A Study by Scott Sperling Psalm 34 Of David. When he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, who drove him away and left. 1 I will extol the LORD at all times; His praise will always be on my lips. 2 My soul will boast in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. 3 Glorify the LORD with me: let us exalt His name together.   4 I sought the LORD, and He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears. 5 Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame. 6 This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; He saved him out of all his troubles. 7 The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, and He delivers them. 8 Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him. 9 Fear the LORD, you His saints, for those who fear Him lack nothing. 10 The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.   11 Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD. 12 Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, 13 keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies. 14 Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.   15 The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and His ears are attentive to their cry; 16 the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth. 17 The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; He delivers them from all their troubles. 18 The LORD is close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. 19 A righteous man may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all; 20 He protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken. 21 Evil will slay the wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned. 22 The LORD redeems His servants; no-one will be condemned who takes refuge in Him.   According to the inscription, David wrote this psalm to commemorate "when he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, who drove him away, and he left."  This event occurred right after David first fled from Saul, who was trying to murder him. David fled to Gath, where he was recognized as he went before the king Achish.[11] David sensed (probably by the Spirit of God) that recognition of him could bring danger, so, as a ploy, he acted insane in front of Achish. Achish was revolted, and sent David away. (See I Sam. 21:10- 15 for the narrative concerning this episode). So this psalm was written in praise of the Lord's deliverance of David in that situation. David first praises the Lord (vs. 1), then encourages all to praise the Lord (vss. 2-3). David then relates (from his own experience) why he is praising the Lord (vss. 4-6). David then extrapolates from his experience a general doctrine concerning the righteous, thereby giving them reasons why they should praise the Lord (vss. 7-10). The rest of the psalm is a sermon (of sorts) directed specifically to the youth, teaching them how to have a good life (vss. 11-22). By the way, in the original language, this psalm was written in the form of an acrostic, with each verse beginning with a different letter of the Hebrew alphabet. I have come across the first part of a translation of this psalm that attempts to duplicate the acrostic in English. It begins: At all times bless Jehovah's name will I; His praise shall in my mouth be constantly; Boast in Jehovah shall my soul henceforth; Hear it, ye meek ones, and exult with mirth...[12] Psalm 34:1-3 Praise, and Exhortation to Praise 1 I will extol the LORD at all times; His praise will always be on my lips. 2 My soul will boast in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. 3 Glorify the LORD with me: let us exalt His name together.   It is good, nay essential, to commemorate special blessings of God with praise. And so, David begins his commemoration of God's deliverance of him from a dangerous situation with exuberant praise: "I will extol the LORD at all times; His praise will always be on my lips" (vs. 1). Note first that for David, the blessings of God in the past are worthy of a lifetime of praise. David is not conditioning his praise upon future events by saying, "Well, if the Lord blesses me in the future I will praise Him." No, David unconditionally states: "I will extol the LORD at all times." I dare say, God has blessed each and every one of us enough already to deserve a lifetime of praise. Note also, that David is not limiting his praise to one day of the week (such as, say, Sunday morning), but rather, David resolves to praise the Lord "at all times", and he resolves that the praise will "always be on [his] lips". We cannot praise the Lord enough. Praise of the Lord is never completed. Indeed, it is a blessing that the Lord of the Universe even accepts our meager attempts at praise. David sensed that his praise fell far short of what God deserved, and so David exhorts us all to join in: "My soul will boast in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. Glorify the LORD with me: let us exalt His name together" (vss. 2-3). It is a good thing, not only to praise, but to encourage others to praise the Lord. All would do well to praise the Lord. Fathers, teach your children to praise the Lord, and lead your families in praise to the Lord. Mothers, show