24/7 Praise

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Psalm 34:1-22

A Psalm of David, when he changed his behaviour before Abimelech; who drove him away, and he departed.

א Aleph

[1] I will bless the LORD at all times: 

His praise shall continually be in my mouth. 

ב Bet

[2] My soul shall make her boast in the LORD: 

The humble shall hear thereof , and be glad. 

ג Gimel

[3] O magnify the LORD with me, 

And let us exalt his name together. 

ד Dalet

[4] I sought the LORD, and he heard me, 

And delivered me from all my fears. 

ה He

[5] They looked unto him, and were lightened: 

And their faces were not ashamed. 

ז Zain

[6] This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, 

And saved him out of all his troubles. 

ח Het

[7] The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, 

And delivereth them. 

ט Tet

[8] O taste and see that the LORD is good: 

Blessed is the man that trusteth in him. 

י Yod

[9] O fear the LORD, ye his saints: 

For there is no want to them that fear him. 

כ Kaph

[10] The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: 

But they that seek the LORD shall not want any good thing. 

ל Lamed

[11] Come, ye children, hearken unto me: 

I will teach you the fear of the LORD. 

מ Mem

[12] What man is he that desireth life, 

And loveth many days, that he may see good? 

נ Nun

[13] Keep thy tongue from evil, 

And thy lips from speaking guile. 

ס Samek

[14] Depart from evil, and do good; 

Seek peace, and pursue it. 

ע Ain

[15] The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, 

And his ears are open unto their cry. 

פ Pe

[16] The face of the LORD is against them that do evil, 

To cut off the remembrance of them from the earth. 

צ Zade

[17] The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, 

And delivereth them out of all their troubles. 

ק Qoph

[18] The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; 

And saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. 

ר Resh

[19] Many are the afflictions of the righteous: 

But the LORD delivereth him out of them all. 

ש Shin

[20] He keepeth all his bones: 

Not one of them is broken. 

ת Taw

[21] Evil shall slay the wicked: 

And they that hate the righteous shall be desolate. 

[22] The LORD redeemeth the soul of his servants: 

And none of them that trust in him shall be desolate.

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24/7 Praise

In Psalm 34, I was so delighted to read so many familiar bible verses that I have heard boldly proclaimed in the testimonies of my Christian friends and sung in many church hymns. These verses resound the theme that God can and will deliver you from all kinds of trouble. Your story will be one of praise to God for helping you and bringing you through it all. David’s story, particularly those incidents when he escaped the evil plans of Saul, is one filled with the marvelous and miraculous intercession of God to shield him from capture. Psalm 34 is David’s humble and contemplative praise and gratitude to God. He begins with the vow, “I will bless the Lord at all times”.

There would never be a time when His praise would not continually be in his mouth. As I have been reading through these Psalms, I have seen this is truly the case. Whether singing of victory or lamenting against tribulations, David always returns to glorifying God. “His soul boasts in the Lord”. David also familiarly invites the righteous to join him in praise. “O magnify the lord with me.” David comforts the listener with the assurance that God hears and answers prayer. “I sought the lord and he delivered me from all my fears”.

Imagine the times when David was running for his life from Saul and how he could only wait, hoping for God to hide him and keep him safe. When David and those with him looked unto God, their hearts were lightened and their faces were not ashamed. God proved by His mighty hand that they were right to trust in Him. Speaking in third person, David summed up this Psalm’s theme when he said, “this poor man cried and the lord delivered him out of all his troubles”. How beautiful to know that the angel of the Lord encamps around them who believes in Him and delivers him. David again invites others to join in his experience and “taste and see that the lord is good”. This trusting man shall be blessed. He calls on the saints to fear the Lord and they will be fully satisfied, having no want. David wants to teach others, like a schoolteacher teaches children, to fear the Lord. Here is his list of instructions: “If you want blessings and a long life, keep your tongue from speaking evil, depart from evil and do good, and seek peace”.

God watches and cares for the righteous; He listens to their cry. This is not so for the wicked. “The face of the Lord is against them”. The Lord focuses on the needs of the righteous, the broken-hearted, those with a contrite spirit. David had many afflictions, as do the righteous, but the Lord delivers them out of them all. Again David compares and contrasts God’s treatment of the wicked and righteous. He ends with this warning of the desolate end of the wicked and the mercy bestowed upon the righteous.

Psalm 34 is a testimony of praise to God for His continuous help to us. He is deserving of blessings twenty-four hours a day. He delivers us from dangers seen and unseen. His angels guard and encamp around us, defending us from evil. The scripture says “I will overcome by the blood of the lamb and the words of my testimony”. This is true for us all. I love to share what God has done for me. Writing and singing his praises edifies me and the Lord is magnified when others join in this unanimous praise to God. I thank god that through good and bad times, He is a constant presence and help, worthy of all praise.

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Elizabeth Expands

“A Psalm of David, when he changed his behaviour before Abimelech; who drove him away, and he departed.” Pre-script of Psalm 34, KJV.

My initial question, as I imagine yours was too, would be concerning the identity of Abimelech and where this referenced story shows up in the bible. Abimelech is a name that shows up a few different times in the Old Testament. Initially, with Abraham in Genesis, and then again in Judges 9. But what about here with David? When we look at other interpretations of this text, such as the New International Version, it clarifies with different verbiage: “Of David. When he pretended to be insane before Abimelek, who drove him away, and he left.” This gives us a better idea of the story we’re looking for, and we can find it in 1st Samuel chapter 21, verses 10-15. Here, the name Abimelech is not used but rather “Achish.” 

And David arose, and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath. And the servants of Achish said unto him, Is not this David the king of the land? did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, Saul hath slain his thousands, And David his ten thousands? And David laid up these words in his heart, and was sore afraid of Achish the king of Gath. And he changed his behaviour before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard. (1 Samuel 21:10-13)

Why the name difference? Well, there are two possible understandings. The first being that Achish, king of Gath, had two names. Either both being his given names, or that one was his Philistinian name, and one his Hebrew name. The second interpretation is that Abimelech “as it should seem, was a common name to all the kings of the Philistines…as Pharaoh was to the Egyptian kings, and Caesar to the Roman emperors.”

(https://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/gills-exposition-of-the-bible/psalms-34-introduction.html). Either of these interpretations has weight, but I personally find the second to seem reasonable, considering, as we mentioned at the start, the presence of the name in Genesis and Judges—both as names of Philistinian kings.

Regardless of the interpretation, we now have that context. This is during the time of David running from Saul, so afraid for his own life that he went to a Philistinian king for refuge. When he realized he was recognized as the great warrior of the Israelites, however, he feigned madness to escape the situation before he was imprisoned or worse. This Psalm is supposed to have written after David reached safety following the scene in chapter 21, where he praises the Lord for taking care of him through all these trials.

As I read this Psalm, I had several songs from church playing through my head. I picked the one that felt closest to my heart during this reading and research, to share here.

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I would love to hear what this Psalm brings to mind for you! Write back to me in Facebook comment or blog reply.

Disclaimer: The intention of this project is not to teach, but rather to share. Please use due diligence in studying the word of God, and seek guidance from your local religious leaders for any questions or concerns.

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