Psalms 64

The psalm follows a trajectory from anxiety over unseen, malicious conspiracies to absolute confidence in God's public, retributive justice.

• The righteous shall be glad in the Lord and trust in Him (Psalm 64:10).

• There are no explicit imperative commands in this text; it is primarily a lament and a petition.

• Those who plot evil will find their own weapons, specifically their own speech, turning back upon them in judgment (Psalm 64:8).

• The specific historical occasion is not identified in the superscription. Interpreters often associate it with periods of David's life characterized by betrayal and slander, such as the conspiracies of Saul or Absalom.

• In the ancient Near East, honor and reputation were central to survival. Slander was not merely offensive; it was considered an act of 'social murder' that could destroy an individual’s standing and life within the community.

• This is a lament psalm categorized by its movement from petition to imprecation (praying for judgment) and finally to praise. It utilizes wisdom literature imagery, emphasizing the moral consequences of one's speech.

• This psalm reflects the broader canonical theme found in Proverbs regarding the power of life and death in the tongue. In terms of redemptive history, the 'righteous' mentioned in verse 10 are often a point of theological discussion. Some interpret the 'righteous' as Israel under the Old Covenant, while others, specifically drawing on New Testament themes, see the 'righteous' as those justified by faith in Christ. Matthew Henry, writing from a Reformed perspective, notes that the righteous find their glory in Christ, in whom the seed of Israel is justified; however, this is an interpretation that aligns the Old Testament text with New Testament fulfillment, which some scholars debate as a hermeneutical import rather than an inherent meaning for the original audience.

• Psalm 64:3 parallels Proverbs 12:18, 'There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health.'
• Psalm 64:9 contains language reminiscent of the prophetic response to God's acts in the books of Samuel and Kings, where observers 'fear' (yare H3372) and acknowledge God's hand in history.

• The term 'choirmaster' or 'chief musician' (natzach H5329) likely refers to the permanent oversight of temple music.
• The Hebrew term for 'complaint' (siach H7879) conveys a deep contemplation or pensive utterance rather than mere complaining.
• The word 'whet' (shanan H8150) implies the intensive sharpening of a tool, emphasizing that the slander was not accidental but deliberate.
• The word 'tongue' (lashon H3956) is used consistently as the primary instrument of the enemy's violence.

• The irony that the enemy seeks to shoot the blameless (yarah H3384) in v. 4, but God then shoots the enemy in v. 7 using the exact same verb (yarah H3384).

• The specific identity of the 'wicked' remains ambiguous, as is common in the Psalter, allowing the text to serve as a perpetual prayer for the innocent oppressed in any age.