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Psalm chapter 56

English Standard Version

1 Be gracious to me, O God, for man tramples on me; all day long an attacker oppresses me; 2my enemies trample on me all day long, for many attack me proudly. 3When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. 4In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can flesh do to me? 5All day long they injure my cause; all their thoughts are against me for evil. 6They stir up strife, they lurk; they watch my steps, as they have waited for my life. 7For their crime will they escape? In wrath cast down the peoples, O God! 8You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book? 9Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call. This I know, that God is for me. 10In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise, 11in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me? 12I must perform my vows to you, O God; I will render thank offerings to you. 13 For you have delivered my soul from death, yes, my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.
New International Version

1For the director of music. To the tune of "A Dove on Distant Oaks." Of David. A miktam. When the Philistines had seized him in Gath. Be merciful to me, my God, for my enemies are in hot pursuit; all day long they press their attack.
2My adversaries pursue me all day long; in their pride many are attacking me. 3When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.
4In God, whose word I praise— in God I trust and am not afraid. What can mere mortals do to me? 5All day long they twist my words; all their schemes are for my ruin. 6They conspire, they lurk, they watch my steps, hoping to take my life.
7Because of their wickedness do not let them escape; in your anger, God, bring the nations down. 8Record my misery; list my tears on your scroll — are they not in your record?
9Then my enemies will turn back when I call for help. By this I will know that God is for me. 10In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise—
11in God I trust and am not afraid. What can man do to me? 12I am under vows to you, my God; I will present my thank offerings to you. 13For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.
New American Standard Bible

1Be gracious to me, God, for a man has trampled upon me; Fighting all day long he oppresses me. 2My enemies have trampled upon me all day long, For they are many who fight proudly against me. 3 When I am afraid, I will put my trust in You. 4In God, whose word I praise, In God I have put my trust; I shall not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me? 5All day long they distort my words; All their thoughts are against me for evil. 6They attack, they lurk, They watch my steps, As they have waited to take my life. 7Because of their wickedness, will there be an escape for them? In anger make the peoples fall down, God! 8You have taken account of my miseries; Put my tears in Your bottle. Are they not in Your book? 9Then my enemies will turn back on the day when I call; This I know, that God is for me. 10In God, whose word I praise, In the Lord, whose word I praise, 11In God I have put my trust, I shall not be afraid. What can mankind do to me? 12Your vows are binding upon me, God; I will render thanksgiving offerings to You. 13For You have saved my soul from death, Indeed my feet from stumbling, So that I may walk before God In the light of the living.
Christian Standard Bible

1For the choir director: according to "A Silent Dove Far Away." A Miktam of David. When the Philistines seized him in Gath. Be gracious to me, God, for a man is trampling me; he fights and oppresses me all day long.
2My adversaries trample me all day, for many arrogantly fight against me. 3When I am afraid, I will trust in you.
4In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me? 5They twist my words all day long; all their thoughts against me are evil. 6They stir up strife, they lurk; they watch my steps while they wait to take my life.
7Will they escape in spite of such sin? God, bring down the nations in wrath. 8You yourself have recorded my wanderings. Put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?
9Then my enemies will retreat on the day when I call. This I know: God is for me. 10In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise,
11in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mere humans do to me? 12I am obligated by vows to you, God; I will make my thank offerings to you. 13For you rescued me from death, even my feet from stumbling, to walk before God in the light of life.
New Living Translation

1 O God, have mercy on me, for people are hounding me. My foes attack me all day long. 2I am constantly hounded by those who slander me, and many are boldly attacking me. 3But when I am afraid, I will put my trust in you. 4I praise God for what he has promised. I trust in God, so why should I be afraid? What can mere mortals do to me?
5They are always twisting what I say; they spend their days plotting to harm me. 6They come together to spy on me — watching my every step, eager to kill me. 7Don’t let them get away with their wickedness; in your anger, O God, bring them down.
8You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.
9My enemies will retreat when I call to you for help. This I know: God is on my side! 10I praise God for what he has promised; yes, I praise the Lord for what he has promised. 11I trust in God, so why should I be afraid? What can mere mortals do to me?
12I will fulfill my vows to you, O God, and will offer a sacrifice of thanks for your help. 13For you have rescued me from death; you have kept my feet from slipping. So now I can walk in your presence, O God, in your life-giving light.
King James Version

1To the chief Musician upon Jonathelemrechokim, Michtam of David, when the Philistines took him in Gath.Be merciful unto me, O God: for man would swallow me up; he fighting daily oppresseth me.
2Mine enemies would daily swallow me up: for they be many that fight against me, O thou most High.
3What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.
4In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.
5Every day they wrest my words: all their thoughts are against me for evil.
6They gather themselves together, they hide themselves, they mark my steps, when they wait for my soul.
7Shall they escape by iniquity? in thine anger cast down the people, O God.
8Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book?
9When I cry unto thee, then shall mine enemies turn back: this I know; for God is for me.
10In God will I praise his word: in the Lord will I praise his word.
11In God have I put my trust: I will not be afraid what man can do unto me.
12Thy vows are upon me, O God: I will render praises unto thee.
13For thou hast delivered my soul from death: wilt not thou deliver my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living?
New King James Version

1{To the Chief Musician. Set to “The Silent Dove in Distant Lands.” A Michtam of David when the Philistines captured him in Gath.} Be merciful to me, O God, for man would swallow me up; Fighting all day he oppresses me. 2My enemies would hound me all day, For there are many who fight against me, O Most High. 3Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. 4In God (I will praise His word), In God I have put my trust; I will not fear. What can flesh do to me? 5All day they twist my words; All their thoughts are against me for evil. 6They gather together, They hide, they mark my steps, When they lie in wait for my life. 7Shall they escape by iniquity? In anger cast down the peoples, O God! 8You number my wanderings; Put my tears into Your bottle; Are they not in Your book? 9When I cry out to You, Then my enemies will turn back; This I know, because God is for me. 10In God (I will praise His word), In the Lord (I will praise His word), 11In God I have put my trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? 12Vows made to You are binding upon me, O God; I will render praises to You, 13 For You have delivered my soul from death. Have You not kept my feet from falling, That I may walk before God In the light of the living?

What does Psalm chapter 56 mean?

David wrote this psalm in response to his experiences in Gath. He had fled there to escape Saul (1 Samuel 19:1–2, 18; 21:10–15). David pretended to be insane when captured by the Philistines so they would not see him as a threat. The song echoes themes common in Psalms, such as trust in the Lord despite danger and a commitment to praise God for His provision. The song is probably meant to be set to a tune called "The Dove on Far-Off Terebinths."

Opening phrases set the tone for the rest of the song. David prays for rescue from the constant threat of his enemies. Despite this, he resolves to respond with trust in the Lord. David asks, rhetorically, what possible danger could earthly men be compared to the power of God (Psalm 56:1–4).

David's enemies act with hate and malice. They have driven him into the wilderness (1 Samuel 19:1–2, 18; 20:1; 23:15). Yet David is confident that God is aware of these struggles. Even further, God is depicted as treasuring David's suffering: symbolically saving all of David's tears. This highlights the biblical teaching that no suffering is purposeless. God sees, knows, and will account for everything in the end. This assurance once again leads David to trust the Lord, giving Him praise (Psalm 56:5–11).

The psalm ends with David's commitment to publicly thank God for His deliverance. As he does in other songs (Psalm 3:7–8; 9:5–6; 52:9), David speaks of rescue as if it has already happened. Faith leads David to trust, being fully confident he will once again praise the Lord in safety (Psalm 56:12–13).
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