your children how to lift high voices to the Lord. Yes, all would do well to praise the Lord. David even encourages those who are facing trials to praise the Lord: "Let the afflicted hear and rejoice" (vs. 2). In order to encourage others to praise, David "boasts"  in the Lord. To boast in oneself is wrong, but to boast in the Lord is a noble work. Yes indeed, there is a wrong and right way to boast. The Lord (through Jeremiah) teaches: "`Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,' declares the LORD" (Jer. 9:23-24). Psalm 34:4-10 Reasons to Praise the Lord  4 I sought the LORD, and He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears. 5 Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame. 6 This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; He saved him out of all his troubles. 7 The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, and He delivers them. 8 Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him. 9 Fear the LORD, you His saints, for those who fear Him lack nothing. 10 The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing. David has just said that he will praise the Lord, now he relates one of the reasons that he is praising the Lord: "I sought the LORD, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears" (vss. 4-6). David here recalls the event that this psalm is commemorating, as specified in the inscription: "When [David] pretended to be insane before Abimelech, who drove him away, and he left." When David went before Achish (the king referred to as"Abimelech" here), he "was very much afraid" (see I Sam. 21:12). The fear must have come on suddenly. David presented himself voluntarily to Achish (see I Sam. 21:10), presumably to seek protection from Saul. But when David heard the servants of Achish telling the king about David's military exploits (see I Sam. 21:11), David must have realized that they would take him hostage or (worse) even kill him in revenge. It was at this point that, I believe, David "sought the LORD" (vs. 4). So you see, David did not have much time to seek the Lord in this situation. He must have under his breath prayed a prayer of deliverance when he recognized the danger he was in. David speaks of God's response to his prayer: "He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears" (vs. 4). God is gracious: He hears and answers even our "spur- of-the-moment" prayers. I have often prayed a "spur- of-the-moment" prayer when I have unexpectedly found myself in a sticky situation. It is comforting that we have examples in the Bible of God answering such prayers. There is an example of another such prayer in the book of Nehemiah. Nehemiah, a cupbearer for the king while he was in exile in Babylon, had been praying that he would be able to return to Israel (see Neh. 1:5ff). One day, he went before the king who noticed his dejection (see Neh. 2:1-3). Nehemiah tells of the episode: "The king said to me, `What is it you want?' Then I prayed to the God of heaven, and I answered the king, `If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my fathers are buried so that I can rebuild it'" (Neh. 2:4-5). Notice that Nehemiah's "spur-of-the-moment" prayer was sandwiched between the king's question and his own answer: very extemporaneous! God answered Nehemiah's prayer, and the king allowed him to return to Israel (see Neh. 2:6). Praise God that He answers these "spur-of-the-moment" prayers! Praise Him that we don't have to be in a church to pray, or be in a certain bodily position to pray, or be at the Western Wall to pray. Praise Him that anywhere, anyway, our prayers are heard and answered. David continues: "Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame" (vs. 5). This is interesting because many people think that the episode that David was commemorating was shameful. They think it was shameful for David to act as an insane person in order to escape Achish. Apparently, David didn't feel shamed. Though his behavior may have seemed shameful, David maintains that "those who look to [the Lord] are radiant; their faces never covered with shame." David's standing comes from the fact that he "looks to [the Lord]". Fortunately for us, God does not look at our standing in man's eyes to determine whether to answer our prayers. David points this out: "This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; He saved him out of all his troubles"(vs. 6). Now, we usually do not think of David as a "poor man", but for much of his life, he was not very well off. He spent his youth as a lowly shepherd. At the time of this episode, David's standing (from man's point of view) was not all that good. Though anointed to be the future king of Israel by Samuel (see I Sam. 9), David was fleeing the current king Saul, who was trying to kill him. Usually, when a king wants someone dead, he ends up dead. Surely, in this respect, David was a "poor man". But the Lord hears him anyway. God "does not show favoritism"  based on human standing (see Acts 10:34-35). The homeless person living on the street has as much an opportunity for God to hear his prayer as the president of the country. Praise the Lord for this! Having spoken of one reason