1 O Lord, how many are my foes! Many are rising against me;
2 many are saying of my soul, “There is no salvation for him in God.” Selah
3 But you, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head.
4 I cried aloud to the Lord, and he answered me from his holy hill. Selah
5 I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the Lord sustained me.
6 I will not be afraid of many thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around.
7 Arise, O Lord! Save me, O my God! For you strike all my enemies on the cheek; you break the teeth of the wicked.
8 Salvation belongs to the Lord; your blessing be on your people! Selah
Psalm 3
The Psalms have always been a popular source of devotional reading for Christians; in fact, we are about to study them in our small groups along those lines. But we can dig a bit deeper than that if we try. As an example, consider one of my favorites, Psalm 3; let’s explore its context, classification, and structure, with a view toward applying the resulting insights to our own lives.
The first thing to note is that this is one of only thirteen Psalms that has a historical superscription: it is designated as “a Psalm of David, when he fled from Absalom his son.” Now these are all written in the third person, pointing to them being later editorial additions; but they are present in both the canonical Hebrew text and the earliest translations, including the LXX. Their antiquity demonstrates that they should be considered historically valid, and thus they might help to inform our understanding of the text.
The most common way to classify psalms these days is based in form criticism, which categorizes it as a psalm of lament—more specifically, an “individual lament.” Under this scheme, it exhibits the characteristic structure in an almost prototypical manner: an address to God (v. 1); a complaint (v. 1—2); a confession of trust (v. 3—6); a petition (v. 7a); words of assurance (v. 7b); and an exclamation of praise (v. 8). This makes sense when you consider its historical setting, too, as most of the psalms related to a particular occasion are individual laments, and all portray David as utterly reliant upon God, either in times of crisis or simply in praise.
The best way to outline the psalm is in three parts: v. 1—3, v. 4—6, and v. 7—8. For one, there is a link between v. 2 and v. 3, where the taunt of the enemies is answered by David’s confidence in God. Additionally, the usage of YHWH commonly introduces or concludes a section of a psalm, as is the case in all but one of the relevant verses in Ps 3. Finally, there is the shift in voice between these three divisions, from direct speech to God, to “him-Godspeech,” before returning to direct address in the final section. So what does the text tell us?
The first section opens with an appeal to God characteristic of a psalm of lament and a clear example of synonymous parallelism. O Lord, how many are my foes! Many are rising against me; many are saying of my soul…” (v. 1-2a) This is clearly a threatening situation. The second half of v. 2 elaborates on the hostility of these enemies, who say, there is no salvation for him in God (v. 2b). In the eyes of his enemies, David has been deserted by God, perhaps reflecting the numerous calamities that befell in the aftermath of his adultery with Bathsheba. David, however, maintains his confidence in God’s deliverance. But you, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head (v. 3). The martial imagery pictures YHWH as a warrior, offering his divine protection as with a shield, the “lifting of the head” probably making a comparison to a military victory: David will ultimately triumph through God’s power.
Section two shifts the focus from the enemies to the psalmist. Again, there is a focus on speech, but the many hostile voices of the enemy have given way to the solitary voice of David in prayer: I cried aloud to the Lord (v. 4a). Far from being forsaken by God, there is a response to the cry, and he answered me from his holy hill (v. 4b). The confidence placed in the Lord’s power and his response produces the remarkable imagery of v. 5, I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the Lord sustained me. In the midst of his enemies, where the natural, human reaction would be to remain watchful, the promise of God produces a surpassing serenity. Therefore, David says, I will not be afraid of many thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around (v. 6).
The final section sees a return to addressing God, Arise, O Lord! Save me, O my God! (v. 7a). These are the words of the prayer mentioned in v. 4. The next line marks a clear return to martial imagery, “for you strike all my enemies on the cheek; you break the teeth of the wicked” (v. 7b). The statement is actually made in the perfect tense, indicating David’s complete confidence in God to the point that it is as if his deliverance has already occurred, a liberation so complete that the enemy will be utterly subjugated and humiliated. The synonymous parallelism of striking the cheek and breaking the teeth refers on one level to making his enemies completely powerless; there is perhaps also an allusion to speech here again, as they can now no longer utter wicked words. Just as their hostile tongues were silenced, David’s final word of praise turns the content of their insult on its head; where they claimed there was no salvation in God, he exclaims emphatically, salvation belongs to the Lord (v. 8a). The victory is so all-encompassing that it moves beyond the personal level of the rest of the psalm, to a statement of complete confidence in God on behalf of all Israel, “your blessing be on your people!” (v. 8b).
I know this has been a rather technical exegesis of the psalm, but I wanted us to see how we can do serious study and then move to application, which is why it matters for us. Of course, on one level, we gain a better understanding of David’s life and state of mind. More importantly, beyond the purely historical, Ps 3 speaks to the reader today on a personal level. It is a reminder that even God’s greatest servants experience extreme trials in this life; no one, therefore, should feel that they are entitled to immunity. But it is a tremendous source of encouragement, as the same God who delivered David still has the power to sustain his people in any trial. It bolsters the strength of the discouraged, by powerfully reminding the faithful servant of God that, indeed, “salvation belongs to the Lord!”
-Bryant Perkins
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