obviously, this deals with David’s escape from Gath; however, there are also verses which apply to his situation with Saul. Therefore, there will be several verses in this psalm which make more sense when interpreting them in the context of that time period, rather than narrowing our back story to David’s entrance into and exit from Gath.

David’s Enemies Trample over Him

Here is how others have handled this verse:

Early translations:

The Septuagint                      Have mercy upon me, O God; for man has trodden me down. All the day long he warring has afflicted me.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

CEV                                       Have pity, God Most High!

My enemies chase me all day.

NAB                                       Have mercy on me, God,

For I am treated harshly;

Attackers press me all the day. [this is v. 2 in the NAB, and continues in this way throughout this psalm]

NLT                                O God, have mercy on me.

The enemy troops press in on me.

My foes attack me all day long.

REB                                       Be gracious to me, God, for I am trampled underfoot;

assailants harass me all the day.

TEV                                       Be merciful to me, O God,

because I am under attack;

my enemies persecute me all the time.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Updated Emphasized Bible   Show me grace, O God,

For weak man has panted for me,

║All the day║ a fighter oppresses me;...

God’s Word™                         Have pity on me, O God, because people are harassing me.

All day long warriors oppress me.

JPS (Tanakh)                        Have mercy on me, O God,

For men persecute me;

All day long my adversary oppresses me. [this is v. 2 in the JPS translation and continues in this manner throughout this psalm].

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

The Amplified Bible                Be merciful and gracious to me, O God, for man would trample me or devour me; all the day long the adversary oppresses me.

NASB                                    Be gracious, O God, for man has trampled upon me;

Fighting all day long he oppresses me.

Young's Updated LT              Favor me, O God, for man swallowed me up;

All the day fighting he oppresses me,...

What is the gist of this verse? David asks God for His grace, as man tramples him. David is negatively affected by the constant conflict which he faces.

Translation: Show grace to me, O Elohim... David has been in a state of self-preservation. He has done what he has done in order to save himself. Nowhere in I Sam. 21 does David seek God’s guidance. Although Doeg will later say that David went to Nob and received guidance from the High Priest (I Sam. 22:9–10), we know that Doeg was simply embellishing what actually did happen. This psalm marks his turnaround. He has just escaped Gath with his life; he thinks back to these soldiers, officer’s of Achish, who grabbed him, who could have easily snuffed out his life right then and there. But David is a believer; he is still alive; he has made some mistakes, but he gets up off the ground, he dusts himself off, and he asks God for grace. It may seem nervy to you, but that is God’s grace. David is a believer, he is still alive, he has recognized his mistakes, and he can now look to God for grace.

Human viewpoint would approach this from the stance that, David is being unjustly persecuted by Saul. David hasn’t done anything wrong—i.e., to Saul—so why is he asking for God’s grace? But divine viewpoint is, David is in fear, therefore he is out of fellowship. Being out of fellowship, not only separates him from God, but leads David into making a lot of bad decisions (in fact, pretty much every decision that David makes out of fellowship is going to be bad). Now that David recognizes this, he asks for God’s grace to get him out of the hole that he dug for himself.

Application: David is in a hopeless situation; the only One he can turn to is God. God is available at all times and for all circumstances. There is no need for us to wait until we get to a hopeless situation to call upon Him to deliver us. It is impressive to be in a hopeless situation, to pray to God, and then see it resolved; but we don’t have to let things get that far out of hand.

Translation: ...for fallen man has seized me;... The word for man here is ěnôwsh, which is a reference to mortal man, fallen man, depraved man. The verb properly means to gasp, to breath heavily, to pant. The idea is that these pursuers or these enemies are so close to David that he can feel their breath on the back of his neck. We have the colloquialism today, breathing down my neck. This is the idea. David’s enemies are so close, as to be breathing down his neck. This refers to the men of Gath who have seized him.

David realizes just how far he has fallen for God to have allowed unbelievers to seize David and genuinely threaten his life. Just as these men seized David—these depraved, Godless men—David without words calls out to God for His grace. Or, even more likely, David escapes Gath, looks back on what happened, and then calls out to God for His grace. There are some frightening things which have happened to me that I give little thought to at the time, but when I look back and relive those moments, they make me shudder. This is what David is going through. He is reliving this moment in Gath, and speaking to God, recognizing that he cannot go through this time of pressure alone.

What we have in v. 1a and 1b is a contrast between God and man. David finds himself being harassed and hounded by man, so he turns to God for deliverance.

Application: You are going to find yourself harassed and hounded by other people, often for no reason, and often by fellow believers. This is a fact of life. You can make concerted attempts not to cross anyone, to be fair to all that you come in contact with, to be gracious and kind, and still, you will be harassed and hounded by man. Now, not every minute of everyday or even everyday, but it will happen; and it will happen again. I’ve found myself in conflict with a lot of people that I have worked with, and generally, without any reason for it (I’m not denying that there have been times where I contributed to the conflict). But my point is, even with faultless behavior, men (and by this, I mean, men and women) will cause you problems. Human viewpoint is to react, to get angry, to stand up for yourself, to slap them in the head. Can you imagine what would have happened if David chose to apply human viewpoint against Saul or against the men in Gath? He would be dead. What does he do? David turns to God. When you face conflict, then you turn to God in prayer, and turn to His Word for guidance. Do not react, do not become antagonistic toward those who persecute you—allow God to guide you through the process, and do not worry if you don’t see God take them down the moment you pray. Let God function according to His perfect plan according to His perfect timing.

Translation: ...all the day, conflict [lit., fighting] afflicts me. David is on the run, and almost everywhere he goes, his life is in danger. He faces conflict and fighting almost anywhere that he goes, and this is beginning to take a toll on him. David is a great warrior, but in the past, he could turn and strike his foes. He can’t do that to Saul because Saul is God’s anointed. And even if David could, he would be facing the army of Israel.

Application: Have you ever had a superior who was a crappy supervisor, so you entered into some office intrigue in order to get rid of that supervisor? Notice David: Saul is pursuing him, Saul is seeking his life; David does not bad mouth Saul nor does David look to overthrow Saul. David will have several opportunities to kill Saul and he will not take these opportunities. This means you do not get to engage in office politics in order to remove a supervisor that you see as unjust. God placed that person there for a reason.