that he is praising the Lord, David next extrapolates his own experiences to all the faithful, and gives us reasons that we all should praise the Lord. First, we should praise Him because of His protection and deliverance: "The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, and He delivers them" (vs. 7). Deliverance comes not only to David, but to all "who fear Him". Many commentators (including myself) believe that the designation "the angel of the LORD" refers in the Old Testament to Jesus Christ. This is supported here by the fact that David says that the "angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear Him, and He delivers them." The pronouns "Him" and "He" refer back to "the angel of the LORD". These pronouns seem to refer to God Himself, not to a "regular" angel. In other appearances, the "angel of the LORD" accepts the praise and worship of people, and acts with Godly authority and power.[13] These appearances support the contention that "the angel of the Lord" is none other than Jesus Christ. David continues with another reason for us all to praise the Lord is because of His goodness and the blessings He showers upon us: "Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him" (vs. 8). Also, in this verse, David implicitly refers to the Lord's accessibility to all. He encourages us all to "taste and see that the LORD is good." God is not hidden away on some holy mountain. He is very near us. We all have access to Him and His goodness. All we need do is "taste and see that the LORD is good." This seems so easy. Just give the Lord a try. So many do not know the goodness of the Lord because they won't give Him a try. They brood over theoretical objections: "Why is there so much evil in the world? How could a loving God allow suffering? What about those who have never heard of Jesus, are they condemned to hell?, etc." They brood and brood, and refuse to "taste and see that the LORD is good." Many even go to church, but still do not taste. Hearing a sermon is not tasting. One must seek a relationship with God and walk with Him in order to "taste". Once one does this, they see the goodness of God, they experience it for themselves, and through understanding given by the Holy Spirit, all their objections are answered. "Taste and see that the LORD is good." Yet another reason for us all to praise the Lord is because of the satisfaction that we find in Him: "Fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him lack nothing. The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing"  (vss. 9-10). Isn't this what we want in life: to "lack no good thing"? David, of course, is not promising luxuries; rather, he is promising satisfaction, even fulfillment, in life. When you walk with the Lord, your life has purpose, direction, meaning. No, you may not be rich in a worldly sense, but you will "lack no good thing". This is set in contrast to "the lions", who "may grow weak and hungry". For some reason, we envy the strong predator, without realizing that preying upon others is a miserable, unloved existence. Psalm 34:11-22 - A Sermon for the Children 11 Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD. 12 Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, 13 keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies. 14 Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.   15 The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and His ears are attentive to their cry; 16 the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth. 17 The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; He delivers them from all their troubles. 18 The LORD is close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. 19 A righteous man may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all; 20 He protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken. 21 Evil will slay the wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned. 22 The LORD redeems His servants; no-one will be condemned who takes refuge in Him. David uses the rest of the psalm for teaching: "Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD" (vs. 11). David chooses as his students for this lesson "my children". This is a sermon for the youth. The importance of teaching children about the things of the Lord cannot be stressed enough. The ministry of teaching Sunday school to children is very important. Here David takes that chore on, so it must be a job fit for a king! Far too many churches relegate the job of teaching Sunday school to anyone who will volunteer. Emphasis is put on supervisory skills rather than the ability to communicate God's truth. The Sunday school teacher should love children, love the Lord, know the Bible, and have a great desire to teach God's truths lovingly and accurately to children. David here speaks to the children concerning "the fear of the LORD". This is a very important subject to teach children. For the most part, a whole generation of children have been brought up not to fear the Lord. Look where it leads: crime, corruption, lack of respect for anything. People say, "Well, I want to teach the children to love the Lord, not to fear the Lord." I say, "Teach both! They