Psalms 57 (GNV)

Chapter Text

57:1 To him that excelleth. Destroy not. A Psalme of David on Michtam. When he fled from Saul in the cave. Have mercie vpon me, O God, haue mercie vpon me: for my soule trusteth in thee, and in the shadowe of thy wings wil I trust, till these afflictions ouerpasse.

57:2 I will call vnto the most high God, euen to the God, that performeth his promise toward me.

57:3 He will send from heauen, and saue me from the reproofe of him that would swallowe me. Selah. God wil send his mercy, and his trueth.

57:4 My soule is among lions: I lie among the children of men, that are set on fire: whose teeth are speares and arrowes, and their tongue a sharpe sworde.

57:5 Exalt thy selfe, O God, aboue the heauen, and let thy glory be vpon all the earth.

57:6 They haue layd a net for my steps: my soule is pressed downe: they haue digged a pit before me, and are fallen into the mids of it. Selah.

57:7 Mine heart is prepared, O God, mine heart is prepared: I will sing and giue prayse.

57:8 Awake my tongue, awake viole and harpe: I wil awake early.

57:9 I will prayse thee, O Lord, among the people, and I wil sing vnto thee among the nations.

57:10 For thy mercie is great vnto the heauens, and thy trueth vnto the cloudes.

57:11 Exalt thy selfe, O God, aboue the heauens, and let thy glory be vpon all the earth.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "mercy", "excelleth", "destroy", "psalme", "david", "michtam", "fled", and "saul". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "mercy" and "excelleth", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The local GNV text gives this verse as the immediate unit, so "mercy" and "excelleth" carries the first interpretive weight. In Psalms context, the local focus is worship, trust, the LORD's kingship, and covenant mercy.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "mercy" and "excelleth" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.