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Early translations:

The Septuagint                      My enemies have trodden me down all the day from the dawning of the day; for there are many fighting against me.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

CEV                                       Many of them are pursuing and attacking me,

but even when I am afraid, I keep on trusting you.

NAB                                       My foes treat me harshly all the day;

yes, many are my attackers.

NLT                                My slanderers hound me constantly,

and many are boldly attacking me.

REB                                       All day long foes beset and oppress me,

for numerous are those who assail me.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

God’s Word™                         All day long my enemies spy on me.

They harass me.

There are so many fighting against me.

JPS (Tanakh)                        My watchful foes persecute me all day long;

many are my adversaries, O Exalted One.

NIV                                        My slanderers pursue me all day long;

many are attacking me in their pride.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

The Amplified Bible                They that lie in wait for me would swallow me up or trample me all day long, for they are many who fight against me, O Most High!

Updated Emphasized Bible   My adversaries have panted all the day,

For ║many║ are fighting with me │loftily│.

NASB                                    My foes have trampled upon me all the day long,

For they are many who right proudly against me.

Owen's Translation                My enemies trample all the day long for many fight against me proudly.

Young's Updated LT              My enemies have swallowed me up all the day,

For many are fighting against me, O Most High.

What is the gist of this verse? David’s enemies (metaphorically) trample him all day long. This could also be interpreted that, his enemies, the Philistines, have trampled down the ground before them (a reference to their attack on the produce of Keilah). There are a large number of men who are against David.

Translation: My enemies crush [me] all the day,... I believe that in this, David reveals an awareness of what his actions have caused. Although I have put here that he writes My enemies have crushed [me]...; perhaps I should have instead rendered this My enemies have trampled [all that is before them]... The Philistines will go forth and attack Keilah; they will make another attack after that. Saul’s army crushes or tramples down everyone who they see as opposing them (which will include every priest and all of their families). I believe that with David’s turn toward God, he would also come to a realization as to what his actions have caused (or will potentially cause, depending upon when he actually wrote these words). He could have even originally written trampled me and then later removed the 1^st person singular suffix, to indicate that his enemies have done more than persecute just him.

Translation: ...for many are fighting with regards to me, O Most High. Although most translations have something along the lines of ...for many are fighting against me..., we do not have the bêyth preposition here. We have the lâmed preposition, which means with regards to, with reference to. This is more in keeping with my theory in the previous half of this verse. David is not as worried now or as concerned now that he is being pursued; he is just as concerned about others who have been forced to fight because of him. This indicates that David is more aware of the consequences of his actions.

You will note that we have made a jump from an adversary (singular) in the first verse, to many oppressors in the second. Saul is the adversary alluded to in the first verse (not the king of Gath—it was Saul’s persecution which led David into Gath). The plural of the second verse refers to all of the various men who persecuted David, as a result of Saul’s vicious hatred. What was even more disconcerting for David is that, these enemies appeared to be everywhere. He could not seem to get away from them. They seemed to close in on him from all sides, even though that was not really the case. This was actually God tapping David on the shoulder, demanding his attention.

While David was facing enemies on every side—both men of Gath and men of Israel, we have no indication that David yet had any followers. After this psalm, David suddenly is surrounded by followers (I Sam. 22:1–3). Here’s the key: when that happens, David won’t use or exploit these men, as he had the priest of Nob; he will instead take responsibility for them, and lead them and see to their protection as much as to his own. When he went to Abimelech in Nob, David said, “Okay, this is what you can do for me.” When men flock to him at the beginning of I Sam. 22, David says, “This is what I can do for you. And here is what we can do for our nation Israel.” The difference between these two chapters and these two attitudes is Psalm 56.

The first two verses give us the general circumstances of David (which circumstances are more particularly given in I Sam. 21). The next couple verses record David’s recovery from being out of fellowship with God. These verses mark a turning point in David’s life, and these verses give us the background for the great change in David between I Sam. 21 and 22.

David Trusts in God

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Early translations:

he Septuagint                They will be afraid, but I will trust in You.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

CEV                                              ...but even when I am afraid, I keep on trusting you.

NAB                                       O Most High, when I am afraid,

In you I place my trust. [although O Most High is a part of v. 2, the NAB lists it as part of this line (as do several other translations)].

NLT                                But when I am afraid,

I put my trust in you.

REB                                       In my day of fear

I put my trust in you, the Most High.

TEV                                       When I am afraid, O Lord Almighty,

I put my trust in you.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

JPS (Tanakh)                        When I am afraid, I trust in You,...

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Updated Emphasized Bible   <What day I am afraid

║I║ to you will direct my confidence.

NASB                                    When I am afraid,

I will put my trust in Thee.

Young's Updated LT              The day I am afraid I am confident toward You.

What is the gist of this verse? David will replace his fear of man with trust in God.

Translation: The day I am afraid,... David shows right here again that he is snapping out of his mental attitude sins. Fear is a sin. David has been afraid and that has been the motivation for all of his actions in I Sam. 21. Although David’s fear of Saul was not recorded in I Sam. 21, his fear of the king of Gath was: When David realized what they had said, he was terrified of King Achish of Gath (I Sam. 22:12). He realizes that fear has been his problem and that he knows the solution. The rationale will be given in the next verse.

We throw around words like great courage and fearlessness and bravery. David is not this way inherently. He does not have great courage at this point; he is not fearless right now. He is afraid and he is willing to admit to that. He does not come off like a stoic nor does he come off like some movie star hero; he doesn’t just grit his teeth and come out blasting. He is a real man with real fears about real things. The men of Gath could really have killed David; Saul’s army may yet hunt David down and kill him or turn him over to Saul. David doesn’t have a persecution complex; he is actually persecuted, and his life is in danger. At this point, he is afraid, and he unabashedly admits to this fear.

