Psalm 34
Psalm 34:1-7 I will extol the Lord at all times; his praise will always be on my lips. My soul will boast in the Lord; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt his name together. I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame. This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them. Taste and see that the Lord is good;
blessed is the man who takes refuge 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. Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. 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. 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, to cut off the memory of them from the earth. The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted 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. 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.
The title of Psalm 34 says this: Of David. When he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, who drove him away, and he left. This is referring to the episode when David feigned madness before Achish, king of Gath. The name “Abimelech” literally means “my father is king” in Hebrew. Abimelech is most probably Achish’s proper title as a Philistine ruler, whereas, Achish is his personal name.
This part of David’s life is recorded in 1 Samuel 21:10-15: That day David fled from Saul and went to Achish king of Gath. But the servants of Achish said to him, “Isn’t this David, the king of the land? Isn’t he the one they sing about in their dances: ‘Saul has slain his thousands,
and David his tens of thousands’?” David took these words to heart and was very much afraid of Achish king of Gath. So he pretended to be insane in their presence; and while he was in their hands he acted like a madman, making marks on the doors of the gate and letting saliva run down his beard. Achish said to his servants, “Look at the man! He is insane! Why bring him to me? Am I so short of madmen that you have to bring this fellow here to carry on like this in front of me? Must this man come into my house?”
The message from our series on David’s life containing this section of text is part 8 in the “After God’s Own Heart” series which was preached on February 20, 2022. The message is titled “Coming Out After Caving In.” Here is the link to that message: https://godsfort.org/sermons/after-gods-own-heart-part-8-coming-out-after-caving-in/
David had fallen into this circumstance by events of his own making. He had began to scheme and manipulate hoping to better his current situation only to realize that he was actually putting himself in great jeopardy being in enemy territory. So, David pretended to be mad so that they would let him go. This also may have led the Philistines to believe that a mad king would be no threat to them.
PRAY
Father grant me the strength and courage to trust in you and not in my own efforts when all the world seems to be closing in around me.