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Verse
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Psalm chapter 57

English Standard Version

1 Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge, till the storms of destruction pass by. 2I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me. 3 He will send from heaven and save me; he will put to shame him who tramples on me. Selah God will send out his steadfast love and his faithfulness! 4My soul is in the midst of lions; I lie down amid fiery beasts — the children of man, whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords. 5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth! 6They set a net for my steps; my soul was bowed down. They dug a pit in my way, but they have fallen into it themselves. Selah 7 My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast! I will sing and make melody! 8 Awake, my glory! Awake, O harp and lyre! I will awake the dawn! 9I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations. 10For your steadfast love is great to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds. 11 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth!
New International Version

1For the director of music. To the tune of "Do Not Destroy." Of David. A miktam. When he had fled from Saul into the cave. Have mercy on me, my God, have mercy on me, for in you I take refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed. 2I cry out to God Most High, to God, who vindicates me.
3He sends from heaven and saves me, rebuking those who hotly pursue me— God sends forth his love and his faithfulness.
4I am in the midst of lions; I am forced to dwell among ravenous beasts— men whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords.
5Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth.
6They spread a net for my feet— I was bowed down in distress. They dug a pit in my path— but they have fallen into it themselves. 7My heart, O God, is steadfast, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and make music.
8Awake, my soul! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn. 9I will praise you, Lord, among the nations; I will sing of you among the peoples.
10For great is your love, reaching to the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies. 11Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth.
New American Standard Bible

1Be gracious to me, God, be gracious to me, For my soul takes refuge in You; And in the shadow of Your wings I will take refuge Until destruction passes by. 2I will cry to God Most High, To God who accomplishes all things for me. 3He will send from heaven and save me; He rebukes the one who tramples upon me. Selah God will send His favor and His truth. 4My soul is among lions; I must lie among those who devour, Among sons of mankind whose teeth are spears and arrows, And their tongue is a sharp sword. 5Be exalted above the heavens, God; May Your glory be above all the earth. 6They have prepared a net for my steps; My soul is bowed down; They dug a pit before me; They themselves have fallen into the midst of it. Selah 7My heart is steadfast, God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises! 8Awake, my glory! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn. 9I will praise You, Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to You among the nations. 10For Your goodness is great to the heavens And Your truth to the clouds. 11Be exalted above the heavens, God; May Your glory be above all the earth.
Christian Standard Bible

1For the choir director: "Do Not Destroy." A Miktam of David. When he fled before Saul into the cave. Be gracious to me, God, be gracious to me, for I take refuge in you. I will seek refuge in the shadow of your wings until danger passes. 2I call to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me.
3He reaches down from heaven and saves me, challenging the one who tramples me. Selah God sends his faithful love and truth. 4I am surrounded by lions; I lie down among devouring lions— people whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords. 5God, be exalted above the heavens; let your glory be over the whole earth.
6They prepared a net for my steps; I was despondent. They dug a pit ahead of me, but they fell into it! Selah 7My heart is confident, God, my heart is confident. I will sing; I will sing praises. 8Wake up, my soul! Wake up, harp and lyre! I will wake up the dawn. 9I will praise you, Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations. 10For your faithful love is as high as the heavens; your faithfulness reaches the clouds. 11God, be exalted above the heavens; let your glory be over the whole earth.
New Living Translation

1 Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy! I look to you for protection. I will hide beneath the shadow of your wings until the danger passes by. 2I cry out to God Most High, to God who will fulfill his purpose for me.
3He will send help from heaven to rescue me, disgracing those who hound me. Interlude My God will send forth his unfailing love and faithfulness.
4I am surrounded by fierce lions who greedily devour human prey — whose teeth pierce like spears and arrows, and whose tongues cut like swords.
5Be exalted, O God, above the highest heavens! May your glory shine over all the earth.
6My enemies have set a trap for me. I am weary from distress. They have dug a deep pit in my path, but they themselves have fallen into it. Interlude
7My heart is confident in you, O God; my heart is confident. No wonder I can sing your praises! 8Wake up, my heart! Wake up, O lyre and harp! I will wake the dawn with my song. 9I will thank you, Lord, among all the people. I will sing your praises among the nations. 10For your unfailing love is as high as the heavens. Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
11Be exalted, O God, above the highest heavens. May your glory shine over all the earth.
King James Version

1To the chief Musician, Altaschith, Michtam of David, when he fled from Saul in the cave. Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast.
2I will cry unto God most high; unto God that performeth all things for me.
3He shall send from heaven, and save me from the reproach of him that would swallow me up. Selah. God shall send forth his mercy and his truth.
4My soul is among lions: and I lie even among them that are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword.
5Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; let thy glory be above all the earth.
6They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down: they have digged a pit before me, into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves. Selah.
7My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.
8Awake up, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early.
9I will praise thee, O Lord, among the people: I will sing unto thee among the nations.
10For thy mercy is great unto the heavens, and thy truth unto the clouds.
11Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens: let thy glory be above all the earth.
New King James Version

1{To the Chief Musician. Set to “Do Not Destroy.” A Michtam of David when he fled from Saul into the cave.} Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me! For my soul trusts in You; And in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge, Until these calamities have passed by. 2I will cry out to God Most High, To God who performs all things for me.
3 He shall send from heaven and save me; He reproaches the one who would swallow me up. Selah God shall send forth His mercy and His truth. 4My soul is among lions; I lie among the sons of men Who are set on fire, Whose teeth are spears and arrows, And their tongue a sharp sword. 5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; Let Your glory be above all the earth.
6 They have prepared a net for my steps; My soul is bowed down; They have dug a pit before me; Into the midst of it they themselves have fallen. Selah
7 My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and give praise. 8Awake, my glory! Awake, lute and harp! I will awaken the dawn. 9 I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing to You among the nations. 10 For Your mercy reaches unto the heavens, And Your truth unto the clouds. 11 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; Let Your glory be above all the earth.

What does Psalm chapter 57 mean?

This song was written during David's attempts to evade Saul, the jealous and murderous king (1 Samuel 19:1–2; 22:1; 24:2–3). This included fleeing from pursuing attackers and hiding in caves. The same series of events factored into the writing of Psalms 56 and 142. The psalm is presumably set to a then-known tune called "Do Not Destroy." This same melody is referenced in Psalms 58, 59, and 75.

David begins by calling on God for mercy: to be rescued from his current situation. He depicts the Lord as a mother bird guarding her young from storms and rain with her wings. Because of God's promises to David (1 Samuel 16:12–13), David was confident the Lord would keep him safe. Though his enemies attack him like wild animals, using both weapons and words, David is assured of God's protection. He declares that the Lord's praise should be heard over the entire world (Psalm 57:1–5).

Because of this deep faith, David is assured that his enemies will only harm themselves. He promises to praise God early in the morning, using all his spiritual and musical strengths. David then refers to praising God among both "the peoples" and "the nations." This suggests an audience beyond Israel and extending into the Gentile world. David refers to the Lord's "steadfast love," or "lovingkindness;" this depicts God's merciful loyalty to His chosen people. The psalm ends by repeating the refrain of verse 5, calling for God to be praised worldwide (Psalm 57:6–11).
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