Translation: ...I [even] I will trust You [lit., ,toward you]. The sentence structure puts great emphasis upon I and You. David says, I unto You or I toward You or I to You. Then we have the main verb, which means to trust, to rely upon, to have confidence in, to be secure in. All of these meanings are applicable here. Previously, David had been running around like a chicken with his head cut off, without direction, in great fear and panic. David now makes the choice to, in being afraid, to place his faith and confidence in God. He doesn’t choose exactly not to be afraid; he chooses to place his trust in God and to be secure in God. David is not necessarily without fear at this point. However, he has a place to place this fear.

A child might be in a fearful situation; he might have to jump or climb down from a high place; he might be on a scary ride. However, the child can look to his father, in whom he trusts, and he can place his trust in his father. This will not completely remove his fear; but it will give him strength to act. It will give him enough courage to jump down or to climb down, realizing that below are the arms of his protective father. This is David. He is afraid, but he places his trust in God; he puts these fears upon God.

Application: We will all go through situations in life when we are afraid. We probably won’t be afraid of someone threatening our life, but we might fear that we may lose our job, lose our security, lose our income; we may be afraid of an illness; we may be afraid of something which happens to a member of our family. The proper procedure is, believe in God; trust in God. In the day you are afraid, put your trust in God. It may seem trite or trivial or simplistic, but God is glorified when we place our trust in Him and He will do what is right by us.

In this next verse, David does more than place his faith in God; he praises God’s Word and his fear subsides. David recognizes that if God is for him, then what can man do to him?

McGee: A couple heard me make the statement that when I travel by plane I do not enjoy the trip because there is fear in my heart. They thought there was something wrong with my faith in God. My friend, fear will bring out faith in your life. Listen to David, “What time I am afraid, I will trust in you.” These people who sit back comfortably and say, “I haven’t any fear,” may mean that they are insensitive to the circumstances and problems that really exist. Or they may have a foolish sort of faith. David admitted he was afraid, but he trusted the Lord to take care of him.

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Early translations:

The Septuagint                      In God I will praise my words;

all the day I have hoped in God;

I will not fear what flesh can do to me.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

CEV                                       I praise your promises I trust you and am not afraid.

No one can harm me.

NLT                                O God, I praise your word.

I trust in God, so why should I be afraid

What can mere mortals do to me?

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

God’s Word™                         I praise the word of God.

I trust God.

I am not afraid.

What can mere flesh └and blood┘ do to me?

JPS (Tanakh)                        ...in God, whose word I praise,

in God I trust;

I am not afraid;

what can mortals do to me?

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

The Amplified Bible                By [the help of] God I will praise His Word; on God I lean, rely and confidently put my trust; I will not fear; what can man who is flesh do to me?

Updated Emphasized Bible   <In God> I will praise his cause [or, praise because of him],

<In God> have I trusted, I will not fear,

What can flesh do to me?

NASB                                    In God, whose word I praise,

In God I have put my trust;

I shall not be afraid.

What can mere man [lit.,, flesh] do to me?

Young's Updated LT              In God I praise His word, in God I have trusted, I fear not what flesh does to me.

What is the gist of this verse? David praises God for His Word and realizes that, if he trusts in God, then there is nothing that man can do to him.

Translation: In Elohim, I praise His Word;... Both of the next lines begin with In Elohim. This is more than holy language. This means that David is filled with God the Holy Spirit (or, empowered by God the Holy Spirit). This is the key to the change in his soul and in his actions.

We do not know how wide spread God’s Word was. Copying a book from Scripture was a much more time consuming act during that time period. The king was supposed to have had the Law copied for him, and given Saul and Samuel’s once close relationship, it is possible that there were copies of the Law available in Saul’s palace. David, at one time, was a frequenter of Saul’s palace; therefore, it is possible that David did have a scroll or two of God’s Word. We have no Scriptural evidence of this, and physical evidence of an individual having any portion of the Bible before our Lord is difficult (it has been found in libraries, of course). It is possible that David simply had studied God’s Word and brought it back to his thinking. David, somehow, even as a shepherd, had to have some understanding of God, even though it would have been very rudimentary. We have come across psalms that appear to have been written while David was a shepherd (Psalm 15 23 59 103). Whether David took comfort in these psalms, recognizing them as divine revelation, or whether he had a manuscript, or whether he had God’s Word in his soul—in some way, he was able to focus on God’s Word.

Now notice here, the two simple keys to the Christian way of life: (1) being filled with the Spirt and (2) God’s Word. This is a theme which is repeated throughout Scripture. It just does not get much simpler than that—you must rebound (name your sins to God) and you must study His Word (and God provides the means for that). David’s life, at this point, with take a 180° turn.

Translation: ...I have trusted in Elohim. If you have studied any of Bob Thieme Jr.’s tapes, you have heard about the faith-rest technique. This was spirituality in the Old Testament. One trusted in God; one place his faith in God. David had problems, he was being pursued by Saul, and his life was in danger. For God, this is nothing. God knew about these things in eternity past. Saul’s next moves are nothing to God. There is no strategy, no action, no series of attacks which Saul can do which God did not know about and for which God had not made provision for in eternity past. David simply needs to put his trust in God.

Trust in God is a theme which we find throughout the Old and New Testaments. Psalm 60:12: With God we will display great strength. He will trample our enemies. Psalm 108:13: With God we will display great strength. He will trample our enemies. II Chron. 20:20b: “Listen to me, people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem. Trust the Lord your God, and believe. Believe his prophets, and you will succeed.” Psalm 52:8: But I am like a large olive tree in God's house. I trust the mercy of God forever and ever. Psalm 62:8: Trust him at all times, you people. Pour out your hearts in his presence. God is our refuge. Psalm 91:2 I will say to the Lord, “You are my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust.” Isa. 50:10: Who among you fears the Lord and obeys his servant? Let those who walk in darkness and have no light trust the name of the Lord and depend upon their God. Rom. 4:24: Our faith will be regarded as God's approval of us who believe in the one who brought Jesus, our Lord, back to life. II Cor. 1:9: In fact, we still feel as if we're under a death sentence. But we suffered so that we would stop trusting ourselves and learn to trust God, who brings the dead back to life. Eph. 1:15: I, too, have heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all of God's people. Apart from this faith, there is no functioning in the plan of God.

