I will not be afraid of many thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around.
David, stripped of his kingdom and hunted by his own son, had every reason to despair, yet he clung to God's promise against mockery and death itself. He makes no mention of his sins here, his adultery and the blood of Uriah, which means this psalm captures only one part of his prayer; the full anguish of God's punishment for those crimes came first.
AI summary
Commenting on Psalm 3:1-8
Buckling on his harness for the day's battle, our hero sings, "I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people, that have set themselves against me round about." Observe that he does not attempt to under- estimate the number or wisdom of his enemies. He reckons them at tens of thousands, and he views them as cunning huntsmen chasing him with cruel skill.
In every difficulty David had been driven to his knees, crying to God with his whole voice, and God had always answered him from His holy mountain. When care and grief turn us to earnest prayer, not mere sound but real fervency of heart, God takes notice and accounts it to us.
AI summary
Commenting on Psalm 3:4-8