Psalm 52-56
David is the writer of all the psalms in this lesson. However, he wrote them for different reasons. Pay attention to the reasons.
Psalm 52
READ PSALM 52. David criticizes those who use their talents for evil. He rebukes his enemies and foretells their downfall. The psalmist is confident that he will prosper as he trusts God. The thoughts and tongues of his enemies are evil. David is confident that God will strike them down and God will tear them up.
When the unrighteous man fails, the righteous man will witness it and laugh. The righteous man will flourish like an olive tree. Then the psalmist will offer thanksgiving and a testimony to God.
Psalm 53
READ PSALM 53. This psalm can be described as a lament, prayer, or complaint of an individual. David observes the universal corruption of humanity and anticipates its judgment. He also longs for the salvation of Israel.
The psalmist bemoans the sinful state of humanity. He calls people fools who deny the existence of God. He says they are corrupt and have turned away from God. They eat up God's people like bread, but God will destroy them.
David longs for God to rescue His people. Then His people will rejoice.
Psalm 53 is nearly identical to Psalm 14. However, there are two differences. Psalm 14 uses the covenant name of God, YHWH, typical of the Psalms in book 1 of Psalms (Psalms 1 through 41). However, Psalm 53 uses Elohim, typical of the Psalms in Book 2 (Psalms 42 through 72). Second, there is a reference to "a refuge for the poor" in Psalm 14:6 which is missing from Psalm 53.
David criticizes those who use their talents for evil.
Psalm 54
READ PSALM 54. David wrote this lament about being betrayed by a friend. It is one of the psalms containing prayers against false accusations, linked with an ordeal, the taking of an oath, or an appeal to the "higher court."
Notice the following references:
Verse 1: "vindicate me"
Verse 3: "strangers and the ruthless"
Verse 5: "enemies"
Verse 5: "faithfulness"
Also, notice the following:
Verses 1-2: an appeal
Verse 3: the danger facing the psalmist
Verses 4-5: the psalmist's confidence in God
Verses 6-7: the psalmist's promises to sacrifice a free-will offering to express "the voluntary gratitude of a thankful heart"
David does the following things:
1. He calls upon God to rescue him from violent enemies who are attacking him.
2. He asks God to turn his enemies' plans against them.
2. He will make a voluntary offering as a sacrifice to God for rescuing him from his enemies.
Psalm 55
READ PSALM 55. The psalm is a lament in which the psalmist grieves because he is surrounded by enemies, and one of his closest friends has betrayed him. This psalm is good to be used by anyone who has an enemy especially one who was once a friend.
Three divisions of Psalm 55
First Section - Verses 1-8. This section begins with a desperate appeal to God for deliverance (vs. 1–3) and then launches into a description of the psalmist's anguish and his desire for peace.
Second Section - Verses 9–15. This second section denounces the author's enemies, especially an individual described as "my equal" and "my familiar friend" who has turned against the psalmist (vss. 12–14). This second section closes with a wish that the speaker's enemies be swallowed alive in Sheol, a possible allusion to the fate of Korah.
Third Section - Verses 16-23. This final section is a confident meditation on God's justice. The psalmist is sure that God will save him and destroy the wicked. Verse 22 is quoted in 1 Peter 5:7
Make sure you know what was done to David and what justice he seeks. Read especially Psalm 55:15 and find out how David wants his enemies to be punished.
Psalm 56
READ PSALM 56. This psalm is about David's flight to Gath that is recorded in 1 Samuel 21:10–15. It is a prayer for help against enemies, ascribed to royal rites, as indicated by the interpretation of the "peoples" in verse 7 as foreign enemies, the references to national war in verses 1–2, 9, as well as the vows and thank-offerings (verse 12) which are particularly suitable for a king, and also the references to "death" and the "light of life" (verse 13) linked to royalty.
Like in Psalm 55, David calls out to God to rescue him from his enemies. David is comforted knowing that God is aware of all his troubles, and the psalmist promises to offer sacrifices to God.
Make sure you know what the psalmist's enemies are doing to him and how they are doing it. Then, notice what God does about David's grievance.
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