Translation: I am not in fear... With David being empowered by God the Holy Spirit, with his soul being immersed in doctrine (God’s Word), and with his trust in God, David cannot fear. He has no reason to fear. We are put into difficult situations for our entire lives. We are placed in situations where our finances, our health, and/or our very lives are endangered; but God knew about these trials. In eternity past, God knew about every test that we would face and He made provision for each of these tests. Are you being sued? Is your business facing a financial crisis? This is not a surprise to God and He made provision for those things in eternity past. Have you been in an accident? Has some serious health problem surfaced? God knew about these issues in eternity past and He made provision for them. Are you in harm’s way as a soldier, a police officer or as a fireman? God knew about this in eternity past and He dealt with every situation that you will face in your life in eternity past. When it is your time to die, there is really nothing that you can do about it. Once that is over, you will be absent from the body and face to face with the Lord. Your fears will seem foolish in the light of eternity. As for the problems which we encounter in life—and many of these, by the way, will come from fellow believers—God has made provision for those problems; God solved those problems already. You might as well sit back and enjoy, and perhaps wonder to yourself, “Okay, how will God get me out of this jam?” It can be entertaining in fact.

V. 56:4b–c may appear to be a poetic repetition of v. 3 (When I am afraid, I will put my trust in You). However, that is not the case. V. 3 was the first step. Now that David has placed his faith in God, his fear of man subsides. Imagine, if you will, that you are a child, walking through a playground filled with bullies, most of whom have threatened you at one time or another. Certainly, you’re going to be afraid. Now imagine yourself walking next to the biggest, toughest kid in the playground and this kid is your friend. You can put your faith in this kid, and your fear subsides. What can these other kids do, if you are protected as you are? This gives you an idea as to the meaning of this verse. David is walking with God; there is nothing man can do to David. God has foreseen all that will happen and He has made provision for it.

Translation: ...[for] what can flesh do to me? David could not have used a weaker word for man than the term flesh, which is used much more often to refer to animal meat. We find the same word used in Psalm 78:39: He remembered that they were only flesh and blood, a breeze that blows and does not return. Also in Isa. 31:3: The Egyptians are humans, not gods. Their horses are flesh and blood, not spirit. When the Lord uses his powerful hand, the one who gives help will stumble, and the one who receives help will fall. Both will die together. David’s resources are not his own strength and intelligence, but they are with God; and what is man to God? How can man hope to do anything to get around God? If God has anointed David king and has already made provision for David to become king, then what can Saul do about it? Nothing. Saul is but an ant. He is a slab of meat. Before God, he has no power, no influence, no strength. There is nothing that man can do to David.

Gill: Men may contrive schemes, form weapons, and attempt many things against the saints, but can execute nothing, except permitted by the Lord; and the utmost they can do, when suffered, is to kill the body.

There are several parallel passages to this; among them are: Matt. 10:28: Don't be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the one who can destroy both body and soul in hell. Rom. 8:31–34: What can we say about all of this? If God is for us, who can be against us? God didn't spare his own Son but handed him over to death for all of us. So he will also give us everything along with him. Who will accuse those whom God has chosen? God has approved of them. Who will condemn them? Christ has died, and more importantly, he was brought back to life. Christ has the highest position in heaven. Christ also intercedes for us. Heb. 13:6 (which quotes this passage): So we can say with great confidence, The Lord is my helper. I will not be afraid. What can mortals do to me?

Spurgeon sums up these four verses: There were two verses of complaint, and here are two of confidence; it is well to weigh out a sufficient quantity of the sweet to counteract the sour.

Man’s Continuous Attacks Against David

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Early translations:

The Septuagint                      All the day long they have abominated my words; all their devices [are] against me for evil.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

CEV                                       Enemies spend the whole day finding fault with me;

all they think about is how to do me harm.

NAB                                       All the day they foil my plans;

their every thought is of evil against me.

NLT                                They are always twisting what I say;

they spend their days plotting ways to harm me.

REB                                       All day long they wound me with words;

every plan they make is aimed at me.

TEV                                       My enemies make trouble for me all day long;

they are always thinking up some way to hurt me!

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

God’s Word™                         All day long my enemies twist my words.

Their every thought is an evil plan against me.

JPS (Tanakh)                        All day long they cause me grief in my affairs,

they plan only evil against me.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

The Amplified Bible                All day long they twist my words and trouble my affairs; all their thoughts are against me for evil and my hurt.

NASB                                    All day long they distort my words;

All their thoughts are against me for evil.

Young's Updated LT              All the day they grab my words,

Concerning me all their thoughts are for evil.

What is the gist of this verse? David’s enemies (particularly Saul), took David’s actions and words and distorted them to mean something entirely different. All of their thoughts and intentions concerning David are evil.

Translation: They distort [more literally, afflict] my words all the day [long];... David’s enemies are Saul and the men who have aligned themselves with Saul. They continually distort (or, to give pain, to grieve, to afflict) David’s words (that is, the words are tortured, twisted, perverted). This actually is more applicable to all of David’s actions; they have a spin doctor—generally Saul—who sees to it that everything that David says or does is misinterpreted to mean that he is rebelling against Saul’s dynasty and is attempting in every way possible to bring Saul’s dynasty down, from within and from without. My less than literal translation is apropos here: They continually distort my words (and my actions). Everything that David does and everything that David says is afflicted, distorted, and twisted so that it appears as though he is an enemy of the state. Let me give you a simple example: David and Jonathan, Saul’s son, formed a tremendous bond of friendship, to the point that they made a pact of friendship and allegiance to one another. What Saul did, was take this great bond of friendship and allege that David had turned Saul’s own son against him (I Sam. 22:8b: “No one informed me when my son entered into a loyalty pledge with Jesse's son. No one felt sorry for me and informed me that my son has encouraged my servant David to ambush me, as he's doing now”). Saul also asserted that David was lying in wait to ambush him (also I Sam. 22:8). David was simply hiding out from Saul. David’s every action and word was misinterpreted to put him in a bad light.

