Psalm 59:9 - Printer Friendly

ESV: O my Strength, I will watch for you, for you, O God, are my fortress.

NIV: You are my strength, I watch for you; you, God, are my fortress,

NASB: Because of his strength I will watch for You, For God is my refuge.

CSB: I will keep watch for you, my strength, because God is my stronghold.

NLT: You are my strength; I wait for you to rescue me, for you, O God, are my fortress.

KJV: Because of his strength will I wait upon thee: for God is my defence.

NKJV: I will wait for You, O You his Strength; For God is my defense.

David's life was filled with dangerous experiences (1 Samuel 17:34–35, 48–49; 19:8; 2 Samuel 15:13–14). His psalms reflect those tense moments (Psalm 3:1–3; 35:1–2; 54:1–3) along with a deliberate choice to derive courage from the Lord God. Here, David refers to God as "my Strength," and speaks of the Lord as his "fortress." This echoes the words of Psalm 18, where David also expressed his trust in God's protection (Psalm 18:1–3).

This marks a turning point in Psalm 59. In the previous verses, David's focus was on his enemies. Now his attention turns to the Lord. David is confident that God will protect him and keep him safe from Saul and his bloodthirsty men (Psalm 59:1–3). He "watches" with expectation, assuming the Lord will answer his plea. Believers throughout history have sometimes lived in hateful environments. The Devil and the hostile world system are believers' vicious foes. However, as the apostle John points out, believers in Christ "are from God and have overcome [false spirits], for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world" (1 John 4:4).

Psalm 59:9–17 delivers an appropriate climax to David's cry for deliverance from his enemies. David puts his trust in God. He anticipates divine wrath being poured out on his unclean, beastly enemies. He also looks forward to more opportunities to offer praise for God's protection and love. As part of an "imprecatory" psalm, David calls on the Lord to make His retribution harsh and public, so the world will see it and acknowledge God.

David prays, asking the Lord to deliver him from a lurking band of bloodthirsty enemies. He calls on the God of Israel to make an example of these lying, evil men, and to destroy them entirely. Rather than despair, David firmly trusts in the Lord and looks forward to victory. David concludes his psalm with praise to the Lord, his Strength, whose love is loyal. David praises God for being his fortress and shelter.

This is one of many psalms where David prays for rescue from his enemies (Psalm 3:1–3; 7:1–2; 54:1–2). King Saul jealously sent men to wait outside David's home to assassinate him (1 Samuel 19:11–16), but David was able to escape with the help of his wife. Because David asks for the Lord to severely judge the wicked, this is considered one of the "imprecatory" psalms, along with Psalms 5, 10, 58, 69, 83, 109, 137, 140, and others.

The book of Psalms is composed of individual songs, hymns, or poems, each of which is a ''Psalm'' in and of itself. These works contain a wide variety of themes. Some Psalms focus on praising and worshipping God. Others cry out in anguish over the pain of life. Still other Psalms look forward to the coming of the Messiah. While some Psalms are related, each has its own historical and biblical context.