should learn to love and fear the Lord." The two are not mutually exclusive. Children naturally learn to love and fear their own parents. Love comes from the caregiving of the parents; fear comes from the discipline of the parents. Children fear doing wrong in front of their parents because of the punishment they will receive. This fear does not prevent them from loving their parents. So also, the fear of the Lord does not stop people from loving the Lord. Being taught to love the Lord without being taught to fear the Lord leads to a wrong understanding of God. It leads to seeing God as the cheerful, loving "man upstairs", who never gets mad at anything. This is a wrong concept of God. God does get mad! God gets mad because God is holy. He hates sin, and will not tolerate sin. Fear of the Lord comes from the realization that God is holy, as well as the realization that God is powerful. God hates sin and has the power to punish sin. Thus, we should fear the Lord, have reverence for His holiness, because we know He has the power to discipline us if we disobey Him. Fear of the Lord, then, naturally manifests itself in obedience to the commands of the Lord. Make no mistake, fear of the Lord is a necessary trait of all believers. Solomon teaches: "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom" (Prov. 9:10). Again, it is the "beginning of wisdom". This means that no one can truly understand the things of God unless they first have "fear of the LORD". As stated, the fear of the Lord manifests itself in obedience to God's commands. David goes on to teach that such obedience is necessary to living a good, long life: "Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies. Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it" (vss. 12-14). Isn't this what we all want: a long, good life? Don't we all "love life" and "desire to see many good days"? Here is the secret of such a life then: "Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies. Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it." This is a beautifully simple message that even a child can understand, and yet, it is the secret of long, good life. Countless volumes written by the philosophers of the world can be thrown away and replaced with these three verses from the Bible. The thrust of David's advice is to "turn from evil" (i.e., repent) "and do good". In support of this, David gives two exhortations that, if followed, will greatly send one on the way to "doing good". David says, "Seek peace and pursue it." To be at peace with God and at peace with man requires turning from evil and doing good. You cannot be at peace and live a sinful life. Peace with God and peace with man is at the heart of the Ten Commandments: the first five commandments concern peace with God, the last five commandments concern peace with man. It sounds easy: "Seek peace", but for sinful man such peace is difficult. David realized this, so he adds "and pursue it". Peace seems to get away so easily! We must keep chasing it! The other exhortation that David gives in support of "doing good" is: "Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies." David knew that it is our tongues that get us in the most trouble. The tongue is a weapon of sin that we always have with us. As James taught: "No man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison" (James 3:10). If we made a sincere effort to tame our tongues, we would go a long way in"turning from evil and doing good". Unfortunately, there are many ways to sin with the tongue. William Plumer lists more than forty: "Speaking becomes sinful when it is hasty, rash, continual, unseasonable, excessive, clamorous, senseless, unchaste, indelicate, impure, filthy, prevaricating, quibbling, deceitful, lying, slanderous, tattling, babbling, backbiting, detractive, reproachful, opprobrious, flatteringly seductive, betraying confidence, revealing secrets, awakening groundless suspicions, talebearing, news-carrying, railing, reviling, boastful, scornful, desperate, murmuring, foolish, egotistical, vain, proud, malignant, bitter, resentful, cursing, profane, or blasphemous."[14] Mr. Plumer also eloquently states the consequences of not taming our tongue: "Sins of the tongue lead to horrors of conscience, loss of peace of mind and loss of appetite; to broils, quarrels and bitter contentions; to fightings stabbings shootings and murders."[15]  Though it is noble for a society to allow "free speech", each Christian must do his best not to allow himself "free speech". "Free speech" can get you into a lot of trouble! David concludes the psalm by contrasting in a number of ways the benefits of living a life in the "fear of the LORD", versus living an ungodly life. First, "The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and His ears are attentive to their cry; the face of the LORD is against those who do evil" (vss. 15-16). Just as earthly parents are attentive particularly to the cries of their children, so also is God particularly attentive to the cries of His children. Implicit here is how the godly and the ungodly view the presence of God. The presence of God is a great blessing to us, but is a bane to the