We saw this with our Lord and the Pharisees. Jesus said, “Destroy this temple [referring to His body] and in three days, I will raise it up.” (John 2:19). The Pharisees misrepresented this to the Roman authorities that Jesus had threatened to destroy the holy temple which Herod had built (Matt. 26:61). Let’s see if you can understand this: Jesus Christ never did any wrong to any person; he never committed a sin; he never broke a Law of God or a Roman law. Still, the Jewish religious hierarchy conspired to kill Him. They twisted His words and His actions to mean what they did not. The end result was, they had Jesus put to death. Now, even apart from this being God’s plan, everything that took Jesus to the cross was a matter of the volition of evil men. So, if you find yourself in a situation where your words and actions are distorted by evil men, don’t be overly concerned. God will not allow anything to happen to you which is outside of His plan. All you need to do is remain in fellowship and faithful to His Word.

Application: With some people, it will not matter what you do. You can go out of your way to avoid them, you can say only the kindest of things to their face and to others, and they will find some way to twist your lack of guile around to something ugly. This sort of ugliness is in their soul and it is manifested against you. Furthermore, there is generally nothing that you can do about it, apart from, perhaps, moving to an adjacent state. However, that is not even a solution, as there will be some other malcontent in that state who will behave in the same manner.

Application: Now I know with some of you, there are people at your job who don’t particularly like you because you’re a jerk. However, there are some of you who function without guile, malice, and envy in the workplace and there will still be those who cannot stand you and who will speak lies about you. Listen carefully: the solution is not to change departments or to change jobs. The solution is never to seek revenge against these sorts of people. The solution is simple: you stay in fellowship, you continue to take in doctrine, and you continue to do your job as unto the Lord. Will these people continue to disparage your performance, your words and your person? Probably. Will they eventually get you fired or demoted? It could happen. Bear in mind that God knows all of this. He knows the end from the beginning. As we just studied in v. 4: I have trusted in Elohim; I am not in fear, [for] what can flesh do to me? I have been on the receiving end of this type of behavior for years; in fact, for decades. Did I react? Sometimes. Did I become upset? Sometimes. For every moment that I reacted, became upset, and did or said that which was untoward concerning my tormentors, I was out of line. Satan wants to see us out of fellowship. Being upset, reacting to bad behavior, gossiping, pouting, etc., is simply not of faith and either puts us out of fellowship or indicates that we are out of fellowship. That is where Satan wants us. You cannot perform even one iota of divine good when out of fellowship. Satan can also point his boney figure toward us and say, “See, he claims to be a Christian, and look at how badly he is behaving!” The solution is simple: you stay in fellowship, you continue to take in doctrine, and you continue to do your job as unto the Lord. Anything less is an embarrassment to our Lord. Don’t ever stoop to their level; don’t ever respond in kind; do not bother to run around and justify yourself to anyone who will listen. As to my situation? God knew of these actions in eternity past and He took care of everything. I didn’t have to lift a finger in order to deal with these situations.

These same sorts of people do the same thing to God’s Word: they distort and bend and twist His words to mean what they were not intended to mean: In which [Paul’s letters] are some things hard to understand, which the unlearned and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures (II Peter 3:16b).

Translation: ...All of their evil plans [are] against me. There is actually more emphasis in this verse on just how evil these plans are. Therefore, it literally reads plans for evil. However, the idea is the same—David’s enemies in the state department do nothing but devise plans of evil against him. It is their job and their religion. The next line of this psalm could very easily be: They make their tongues as sharp as a snake's fang. Their lips hide the venom of poisonous snakes (Psalm 140:3).

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Early translations:

The Septuagint                      They will dwell near and hide [themselves]; they will watch my steps according as I have waited patiently in my soul.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

CEV                                       The attack from ambush,

watching my every step and hoping to kill me.

NJB                                they gather together, lie in wait and spy on my movements,

as though determined to take my life.

NLT                                They come together to spy on me—

watching my every step, eager to kill me.

REB                                       In malice they band together and watch for me,

they dog my footsteps;

but, while they lie in wait for me,...

TEV                                       They gather in hiding places

and watch everything I do,

hoping to kill me.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

God’s Word™                         They attack, and then they hide.

They watch my every step as they wait to take my life.

JPS (Tanakh)                        They plot, they lie in ambush;

they plan only evil against me.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

The Amplified Bible                They gather themselves together, they hide themselves, they watch my steps, even as they have (expectantly) waited for my life.

Updated Emphasized Bible   They stir up strife—they lie hid

║They ║ mark my steps,—

Seeing they have waited for my life [soul].

NASB                                    They attack [or, stir up], they lurk,

They watch my steps,

As they have waited to take my life.

NRSV                                    They stir up strife, they lurk,

they watch my steps.

As they hoped to have my life,...

Young's Updated LT              They assemble, they hide, they watch my heels,

When they have expected my soul.

What is the gist of this verse? David’s enemies gather together, hidden from him, and look for his every movement. They are lying in wait to kill him.

Translation: They gather together, they hide themselves;... Given the basic meanings of the first verb, one can see why there are so many different translations. David may have used this verb intentionally to contain two of the meanings: they gather together; they stir up strife. David does not even speak to Saul alone—he does not come down on Saul as an individual, who is the one who pushes this evil against David. However, David groups all of his Jewish enemies together. These men have gathered themselves together; they have stirred up strife against David; and they hide themselves. The latter verb means that they hide themselves to lie in ambush for David. David does not know where they might be.

These words can also be applied to the Philistines, as they certainly have gathered themselves together and they have certainly stirred up strife against David. Recall that David had walked into Gath carrying Goliath’s sword that he brought from Nob. It is possible as he walked into town demanded to speak to the king, that some Philistines hid themselves in fear; or hid themselves with the idea of making a surprise attack upon David.

There is more to this than these enemies hiding themselves from David. The idea is, he does not know who his actual enemies are. David may walk through a crowd of people and he may not know which of these men seeks his life. David was in Nob and he recognized Doeg the Edomite. David did not necessarily know that Doeg would betray him to Saul (I Sam. 22:9).

