The superscription associates Psalm 56 with David at a time "when the Philistines seized him in Gath." (Psalm 34 has a similar setting.) 1 Sam 21 records that David, in flight from King Saul, at one point escaped briefly to Gath. However, David was soon recognized as the Israelite leader who had killed Goliath, so after feigning madness, he fled Gath as well (1 Sam 21:10-22:1).
Whatever the original setting, the psalmist is feeling constant pressure. He uses the phrase "all day long" three times (vv 1,2,5).
He realizes, though, that his oppressors are only human beings, and he can place his trust in the King of the Universe (vv 3-4). He praises God's Word (v 4), which declares God's love and faithfulness to his people.
Verses 10-11 echo verses 3 and 4. There is parallelism in verse 10: "In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise." The midrash on Psalm 56 suggests that in the first clause, which uses "Elohim" for God, the psalmist is praising God's justice; while in the second clause, which uses YHWH for God, he is praising God's mercy as expressed in Ex 34:6-7.
Certainly in this psalm he is asking for God to mercifully deliver him from his trial. He is also asking that God's justice be applied to his oppressors (v 7). He is confident that God is keeping track of everything that is happening and will make things right. Verse 8 contains the striking image of a bottle in which all his tears are collected, an image related to God's book in which everything is recorded (Ps 139:16).
He is confident that God will deliver him and looks forward to giving a public sacrifice of thanksgiving when that has occurred (vv 12-13).
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