evildoer. "The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; He delivers them from all their troubles. The LORD is close to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. A righteous man may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all; He protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken" (vs. 17-20). The Bible is frank and truthful. Even the children of God will have "troubles". The difference between our troubles and the troubles of the ungodly is that God will deliver us from our troubles. Yes, we may be brought to a place of "broken- heartedness"; yes, we may be allowed to be "crushed in spirit", but these things are for our good. As Jesus taught: "Blessed is the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 5:3). Believe it or not, to be "broken-hearted" before God, to be "crushed in spirit"  before God, is the best place to be. It is the beginning of a new life. It is the realization that we need God: we can't make it on our own. This will lead to dependence on God, to clinging to God, and ultimately to the salvation of God: "Evil will slay the wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned. The LORD redeems His servants; no-one will be condemned who takes refuge in Him" (vss. 21-22). Oh, Father, we praise You for the redemption that You have provided for us. We were lost; our souls were bankrupt; our lives meant nothing; but You redeemed us and gave our lives meaning that will last throughout eternity. We praise You for bringing us to a place of broken-heartedness so that we would know that we need You and the salvation that only You provide. We praise You for sending Your Son, who made our complete redemption possible. It is in His name that we pray these things, Amen. ----------- Bibliography and Suggested Reading Alexander, Joseph Addison. The Psalms Translated and Explained.  Edinburgh: Andrew Elliot, 1864.  Anonymous.  A Plain Commentary on the Book of Psalms. Philadelphia:  Henry Hooker and Co., 1857. Barnes, Albert.  Notes on the Book of Psalms.  New York:  Harper & Brothers Publishing, 1871. Bonar, Andrew. Christ and His Church in the Book of Psalms.  New York:  Robert Carter & Brothers, 1860. Calvin, John.  A Commentary on the Book of Psalms.  3 Vols.  Oxford: D. A. Talboys, 1840. (Originally published in Latin in 1557).  Clarke, Adam. The Holy Bible with a Commentary and Critical Notes.  Vol. III.  London:  William Tegg & Co., 1854.  (Originally published in 1831).  Cowles, Henry.  The Psalms with Notes, Critical, Explanatory and Practical.  New York:  D. Appleton & Co., 1872. Darby, John Nelson.  Practical Reflections on the Psalms.  London:  Robert L. Allan, 1870. Delitzsch, Franz.  Biblical Commentary on the Psalms. Edinburgh:  T & T Clark, 1892. (Originally published in 1860). Dickson, David. An Explication of the Other Fifty Psalms, from Ps. 50 to Ps. 100. Cornhill, U.K.:  Ralph Smith, 1653.  Exell, Joseph S. and Henry Donald Spence-Jones, eds. The Pulpit Commentary. Vols. 17, 18, & 19. New York: Funk & Wagnalls Company, 1884.  Hengstenberg, F. W.  Commentary on the Psalms.  Edinburgh:  T & T Clark, 1864. Henry, Matthew.  An Exposition of All the Books of the Old and New Testament.  Vol. II.  London: W. Baynes, 1806. (Originally published in 1710). Horne, George. A Commentary on the Book of Psalms.  New York:  Robert Carter & Brothers, 1854. Jamieson, Robert; Fausset, A. R.; Brown, David.  A Commentary: Critical, Experimental, and Practical on the Old and New Testaments.  Glasgow:  William Collins, Queen’s Printer, 1863. Kidner, Derek. Psalms (in 2 Vols.). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2008 (first published in 1975). Kirkpatrick, A. F. The Book of Psalms with Introduction and Notes – Books II and III (from The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges). Cambridge, UK: University Press, 1895. Lange, John Peter, ed. and Philip Schaff, trans.  A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures: Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical.  New York:  Charles Scribner & Co., 1865.  Maclaren, Alexander. The Psalms (in 3 Vols., from The Expositor’s Bible, ed. by W. R. Nicoll). New York: A. C. Armstrong and Son, 1901. Perowne, J. J. Stewart.  The Book of Psalms:  A New Translation with Explanatory Notes.  London:  George Bell & Sons, 1880. Plumer, William S.  Studies in the Book of Psalms.  Philadelphia:  J. B. Lippincott & Co., 1872. Scott, Thomas. Commentary on the Holy Bible, Vol. III. London: James Nisbet, 1866. Spurgeon, Charles.  The Treasury of David.  6 Vols.  London: Marshall Brothers, Ltd., 1885. Tholuck, Augustus.  A Translation and Commentary of the Book of Psalms.  Philadelphia:  Martien, 1858. Trapp, John.  A Commentary on the Old and New Testaments. Vol. II (Ezra to Psalms).  Edmonton, Canada: Still Waters Revival Books (www.PuritanDownloads.com). (Originally published c. 1660). VanGemeren, Willem A., (Gaebelein, Frank E., ed).  Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Vol. 5 – Psalms to Song of Songs.  Grand Rapids, MI:  Zondervan, 1991. -------- Many of these books (those in public domain) can be downloaded free of charge from:  http://www.ClassicChristianLibrary.com