Application: Your enemies may be hiding in plain sight. I had problems at two schools, and the two women who betrayed me were women who smiled to my face and were cordial as can be, but did all of their dirty work behind my back. They were my enemies hidden in plain sight. One I suspected and one, had I not been told, I would have never known. However, more importantly than this, I never took steps against either of these women. This is where it is a blessing to be protected by God—God can take care of your enemies, both the ones that you see and the ones that you don’t see. You may or may not get to watch; although there are varying degrees of satisfaction here, obviously, you can trust that God has taken care of it. Certainly, there are times when I would like to personally observe God take down an enemy; however, God’s timing and method are perfect, and most of the time, will never involve even my witness to it.

Translation: ...they watch my steps... These men look for every sign of David; where has he been; where is he now? What is he up to? They check out David’s every move (that they are able to uncover). Actually, David gives these men more credit than they deserve. As we will see in the narrative of I Sam. 21–23, Saul is mostly 2 or 3 locations behind David (with a couple notable exceptions). However, as time went on, Saul got closer and closer to David. Furthermore, it was Saul who really depended upon the information of others, and the men of Keilah (coming up in I Sam. 23 were willing to betray him) and the officials of Ziph did betray him (also I Sam. 23).

This is also applied to the Philistines. David walked into town, carrying Goliath’s sword; as he walked, the people of Gath watched his every step. Enough of them knew who he was and they told the others. When he managed to fake insanity, there were Philistines who, despite the ruling of the king of Gath, kept their eyes on David as he exited Gath, looking for any wrong move or misstep.

Translation: ...because they lie in wait for my life [or, soul]. Again, this can be applied to both sets of David’s enemies. Saul and his soldiers are looking for David, willing to take his life. The soldiers who have grabbed David in the palace of Achish are also willing to take his life. They await the orders of Achish, king of Gath. As David exited Gath, they watched him carefully, looking for any misstep to report back to Achish, so that they might be given permission to kill David.

Most of us do not face the same level of enmity that David does. The principles are the same; however, in David’s case, the stakes were higher.

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Early translations:

The Septuagint                      You will on no account save them; You will bring down the people in wrath.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

CEV                                       They won’t get away with these crimes, God,

because when you get angry, you destroy people.

NAB                                       They are evil; watch them, God!

Cast the nations down in your anger!

NJB                                        Because of this crime reject them,

in your anger, God strike down the nations.

NLT                                Don’t let them get away with their wickedness;

in your anger, O God, throw them to the ground.

TEV                                       Punish them, O God, for their evil;

defeat those people in your anger!

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

God’s Word™                         With the wrong they do, can they escape?

O God, angrily make the nations fall.

Modern KJV                           Shall they escape by iniquity? In anger cast down the peoples, O God.

JPS (Tanakh)                        Cast them out for their evil;

subdue peoples in Your anger, O God.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

The Amplified Bible                They think to escape with iniquity, and shall they? In Your indignation bring down the peoples, O God.

Updated Emphasized Bible   <Because of iniquity recompense them [meaning doubtful; alternate reading: there is no deliverance for them],—

<In anger bring down ║the peoples║, O God.

NASB                                    Because of wickedness, cast them forth,

In anger put down the peoples, O God!

NKJV                                     Shall they escape by iniquity?

In anger cast down the peoples, O God!

NRSV                                    ...so repay them for their crime;

in wrath cast down the peoples, O God!

Young's Updated LT              By iniquity, they escape,

In anger, put down the peoples, O God.

What is the gist of this verse? David asks God to take revenge out on these groups of men—which were both Jews and Gentiles—according as they deserve.

Translation: Cast them forth in anger, according to [their] iniquity;... This is a tough translation. According to Barnes, the literal rendering of v. 7a would be: By iniquity (there is) escape to them;... Young renders this: By iniquity, they escape... Therefore, the discussion of this half of the verse will be lengthy, with several theories proposed but with very little resultant satisfaction. I could not decide where to place in anger, whether with this half of the verse or the next. Obviously, each translation requires a much different explanation. The first rendering appeals to me, as David takes himself out of the seat of judgment. He asks God to deal with them, according to their own wrongdoing. He doesn’t decide that Charley Brown needs 5 lashes and Lucy needs 10; David simply asks for God to take care of them according to what they have done wrong, and he will step aside.

If we go with Young and Barnes’ rendering, then the idea is that these men escape anything that David could do to him personally; however, David will ask God to bring them down according to [His] anger (which would therefore be placed with the next phrase). David, in the next half of this verse asks God to bring down the Gentile nations, so we would expect a similar imperative in this half of the verse (or an explanation as to why David so asks God).

Going with Young’s interpretation, David has said that his enemies have escaped by their iniquity, or by their wrongdoing. He will therefore ask God to get them in the next half of this verse.

Also notice the rendering of the Septuagint, which bears only a slight resemblance to the Masoretic text: You will on no account save them. It is also an imperative, with a negative, and David asks God not to save or deliver these people.

You will note yet another spin on this verse; the KJV, the Modern KJV and the NKJV treat this as a question: Shall they escape by iniquity? Although there is nothing in this portion of v. 7 which suggests a question, this was the only way to render this literally, without making it sound like, They will escape because of their iniquity. Given the difficulties of translating and interpreting this verse, I wouldn’t be surprised if it words have been lost (e.g., a negative or the mark of an interrogative) or miscopied over the years.

Translation: Bring down [these] Gentile nations, O Elohim! It is possible that we should include in anger (or, wrath) with this portion of v. 7. Peoples here probably is a reference to the two sets of David’s enemies—the Philistines and Saul’s army, hence the plural (it is a collective noun, like our word people). David groups his two diverse sets of enemies together. He went to Gath to escape Saul’s persecution, and, in so doing, went from the frying pan into the fire.

You will note that the Septuagint places O God with the next verse.

God Is Cognizant of David’s Tribulations

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Early translations:

The Septuagint                      O God, I have declared my life to You;

You have set my tears before You,

even according to Your promise.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

CEV                                       You have kept record of my days of wandering.

You have stored my tears in your bottle

and counted each of them.

NAB                                       My wanderings you have noted;

are my tears not stored in your vial,

recorded in your book?

NJB                                        You yourself have counted up my sorrows,

collect my tears in your wineskin.

NLT                                You keep track of all my sorrows.

You have collected all my tears in your bottle.

You have recorded each one in your book.

TEV                                       You know how troubled I am;

you have kept a record of my tears.

Aren’t they listed in your book?

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Updated Emphasized Bible

God’s Word™                                (You have kept a record of my wanderings.

Put my tears in your bottle.

They are already in your book.)

JPS (Tanakh)                        You keep count of my wanderings;

put my tears into Your flask,

into Your record.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

The Amplified Bible                You number and record my wanderings; put my tears into Your bottle; are they not in Your book? NASBYou have taken account of my wanderings;

Put my tears in Your bottle;

Are they not in Your Book.

Young's Updated LT              My wandering You have counted,

You—place my tear in Your bottle;

Are they not in Your book?

What is the gist of this verse? God has kept track of where David has gone and He knows the tears David has shed over his situation. This information has been recorded eternally.

Translation: You have kept a record of my wanderings;... God knows everywhere that David has been; in fact, God knows everywhere that David will be. This is recorded. We’ll do a quick exam of David’s movements in the next chapter of I Samuel (22). Then we’ll go back and revisit them at the end of that book. In some places, it is very clear where David has been; in other sections, it is not so clear. For instance, when he takes his parents to Moab (I Sam. 22:1–3), we don’t know his exact route, which has some minor impact on the narrative. In any case, God has kept a record of David’s wanderings and we are given them in the book of Samuel.

Translation: You have put my tears in Your wineskin. David is frustrated and hurt. He has done nothing but give King Saul and the people of Israel his best service; there is no one who is as faithful in his service or as courageous in war against Israel’s enemies (except, perhaps, Jonathan). And for all of this faithful service, David is hunted like an animal.

Application: There are going to be some of you who put in years of faithful service, only to be cast aside as worthless. Your company which has employed you for 5, 10 or 30 years may not pursue you as Saul did David; but the end result may be as though your service was worthless. Do not be concerned or grieved; sometimes that is simply a part of your testing.

Clarke offers a slightly different spin here: Here is an allusion to a very ancient custom, which we know long obtained among the Greeks and Romans, of putting the tears which were shed for the death of any person into small phials, called lacrymatories or urns lacrymales and offering them on the tomb of the deceased. Some of these were of glass, some of pottery, and some of agate, sardonyx, etc. A small one in my own collection is of hard baked clay. I don’t know just how accurate this is, simply because (1) just who is going to gather up their tears into a container of any sort; and (2) the word used here appears to be a wineskin and not some sort of pottery.

And just when I was going to blow off this whole notion, I read the following in Barnes: Let them be remembered by thee as if they were gathered up and placed in a bottle - “a lachrymatory” - that they may be brought to remembrance hereafter. The word here rendered “bottle” means properly a bottle made of skin, such as was used in the East; but it may be employed to denote a bottle of any kind. It is possible, and, indeed, it seems probable, that there is an allusion here to the custom of collecting tears shed in a time of calamity and sorrow, and preserving them in a small bottle or “lachrymatory,” as a memorial of the grief. The Romans had a custom, that in a time of mourning - on a funeral occasion - a friend went to one in sorrow, and wiped away the tears from the eyes with a piece of cloth, and squeezed the tears into a small bottle of glass or earth, which was carefully preserved as a memorial of friendship and sorrow.

Many of these lachrymatories have been found in the ancient Roman tombs. I myself saw a large quantity of them in the “Columbaria” at Rome, and in the Capitol, among the relics and curiosities of the place. The above engraving will illustrate the form of these lachrymatories. The annexed remarks of Dr. Thomson (“land and the Book,” vol. i. p. 147), will show that the same custom prevailed in the East, and will describe the forms of the “tear-bottles” that were used there. “These lachrymatories are still found in great numbers on opening ancient tombs. A sepulchre lately discovered in one of the gardens of our city had scores of them in it. They are made of thin glass, or more generally of simple pottery, often not even baked or glazed, with a slender body, a broad bottom, and a funnel-shaped top. They have nothing in them but “dust” at present. If the friends were expected to contribute their share of tears for these bottles, they would very much need cunning women to cause their eyelids to gush out with water. These forms of ostentatious sorrow have ever been offensive to sensible people. Thus Tacitus says, ‘At my funeral let no tokens of sorrow be seen, no pompous mockery of woe. Crown me with chaplets, strew flowers on my grave, and let my friends erect no vain memorial to tell where my remains are lodged.’ ”  in other words, even though this is a poetic notion, it had some basis in fact.

Freeman also makes mention of these lachrymatories or tear bottles, where the tears of mourners were collected and saved (a piece of cotton or some such was used to collect the tears, which were then squeezed out into the jar). However, Freeman adds: Some commentators, however, deny that there is any reference in this text to the ancient lachrymatories, or that there is any evidence of their use among the Hebrews. Such affirm that the allusion here is to the custom of putting into bags, or small leathern bottles, articles of value for safe keeping...The idea would then be, “Treasure up these tears as something of great value.” 

Translation: [Are they] not in Your book? God takes note of everything. There is nothing in David’s life that God is not aware of.

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Early translations:

The Septuagint                      My enemies will be turned back in the day that I call upon You. Behold, I know that You are my God.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

CEV                                       When I pray, Lord God, my enemies will retreat,

because I know for certain that you are with me.

NLT                                On the very day I call to you for help,

my enemies will retreat.

This I know: God is on my side.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

God’s Word™                         Then my enemies will retreat when I call └to you┘.

This I know: God is on my side.

JPS (Tanakh)                        Then my enemies will retreat when I call on You; this I know, that God is for me.

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Updated Emphasized Bible   ║Then║ will my foes turn back, in the day I cry,

║This║ I know, for [or, that] God is mine!

NASB                                    Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call;

This I know, that God is for me.

Young's Updated LT              Then turn back do my enemies in the day I call.

This I have known, that God is for me.

