Psalms 28 Study Notes: A Cry Answered With Thanksgiving
David begs the LORD, his Rock, not to stay silent, and asks God to repay deceitful evildoers who ignore His works. The psalm then turns to praise because God has heard his plea, and it closes with a prayer that God would save, shepherd, and carry His people.
General
In 28:1, why is David so urgent that God not stay silent?
Answer: Without God's answer he would be like those going down to death
David calls on the LORD, his Rock, not to turn a deaf ear, because if God stays silent he will end up like people going down to the Pit, a picture of the grave and death (28:1). He lifts his hands toward God's holy sanctuary as he begs for mercy (28:2). For David, God's silence would mean being cut off from life itself. He prays the same way in 143:7. Prayer directed toward God's dwelling place is also what Solomon later asked God to hear and honor (1 Kings 8:29-30), and another psalm assures that God stays close to everyone who sincerely calls to Him (145:18-19).
- Psalm 28:1-2 (BSB)“Of David. To You, O LORD, I call; be not deaf to me, O my Rock. For if You remain silent, I will be like those descending to the Pit. Hear my cry for mercy when I call to You for help, when I lift up my hands toward Your holy sanctuary.”David begs God not to stay silent and lifts his hands toward the sanctuary in prayer.
- Psalm 143:7 (BSB)“Answer me quickly, O LORD; my spirit fails. Do not hide Your face from me, or I will be like those who descend to the Pit.”David again fears that without God's answer he will be like those who go down to the Pit.
- 1 Kings 8:29-30 (BSB)“May Your eyes be open toward this temple night and day, toward the place of which You said, ‘My Name shall be there,’ so that You may hear the prayer that Your servant prays toward this place. Hear the plea of Your servant and of Your people Israel when they pray toward this place. May You hear from heaven, Your dwelling place. May You hear and forgive.”Solomon asks God to hear prayers offered toward His dwelling place.
- Psalm 145:18-19 (BSB)“The LORD is near to all who call on Him, to all who call out to Him in truth. He fulfills the desires of those who fear Him; He hears their cry and saves them.”The LORD is near to and hears those who call on Him in truth.
Theological
What does David say in 28:1 would follow if the LORD remained silent?
Answer: Without God's answer he would be like those going down to death
David addresses the LORD as his Rock and pleads that He not be silent, since divine silence would leave him among those going down to the Pit, the realm of death (28:1). Prayer with uplifted hands toward the sanctuary (28:2) looks to the place God chose for His Name, the pattern Solomon later asked God to honor (1 Kings 8:29-30). The same urgency marks 143:7, and it rests on the assurance that God draws near to everyone who sincerely calls to Him (145:18-19).
- Psalm 28:1-2 (BSB)“Of David. To You, O LORD, I call; be not deaf to me, O my Rock. For if You remain silent, I will be like those descending to the Pit. Hear my cry for mercy when I call to You for help, when I lift up my hands toward Your holy sanctuary.”David begs God not to stay silent and lifts his hands toward the sanctuary in prayer.
- Psalm 143:7 (BSB)“Answer me quickly, O LORD; my spirit fails. Do not hide Your face from me, or I will be like those who descend to the Pit.”David again fears that without God's answer he will be like those who go down to the Pit.
- 1 Kings 8:29-30 (BSB)“May Your eyes be open toward this temple night and day, toward the place of which You said, ‘My Name shall be there,’ so that You may hear the prayer that Your servant prays toward this place. Hear the plea of Your servant and of Your people Israel when they pray toward this place. May You hear from heaven, Your dwelling place. May You hear and forgive.”Solomon asks God to hear prayers offered toward His dwelling place.
- Psalm 145:18-19 (BSB)“The LORD is near to all who call on Him, to all who call out to Him in truth. He fulfills the desires of those who fear Him; He hears their cry and saves them.”The LORD is near to and hears those who call on Him in truth.
General
What reason does 28:5 give for the LORD pulling down the wicked?
Answer: They pay no attention to what the LORD has done
David describes evildoers who talk of friendship with their neighbors while plotting harm in their hearts (28:3). He asks God to pay them back for their evil deeds (28:4). Then he gives the reason for their ruin: they ignore the LORD's works and the deeds of His hands, so He will pull them down for good (28:5). David does not take revenge himself; he hands the matter to God, whose judgment is always just. Jeremiah describes the same two-faced speech (Jeremiah 9:8), Isaiah condemns people who are blind to God's works (Isaiah 5:12), and Paul tells believers to leave vengeance to God (Romans 12:19).
- Psalm 28:3-5 (BSB)“Do not drag me away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, who speak peace to their neighbors while malice is in their hearts. Repay them according to their deeds and for their works of evil. Repay them for what their hands have done; bring back on them what they deserve. Since they show no regard for the works of the LORD or what His hands have done, He will tear them down and never rebuild them.”David asks God to repay deceitful evildoers and names their disregard for His works.
- Jeremiah 9:8 (BSB)“Their tongues are deadly arrows; they speak deception. With his mouth a man speaks peace to his neighbor, but in his heart he sets a trap for him.”The prophet describes the same friendly words hiding a trap in the heart.
- