I will Sing and Give God Praise – Psalm 57

“To the Chief Musician. Set to “Do Not Destroy.” A Michtam of David when he fled from Saul into the cave.” Psalm 57:1 [1]

Who wants to destroy someone? Who wants someone to destroy them? Is anyone trying to destroy you? If so, how are you dealing with that?

This Psalm was set to the tune of “Do Not Destroy.”

David did not destroy Saul when he had the opportunity to do so in the cave of Adullam. In 1 Samuel 26:10-11, he told his men, “As surely as the Lord lives . . . the Lord Himself will strike him, or his time will come and he will die, or he will go into battle and perish. But the Lord forbid that I should lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed.”

God did not allow Satan to destroy Job. In Job 2:6, “The Lord said to Satan, ‘Behold, he is in your hand but spare his life.’” Satan tested Job’s commitment to God. Job remained faithful to God.

God did not let Saul destroy David. Jesus Messiah was destined to be born from his family line.

“Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me! For my soul trusts in You, and in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge, until these calamities have passed by. I will cry out to God Most High, to God who performs all things for me.” Psalm 57:1-2

When on the brink of destruction, David cried out to God, “Be merciful to me” twice in a row. He entrusted his soul to God. He envisioned himself under God’s wing.

“God’s wing” may allude to the wings of cherubim which overshadowed the Mercy Seat on the lid of the Ark of the Covenant. Those angel wings and that Mercy Seat on the Ark foreshadowed the scene at the empty tomb. On the day of Christ’s resurrection, Mary looked into the tomb of Jesus. John 20:12 says, “She saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.”

David professed faith in the faithfulness of God. He professed that the calamities would pass. God would have mercy on him and save him. God Most High would perform the miracle.

“He shall send from heaven and save me. He reproaches the one who would swallow me up. Selah! God shall send forth His mercy and His truth.” Psalm 57:3

Who did God send from heaven? He sent His Son. What does Jesus represent? He is God’s mercy. He saves us from our sins by His blood shed on the cross. Who is the truth? In John 14:6, Jesus is the way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father but by Him.

“My soul is among lions. I lie among the sons of men who are set on fire, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword.” Psalm 57:4

David compared his enemies to lions. Lions sneak up on their prey and attack them ruthlessly so that they are instantly wounded and too weak to fight back. Throughout the Bible, the lion is characterized as a ferocious adversary. In Judges 14:5-6, Samson killed a lion. In 1 Kings 13:24, a lion killed a young prophet. In Daniel 6:16-22, God rescued Daniel from being devoured by lions. In 2 Timothy 4:17, Paul spoke of being rescued from the mouth of a lion. In 1 Peter 5:8, Peter compared the devil to a roaring lion.

In Revelation 5:5, Jesus is called the Lion of the Tribe of Judah. In this passage, the lion is a metaphor for King Jesus who is more powerful than all the Judean kings who proceeded Him.

David compared his enemies to fire. Fire also consumes quickly. The pain it causes is intense. He compared the teeth of his enemies to arrows and their tongue to a sword. His enemies were both physically and verbally abusive. In James 3:6, James wrote, “The tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell.”

“Be exalted, O God, above the heavens. Let Your glory be above all the earth. They have prepared a net for my steps. My soul is bowed down. They have dug a pit before me. Into the midst of it they themselves have fallen. Selah!” Psalm 57:5-6

David sings the high praises of God. He envisions God in heaven and see His glory above all other glories. No other high achiever deserves as much praise as God does. When enemies prepared nets and pits for David, God caused those enemies to fall into their own traps.

“My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast. I will sing and give praise. Awake, my glory! Awake, lute and harp! I will awaken the dawn. I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples. I will sing to You among the nations. For Your mercy reaches unto the heavens, and Your truth unto the clouds. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens. Let Your glory be above all the earth.” Psalm 57:7-11

In Psalm 57:5, David began to turn his thoughts from his enemies and to exalt and glorify the Lord. In Psalm 57:6, he expresses faith that his enemies will fall into their own traps. Then, from Psalm 57:7 until the end of the Psalm, he is totally focused on praising and glorifying the Lord.

In Proverbs 15:13, the Lord says, “A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance, but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.” Thus, it is good when we feel ourselves slipping into despair due to the abusive behavior of others to stop, and look up to God, and begin to praise Him for all the good that He is doing in our lives despite the war that is raging against us.

Previously in Psalm 57:1, David made a double plea to God for mercy, now in Psalm 57:7, he states twice in a row, “My heart is steadfast.” David’s steadfast heart is evidence that God did have mercy on him.

In Acts 20:23-24, God gave Paul a steadfast heart. He said, “The Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me. But NONE OF THESE THINGS MOVE ME, nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the Gospel of the grace of God.”

Next, David warms up his vocal chords and prepares his music instruments. He is ready to sing and give praise to God. He says to himself, “Awake, my glory! Awake, lute and harp! I will awaken the dawn. I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples.” He wants to lead the people of earth to praise and worship the Lord. God inhabits the praises of His people.

Many years later, a descendant of David was led in a similar way to his forefather. In 2 Chronicles 20, the nation of Judah was surrounded by a coalition of enemies. At first, King Jehoshaphat bowed his face to the ground in prayer, but then, the Levites stood up and began to praise the Lord with loud and high voices. After that, King Jehoshaphat was led to send the singers of praise out in front of his troops. 2 Chronicles 20:21-22 says, “As they went out before the army, they were saying, ‘Praise the Lord, for His mercy endures forever.’ Now when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah, and they were defeated.”

“Holy Spirit, please fill us with the joy of the Lord. Please be the wind that propels our songs of praise to God. Thank You, Heavenly Father for bringing forth victories as we praise Your Name! For Your glory and for the blessing of Your people. In the Name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen.”



[1] Note: The name for the Book of Psalms in the original Hebrew is “Tehillim” (תהילים) which means “praises.” The name “Psalms” comes from the Greek translation of the Old Testament, that is, the Septuagint. The Greek word, “Psalmos” (Ψαλμός) means “instrumental music” or “songs of praise.” Psalm 57:1 was set to the tune of “Do Not Destroy.”