A Song or Psalm of David.

O God, my heart is fixed;
I will sing and give praise, even with my glory.
Awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early.
I will praise Thee, O LORD, among the people:
and I will sing praises unto Thee among the nations.
For Thy mercy is great above the heavens:
and Thy truth reacheth unto the clouds.
Be Thou exalted, O God, above the heavens:
and Thy glory above all the earth.

That Thy beloved may be delivered,
save with Thy right hand, and answer me.
God hath spoken in His holiness; “I will rejoice,
I will divide Shechem, and mete out the valley of Succoth.
Gilead is Mine; Manasseh is Mine;
Ephraim also is the strength of My head; Judah is My lawgiver;
Moab is My washpot; over Edom will I cast out My shoe;
over Philistia will I triumph.”
Who will bring me into the strong city? who will lead me into Edom?
Wilt not Thou, O God, who hast cast us off?
and wilt not Thou, O God, go forth with our hosts?
Give us help from trouble: for vain is the help of man.
Through God we shall do valiantly,
for He it is that shall tread down our enemies.

A Medley of Psalms

How very interesting that verses 1-5 are almost identical to Psalm 57:7-11 and verses 6-13 are nearly the same as verses 5-12 of Psalm 60.

Why Put These Two Together?

The next question in my mind is: Why were these two portions put together? We may never know the answer to that question. Albert Barnes, one of my favorite commentators, thinks it was done for a special occasion, although it could have been done for the mere purpose of art.

1. For Art?

I noticed that this psalm, as well as Psalm 57, is written for the psaltery and harp, whereas Psalm 60 was written for trumpet. Perhaps the chief musician wanted to adapt the text of Psalm 60 for the psaltery and harp.

2. For a Special Occasion?

Or perhaps there was some other occasion in the which both of these psalms, put together, seemed appropriate. Rosenmuller supposes that this compilation was created as a national hymn on the occasion of the return from Babylonian captivity. Granted, David was long gone by then; yet it still makes sense that his name would be on the psalm if the arranger wished to give credit to the original author of the lyrics.

❧           ❧           ❧

O God, my heart is fixed… “Settled; established; firm; stable.” The speaker is determined and unwavering in his commitment to the Lord.

I will sing and give praise, even with my glory… Literally, “truly my glory,” this phrase seems to correspond with “Awake up, my glory,” from Psalm 57:8, and it means that it was the speaker’s glory, his honor, to be employed in giving praise to God. There is no more noble or mighty work than the giving of praise to our God.

And he is absolutely right. Is your heart fixed today? Do you consider it your glory, your honor, to give praise to God? If so, then tell me below what great things He has done for you.

For more commentary on this psalm, see my articles on Psalm 57 and Psalm 60.

❧          ❧          ❧

Reference: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible. SwordSearcher. Study Lamp Software, LLC: Broken Arrow, OK, 2017.

Photo taken in Shenandoah, VA, 2014