What does Psalm 7:1 mean?

David had a personal relationship with the Lord. His faith was intimate (Psalm 145:8). In this verse he uses terms of intimacy and relationship. These echo his exclamation in Psalm 23:1: "The LORD is my shepherd." Because God was his personal Lord, David was able to take refuge in Him. He sincerely believed God could save him from those who were pursuing him, seeking his death. He realizes that God may not choose to save him (Psalm 7:2), but he asks for victory with confident faith.

Possibly, in this case, David's pursuers were Saul's men (1 Samuel 24:1–2). They hunted relentlessly for David in the wilderness, but the Lord preserved David's life. Enemies and difficult circumstances may threaten believers today, but believers can count on a personal relationship with the Lord to sustain them. Jesus assures believers of perfect security that no one can destroy. He affirms in John 10:28, "I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand." Paul writes in Romans 8:37: "We are more than conquerors through him who loved us."

The term transliterated "shiggaion" is rare and difficult to interpret. It seems to involve concepts such as singing, grief, feeling, passion, and so forth. This likely is being used as a musical term, implying a song with deep expressive emotion.

Likewise, Scripture gives no details on the Benjaminite, Cush, or how he interacted with David. It's possible he invented lies, and this is David's response (Psalm 7:3–7).