What is the gist of this verse? David knows that God will turn back his enemies on the day that David asks, because he knows that God is with him and on his side.

Translation: The day I call out, my enemies are turned back. David now applies some logical thinking, or some theological rationales. When we calls out to God for help, his enemies are turned back. David has been on the run for awhile. We are told of two of his destinations: Nob and Gath. Suddenly, upon leaving Gath, he realizes that he can bring out the artillery. He’s got a weapon that no enemy can stand up to. That weapon is prayer. I must admit to being initially confused by Joshua’s battle against Amalek, when Moses would raise his hands, and Joshua would prevail, but when he dropped his arms, Israel would begin to lose. This verse handily explains that situation. As long as Moses appealed to God; as long as Moses was in prayer to God; as long Moses lifted up his hands toward God in petition, his army, led by Joshua, would prevail. God’s response to the prayer of Moses was the deciding factor. The might of Amalek was not an issue—as long as God fought for Israel. The key was the constant petition of Moses to God, symbolized by the raising of his hands toward heaven (see Ex. 17:8–15).

Application: You may or may not ever find yourself at war or pursued by an enemy; however, there will always be conflict in your life. If you know one other person, then there will be conflict in your life. If you work at a business where there is at least one other employee besides yourself, there will be conflict. As a believer, you will find yourself under the attack of Satan periodically in the form of other people (and they just might initiate this on their own). You do not need to strike back, you do not need to seek revenge, and you do not need to run around and justify your position and/or innocence to whomever will listen. When a counter attack is required; when it is necessary that you defend yourself, then your first action is to get into fellowship and pray to God. There is no more important weapon; there is no more potent weapon than God.

Let me make an analogy: if you stand facing an army of terrorists, your personal arsenal amounts to having a slingshot. When you appeal to God, your personal arsenal suddenly includes a 100,000 hydrogen bombs. Don’t be an idiot and rely on the slingshot.

Translation: This I know: Elohim [is] for me. David makes the logical conclusion that God is for him; or on his side. Psalm 118:6: The LORD is on my side. I am not afraid. What can mortals do to me? And again, If God is for us, who can be against us? (Rom. 8:31b).

Spurgeon comments: The machinery of prayer is not always visible, but it is most efficient. God inclines us to pray, we cry in anguish of heart, he hears, he acts, the enemy is turned back. What irresistible artillery is this which wins the battle as soon as its report is heard! What a God is this who hearkens to the cry of his children, and in a moment delivers them from the mightiest adversaries! “This I know.” This is one of the believer's certainties, his axioms, his infallible, indisputable verities. “For God is for me.” This we know, and we know, therefore, that none can be against us who are worth a moment's fear. “If God be for us, who can be against us?” Who will restrain prayer when it is so potent? Who will seek any other ally than God, who is instantly present so soon as we give the ordained signal, by which we testify both our need and our confidence? 

Old Testament Spirituality

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Early translations:

The Septuagint                      In God, will I praise [his] word; in the Lord will I praise [his] saying.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

CEV                                       I praise your promises.

REB                                       In God, whose promise is my boast,

in the Lord, whose promise is my boast.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

God’s Word™                         I praise the word of God.

I praise the word of the Lord.

JPS (Tanakh)                        In God, whose word I praise,

in the Lord, whose word I praise,...

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Updated Emphasized Bible   <In God> will I praise with good cause:

<In Yahweh> will I praise with good cause.

NASB                                    In God, whose word I praise,

In the Lord, whose word I praise.

Young's Updated LT              In God I praise the word,

In Jehovah I praise the word.

What is the gist of this verse? David praises God because of His Word.

Translation: In Elohim, I praise doctrine;... In Elohim (as well as in Jehovah found later in this verse), as Old Testament references to being in fellowship with God. Although David did not enjoy the same sorts of things that we do—being in Christ positionally, so that when God looks at us, He sees His Son; or being filled with the Holy Spirit—he still had similar, yet less powerful, assets. David did enjoy fellowship with God and he did enjoy the empowerment of the Holy Spirit (which could be taken away). The latter asset was apparently not available to all Old Testament believers.

David is speaking from a position of strength; he is in God, and he praises God for His Word, for His doctrine, for the information which allows David to see past his petty problems (petty in the eyes of God and therefore, these problems should be petty in David’s eyes as well). Let me give you an analogy. A child may be overly affected by a relatively meaningless crisis. As a very young child, it could be the shadows in his room; it could be tremendous apprehension at going to school the first day. As a parent, you realize that his concern, although real, is about nothing. These are problems which are easily solved. You, as the parent, realize that the child’s concern and apprehension are the biggest problem. For God, our concern and apprehension about our own problems is the biggest problem. He can solve any problem. He can bring any dramatic episode in your life to a good conclusion. Our fear and apprehension only get in the way.

Translation: ...in Y^ehowah, I praise doctrine. Elohim refer to the Godhead, or the Trinity. It is plural, and despite what you may have heard, it is plural because God is a plurality of three persons with the Same essence. Jehovah refers to the revealed member of the Godhead, which is Jesus Christ in the New Testament and Jehovah Elohim or the Angel of God in the Old.

There is an interesting traditional Jewish differentiation between Jehovah and Elohim: Jehovah represents God’s mercy and Elohim represents God’s justice. Accordingly the Targum paraphrases the words, “in the attribute of the justice of God will I praise his word; in the attribute of the mercies of Jehovah will I praise his word.”  Jesus Christ in the New Testament is Jehovah of the Old, and in Him we do find mercy and grace.

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Early translations:

The Septuagint                      I have hoped in God; I will not be afraid of what man will do to me.

Thought-for-thought translations; paraphrases:

CEV                                       I trust you and am not afraid. No one can harm me.

NLT                                I trust in God, so why should I be afraid

What can mere mortals do to me?

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

JPS (Tanakh)                        in God I trust;

I am not afraid;

what can man do to me?

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

NASB                                    In God I have put my trust, I shall not be afraid.

What can man do to me?

Young's Updated LT              In God I trusted, I fear not what man does to me.

What is the gist of this verse? We have a repetition of the theme of v. 3, with the additional thought: I do not fear what man can do to me.