It Starts Small

Scripture does not indicate exactly which situation inspired David to write Psalm 7. There were times when David was pursued by enemies who looked to kill him.

 Saul ordered his son Jonathan and all his servants to kill David. But Saul’s son Jonathan liked David very much,

1 Samuel 19:1

³¹ Every day Jesse’s son lives on earth you and your kingship are not secure. Now send for him and bring him to me—he must die!” ³² Jonathan answered his father back, “Why is he to be killed? What has he done?” ³³ Then Saul threw his spear at Jonathan to kill him, so he knew that his father was determined to kill David.

1 Samuel 20:31-33

When Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, “David is in the wilderness near En-gedi.” ² So Saul took three thousand of Israel’s fit young men and went to look for David and his men in front of the Rocks of the Wild Goats.

1 Samuel 24:1-2

First Samuel chapter 24 includes one such moment of danger, where David expresses thoughts very close to those seen in this passage. The middle verses of the psalm indicate David is responding to false accusations. These may have come from the person named in the title of this psalm. No further information is available about Cush the Benjaminite.

Inviting God’s judgment can be a risky proposition.

“Do not judge, so that you won’t be judged.

Matthew 7:1

David is confident that these accusations are false. He emphasizes his innocence by accepting whatever punishment God might apply.

³ Lord my God, if I have done this,
if there is injustice on my hands,
⁴ if I have done harm to one at peace with me
or have plundered^[a] my adversary without cause,
⁵ may an enemy pursue and overtake me;
may he trample me to the ground
and leave my honor in the dust. Selah

Psalm 7:3-5

This is somewhat like a modern person saying, “you can take me to jail if I’m lying,” when they know they are telling the truth. David is not literally asking God to do these things to him—rather, he is highlighting his confidence that those claims are false.

Rather than seeking revenge on his own,

Friends, do not avenge yourselves; instead, leave room for God’s wrath, because it is written, Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay, says the Lord.

Romans 12:19

David calls on God to issue judgment. He recognizes the Lord’s role as a perfect, all-knowing God who will always come to the right conclusions.

⁶ Rise up, Lord, in your anger;
lift yourself up against the fury of my adversaries;
awake for me;
you have ordained a judgment.
⁷ Let the assembly of peoples gather around you;
take your seat on high over it.
⁸ The Lord judges the peoples;
vindicate me, Lord,
according to my righteousness and my integrity.

Psalms 7:6-8

David prays that consequences for sin will fall on those who are attacking him. David’s confidence in God allows him to leave all judgment to the Lord. He knows that God sees the evil men do every day, and trusts that His response will be righteous.

⁹ Let the evil of the wicked come to an end,
but establish the righteous.
The one who examines the thoughts and emotions^[d]
is a righteous God.
¹⁰ My shield is with God,
who saves the upright in heart.
¹¹ God is a righteous judge
and a God who shows his wrath every day.

Psalm 7:9-11

In closing the psalm, David depicts the Lord as a warrior preparing for battle.

¹² If anyone does not repent,
he will sharpen his sword;
he has strung his bow and made it ready.
¹³ He has prepared his deadly weapons;
he tips his arrows with fire.

¹⁴ See, the wicked one is pregnant with evil,
conceives trouble, and gives birth to deceit.
¹⁵ He dug a pit and hollowed it out
but fell into the hole he had made.
¹⁶ His trouble comes back on his own head;
his own violence comes down on top of his head.

Psalm 7:12-16

The evil person faces a God with a bent bow and a sharp sword. For their part, the evil person deliberately instigates evil, fosters it, and brings about lies and injustice. The end for the wicked person is to suffer from their own sins. Even the traps they lay for other people will, in the end, be part of the judgment against them.

¹⁷ I will thank the Lord for his righteousness;
I will sing about the name of the Lord Most High.

Psalm 7:17

Free from those concerns, David can worship and honor God with praise.