Commentary - Psalm 56:1-4

Bird's-eye view

This psalm is a battle report from the front lines. David is not writing from a comfortable study, reflecting on abstract theological dangers. He is in Gath, the hometown of Goliath, having been seized by the Philistines. He is a man on the run, cornered, and in mortal danger. And so this psalm is intensely practical. It is a lesson on how to handle raw fear. The central pivot of the psalm is the movement from acknowledging fear to declaring trust. David shows us that true faith is not the absence of fear, but rather the decision to trust God in the middle of it. This is not stoicism; it is robust, biblical faith, grounded not in feelings, but in the revealed Word of God. The conclusion is a triumphant dismissal of the threat: what can mere, mortal, fleshly man possibly do to one who is kept by the living God?

Outline

Context In Psalms

The superscription places this psalm in a specific historical moment, recorded in 1 Samuel 21:10-15. David, fleeing from a jealous King Saul, makes what appears to be a desperate and foolish decision: he seeks refuge in Gath, a major Philistine city. This is like a wanted man hiding out at the police headquarters. The Philistines recognize him as the champion of Israel who killed their giant, Goliath, and they seize him. To escape, David feigns madness, drooling and scratching on the city gate until King Achish dismisses him as a lunatic. This psalm was composed in that pressure cooker. It is a "Mikhtam," a term of uncertain meaning, possibly indicating a "golden" or "inscribed" psalm, meant to be remembered. The tune, "Jonath Elem Rehokim" or "The Dove on Distant Oaks," may speak to David's sense of being a lonely, hunted creature far from home. This raw, historical backdrop is essential; it gives teeth to the declarations of faith that follow.

Verse by Verse Commentary

Superscription

For the choir director. According to Jonath Elem Rehokim. A Mikhtam of David. When the Philistines seized him in Gath.

The Bible is an earthy book. It doesn't give us disembodied spiritual principles that float in the air. It gives us truth forged in the furnace of real life, with names, dates, and locations. David is in Gath. This is not a metaphor for a bad day at the office. This is enemy territory. He has been captured. The man who killed their champion is now their prisoner. The musical notations tell us this is not just a private journal entry; it is a song to be learned and sung by the people of God. The trials of the king were for the instruction of the kingdom. And so our trials are not just for us, but for the instruction and encouragement of the whole body of Christ.

Verse 1

Be gracious to me, O God, for man has trampled upon me; All day long, an attacker oppresses me.

David begins where every sinner in trouble must begin: with a plea for grace. He does not appeal to his own righteousness or his anointing as king. He appeals to the unmerited favor of God. His problem is "man," or in the Hebrew, enosh, which emphasizes man in his frailty and mortality. It is a profound irony; frail man is trampling him. The word "trampled" is visceral. It means to be crushed underfoot, to be treated with contempt. And this is not a one-time event. It is "all day long." The pressure is constant, a grinding, relentless oppression. This is the nature of the world's hostility to God's people. It does not take weekends off.

Verse 2

My foes have trampled upon me all day long, For many attack me proudly.

He repeats the complaint for emphasis. This is not paranoia; it is an accurate assessment of his situation. The repetition of "trampled upon me all day long" underscores the severity and persistence of the threat. And he adds a crucial detail about his enemies: they attack him "proudly." The Hebrew is marom, meaning "from a height." His enemies are arrogant. They look down on him. They are confident in their own strength and position. This is the native language of the ungodly world. Pride is the root of all rebellion against God, and it manifests as contempt for God's anointed and God's people.

Verse 3

When I am afraid, I will trust in You.

Here is the hinge upon which the entire psalm turns. Notice the magnificent honesty. David does not say, "I am never afraid." He says, "When I am afraid." The Bible is not written for stoics or superheroes. It is written for real people who live in a dangerous world. Fear is an emotion, a natural response to a genuine threat. Being seized by Philistines in Gath is a genuinely frightening situation. Piety is not the absence of the emotion of fear. Piety is what you do with it. David makes a decision. Fear is the circumstance; trust is the action. He says, "I will trust in You." This is an act of the will, a declaration of allegiance. He does not wait for the fear to subside before he trusts. He trusts in the very moment of his fear. This is the essence of fighting the good fight of faith.

Verse 4

In God, whose word I praise, In God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can mere man do to me?

This trust is not a blind leap. It is grounded in something solid: "whose word I praise." David's trust is in God as He has revealed Himself in His promises. Faith latches onto the Word of God. He praises the promise even while the problem is still raging. This is what it means to walk by faith and not by sight. He then repeats his resolution: "In God I trust." And what is the result? "I shall not be afraid." The decision to trust begins to starve the emotion of fear. And this leads to the triumphant, rhetorical question. "What can mere man do to me?" He has already identified his enemy as enosh, frail man. Here, the word is basar, flesh. What can flesh do? The contrast is between the eternal, covenant-keeping God and His Word, and a piece of meat. What can flesh do to a man whose life is hidden with God? The worst they can do is kill the body, which for the believer is nothing more than a promotion. This is the confidence we have in Christ. Because God is for us, the threats of mortal men are put in their proper, diminished perspective.

Application

We may not find ourselves literally seized in Gath, but we all face our own "Philistines." The world, the flesh, and the devil are relentless attackers. They trample, they oppress, and they do so with pride. We face hostility in the culture, temptations in our own hearts, and anxieties about the future. This psalm gives us the divine playbook for these moments.

First, be honest about your fear. Don't pretend it's not there. Acknowledging your fear is the first step toward dealing with it biblically. God is not looking for plastic soldiers who never feel anything. He is looking for real sons and daughters who, when they are afraid, know where to turn.

Second, make the resolute choice to trust. Faith is a verb. It is an act of defiance against your circumstances and your feelings. You declare your trust in God, not because you feel confident, but because He is faithful. This trust must be anchored in His Word. Read His promises. Praise Him for them. Let the truth of what He has said about Himself, and about you in Christ, be louder than the threats of your enemies.

Finally, let this trust re-frame your problem. When you see God for who He is, you will see your enemies for who they are: "mere man." What can flesh do to you? In Christ, you are eternally secure. The worst this world can do is usher you into glory. Therefore, we can say with David, and with the apostle Paul, "If God is for us, who can be against us?"