Commentary - Psalm 3:3-6

Bird's-eye view

Psalm 3 is a morning psalm, a cry of trust from a man surrounded by enemies. The superscription tells us the historical context: David is fleeing from his son Absalom. This is not a theoretical trouble; it is a profound, personal, and political betrayal. His own son, his own people, have risen against him. The taunt of his enemies in verse 2 is that God has abandoned him. This sets the stage for David's magnificent confession of faith in verses 3 through 6. He counters the horizontal threat with a vertical trust. He looks away from the ten thousands of rebels to the one true God who is his shield, his glory, and his salvation. This passage is a master class in how a believer should respond to overwhelming crisis, not with panic, but with prayer, confidence, and a settled peace that allows for sleep in the midst of the storm.

The movement is beautiful. From the external threat, David turns inward to his God (v. 3). This internal confidence then bursts forth in audible prayer (v. 4). The result of this confident prayer is supernatural peace and rest (v. 5). And this rest, in turn, fuels a renewed and strengthened courage in the face of the unchanged, threatening circumstances (v. 6). It is a cycle of faith: God's character, our prayer, His peace, our courage.

Outline

Context In Psalms

Psalm 3 is the first psalm with a superscription, linking it directly to a historical event in David's life. This is significant. It grounds the psalms in the grit and grime of human history. These are not abstract spiritual platitudes; they are battle-tested cries of faith. This psalm sets a pattern for many others that follow: the righteous sufferer, surrounded by enemies, cries out to Yahweh and finds deliverance. It is a raw expression of trust in the covenant-keeping God of Israel, even when the whole world seems to be collapsing. Ultimately, we must read this psalm, as with all the psalms, through the lens of the Lord Jesus Christ. David, the anointed king, was a type of Christ. If David was betrayed by his son and his people, how much more was the Son of David betrayed? If David could sleep in peace trusting his Father, how much more did Jesus rest in His Father's will, even in Gethsemane?

Verse by Verse Commentary

Psalm 3:3

But You, O Yahweh, are a shield about me, My glory, and the One who lifts my head.

The psalm pivots on this great "But You." The circumstances are screaming one thing, "There is no help for him in God." But David turns from the horizontal chatter to the vertical reality. He is not in denial about the threats; he simply knows a greater truth. God is a shield about me. Not just in front of him, but all around him. This is total protection. The enemies may have him surrounded, but God surrounds the enemies. Every self-protective device we invent is a shield made of tissue paper. Only God can truly shield us in this world.

He is also David's glory. In his flight from Absalom, David was stripped of his royal glory. He was a king on the run, shamed and dishonored. But his true glory was not in his crown or his throne in Jerusalem. His glory was Yahweh Himself. When all earthly honors are gone, the believer's glory remains untouched, because our glory is God. And because God is his glory, He is also the one who lifts my head. Shame and despair cause the head to hang low. But God does not leave His people in that posture. He intervenes to restore, to vindicate, to lift the chin of His child so that he can look his enemies in the eye without fear. This is a promise of future vindication.

Psalm 3:4

I was calling to Yahweh with my voice, And He answered me from His holy mountain. Selah.

Faith is not silent. It speaks. David says, "I was calling... with my voice." This was not a quiet, internal meditation. This was an audible cry for help. There is a place for crying out loud to God, especially when you are in deep distress. It is a tangible expression of our dependence and our desperation. And notice the confidence. David doesn't say "I hope He will answer" but rather "He answered me." This is the assurance of faith. He knows the character of his God.

And where does the answer come from? From His holy mountain. This refers to Zion, the place where God had chosen to place His name, where the ark of the covenant dwelt. Absalom may have controlled the physical city of Jerusalem at that moment, but he did not control the throne of heaven. God still reigned from His holy hill. Our prayers are not answered because of our proximity to a building, but because the God who reigns in heaven has promised to hear His people. The answer to our prayers is not a cooperative effort between us and God. We cry out, and He answers. Salvation is of the Lord, and of the Lord only. The Selah invites us to pause and consider this profound truth. Ponder it. God hears from heaven.

Psalm 3:5

I lay down and slept; I awoke, for Yahweh sustains me.

Here is the fruit of true faith. In the middle of a life-threatening crisis, with an army hunting for him, David slept. This is not the sleep of denial or foolishness. This is the peace that passes all understanding. Anxiety and fear are insomniacs. But faith in the God who is a shield allows for rest. David could lay his head down because he knew God was his guard. Every night, when we go to sleep, we are performing an act of faith. We are entrusting our unconscious selves to the care of God. Sleep is a small picture of death. David laid himself down, as though dead to the world and its threats, and woke up in the morning.

Why did he awake? Not because the threat was gone. Absalom was still out there. He awoke for Yahweh sustains me. The reason for his waking was not a change in circumstances, but the unchanging character of God. God's sustaining grace is what gets us through the night and what raises us in the morning. This is a daily resurrection, a daily reminder that our life is in His hands. Every morning we wake up is a testimony to the sustaining power of God.

Psalm 3:6

I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people Who all around have set themselves against me.

The peace of verse 5 now blossoms into the courage of verse 6. Because David has entrusted himself to God, he can now face his enemies with renewed boldness. Notice the number: ten thousands of people. This is hyperbole for an overwhelming, innumerable force. He is drastically outnumbered. They have set themselves against me all around. The tactical situation is hopeless. But David's confidence is not in tactics. His confidence is in Yahweh. Therefore, he can say, "I will not be afraid."

This is not a denial of the feeling of fear. It is a refusal to be ruled by it. The fear of God is the only fear that conquers all other fears. When we fear God rightly, we cease to fear men wrongly. David is not saying he is naturally brave. He is saying that his God is greater than his enemies, and therefore his faith is greater than his fear. This is the logic of the gospel. If God is for us, who can be against us? What are ten thousand rebels compared to the Lord of Hosts? This is the settled conviction that must animate the Christian life in every trial, whether it comes from a rebellious son, a hostile culture, or the accuser of the brethren.

Application

The pattern David gives us here is timeless. We live in a world that is increasingly hostile to the faith. We have enemies, both spiritual and physical. The temptation is to look at the "ten thousands" arrayed against us and to conclude, as David's enemies did, that there is no help for us in God. This psalm is the antidote to that lie.

First, we must consciously turn from our troubles to our God. We must say with David, "But You, O Lord..." We must remind ourselves that He is our shield, our glory, and the one who lifts our heads. Our identity and security are not in our circumstances, but in Him. Second, we must cry out to him. Prayer is the weapon of the Christian. It is the admission of our weakness and the declaration of His strength. Third, we must learn to rest in His sovereign care. We must lay our heads down at night, casting our anxieties on Him, knowing that He sustains us. A troubled Christian who cannot sleep is a Christian who is not applying the truth of Psalm 3. Finally, this divine peace must fuel our courage. We are not to be a fearful people. We are to stand our ground, unintimidated by the odds, because our God reigns from His holy hill and salvation belongs to Him.