Psalm 34:6 - Printer Friendly

ESV: This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him and saved him out of all his troubles.

NIV: This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles.

NASB: This wretched man cried out, and the Lord heard him, And saved him out of all his troubles.

CSB: This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and saved him from all his troubles.

NLT: In my desperation I prayed, and the Lord listened; he saved me from all my troubles.

KJV: This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.

NKJV: This poor man cried out, and the Lord heard him, And saved him out of all his troubles.

When David was in trouble at Gath among the Philistines, he cried out to the Lord to deliver him. He describes himself in this verse as a poor man, indicating he humbly cried out to God. Referring to himself as "poor" reflects an awareness that he has nothing to offer God in return for assistance. As a result of praying urgently and humbly, David found deliverance from all his troubles. The Lord rescued him from the Philistines.

No one is exempt from trouble (John 16:33), but no Christian must face trouble alone (Matthew 28:20). The Lord is always near, and if He chooses to deliver His child from trouble, He will do so. However, we cannot dictate to the Lord. When we pray, we should do so humbly, and pray as did our Lord in the garden of Gethsemane: "Your will be done" (Matthew 26:42). The apostle James counseled: "Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you" (James 4:8–10).

Psalm 34:1–7 expresses David's determination to extoll God constantly. He invites the humble to hear his praise and join him in magnifying the Lord. God answered David's prayer for deliverance; this is probably about David's escape from the Philistine king, Abimelech (1 Samuel 21:10–15). Thanks to this and other experiences, David is confident the Lord protects and delivers all who fear Him.

David praises the Lord for delivering him from the Philistines, and he invites others to join him in singing joyfully to the Lord. He extols the virtue of fearing the Lord and remembering His goodness. He encourages the Lord's people to respect God and offers wisdom leading to a long and blessed life. At the end of this psalm David emphasizes the distinction the Lord draws between the wicked and the righteous. He cares for the righteous and will not condemn them, but He condemns the wicked.

David composed this psalm after he escaped from the Philistines at Gath. He accomplished this by feigning insanity and later sheltered in the cave of Adullum. This experience is recorded in 1 Samuel 21:10—22:1. Like Psalm 25, this is an acrostic psalm. Every verse except the final one begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. First Peter 2:3 alludes to the psalm's eighth verse, and 1 Peter 3:10–12 quotes verses 12–16 of Psalm 34. John 19:36 refers to Psalm 34:20.

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.