Psalm 59 Summary - 5 Minute Bible Study
Psalm 59 Short Summary:
In Psalm 59, David was being pursued by evil men that he compared to prowling bloodthirsty dogs. These evil men lived as if God was unaware of their actions, but David knew they were mistaken. The God of Heaven was looking down at them with distaste, and David knew the day was coming when God would humble them. In the meantime, God was David’s fortress.
Psalm 59 Summary
AUTHOR:
David authored Psalm 59.
NEW TESTAMENT REFERENCES:
No Known New Testament References.
THEMES:
Evil men, like unsatiable dogs, try to devour the righteous.
God is a fortress of steadfast love.
DEFINITIONS:
Derision (59:8) – To ridicule or to view as ridiculous.
According to Do Not Destory (59:1) – This phrase appears in Psalm 57, 58, and 59. Scholars are still working to discover the meaning.
Miktam (59:1) – No one knows the precise meaning of the word Miktam. Maybe one day a new archeological find will reveal it to us.
OUTLINE:
*CONTEXT: In 1 Samuel 19:11, King Saul posted men outside David’s house to kill him. David, with the help of his wife, escaped out of his window. David survived, but Saul gave his wife to another man (1 Sam 25:44).
A REQUEST FOR DELIVERANCE TO THE GOD OF STEADFAST LOVE (59:1-17):
Psalm 59 is similar in theme to many of David’s previous psalms. It’s a prayer to God for deliverance from enemies.
David wrote, “Deliver me from my enemies, O my God; protect me from those who rise up against me” (59:1).
David knew the mistreatment he was experiencing wasn’t the result of a personal sin (59:3), rather it was because of the twisted hearts of evil men bent on harming him.
His enemies were like bloodthirsty dogs constantly on the prowl for him.
They lived as if God had no awareness of their evil (59:7).
David called on the Lord to rouse Himself and punish these men (59:5).
He knew that God was aware of their actions and looked down on them with derision (59:8).
He asked God not to kill his enemies but to humble them so they could serve as visible examples of how God judges proud men.
On the day of God’s deliverance, David would sing praises to God for being a fortress of steadfast love.
APPLICATION:
We don’t all have the kind of enemies that David had. David was a significant political figure who led large groups of people, and that role inevitably comes with a lot of enemies.
I know I don’t personally have earthly enemies constantly oppressing me to the point of exhaustion.
But one way we can relate to these psalms and pray these prayers is in relation to our spiritual enemy (Satan) and our spiritual struggle.
Satan is always bothering us, putting temptations in front of our face, pressuring us to do things, and trying to make our lives hard.
I have felt exhaustion resisting temptation and fighting the good fight every day, and you probably have as well.
When we apply these psalms in a spiritual sense, they become much more relatable to the average person, and I think they are instructive in how we should pray to God about our spiritual struggle.
