Psalm 11 is sometimes pictured as a dialogue between David and his advisers. In a crisis that he faces, David is advised to "flee like a bird to your mountain" (verse 1).
Perhaps the exchange takes place during the period in which David is being pursued by Saul. In 1 Sam 26:20, David says that Saul is "like one who hunts a partridge in the mountains."
David's dialogue partners point out the danger posed by the enemy, whose attacks are deadly but hard to detect and defend against (v 2). The enemy has threatened the foundations of society and attacks the righteous (v 3).
David counters that he doesn't have to be afraid. God, the King of the Universe, is on his throne (v 4), from which vantage point he observes the deeds of men. He tests the righteous to build their characters, and they ultimately will "see his face" (vv 5,7; Mt 5:8; 1 Jn 3:2; Rev 22:4); but the wicked, who will not respond to the challenge of being tested by God, ultimately will meet the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah (vv 4-6).
The Bible sometimes uses the imagery of a cup containing either punishment or reward. Here we see that imagery in verse 6. For the wicked, "fire and sulfur and a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup." A midrash on Psalm 11 says that God gives wicked nations four cups of punishment, based on Psalm 11:6; 75:8; Jer 25:15; 51:7. On the other hand, God gives Israel four cups of deliverance, based on Psalm 16:5; 23:5; 116:13. (Since "cup" is plural in 116:13, two cups are counted there.)
This imagery also appears in the New Testament, where Jesus accepts in our place the cup of punishment that we deserved (Luke 22:42).
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