What does Psalm 34:15 mean?

David assures us that God watches over those who are "righteous," here meaning those who sincerely honor God in their lives (Psalm 34:9). He listens to our prayers and nothing is hidden from Him. He sees all our circumstances and provides what we need in each of them (Matthew 6:33–34). We can pray with confidence because He is listening to us. This verse implies that God attends and hears those who love Him—in contrast to the next verse, which depicts God judging and rejecting those who do not (Psalm 34:16).

Acts 12 relates that King Herod seized the apostle Peter and threw him into a dungeon, where four squads of soldiers guarded him. Herod fully intended to execute him by morning. But Herod did not count on the fact the Lord looks upon the righteous. He saw Peter and was fully aware of Peter's dire circumstances. While Peter was a prisoner and chained to two guards, his fellow believers were praying for him, and the Lord was attentive to their prayers. He dispatched an angel to free Peter. Peter's chains fell off, he got dressed, and followed the angel past the first and second deployment of guards and came to the iron gate that led into the city. When they entered a street, the angel left Peter, and Peter proceeded to the house of Mary, where his fellow believers were praying for him.

Nothing is too hard for God, who sees our circumstances and hears our prayers. What is hard, however, is for us to recognize that His will does not always mean miraculous rescue or immediate relief (John 17:15). That which we "need," according to His will (Romans 8:28–30), is not always what we want or what we expect.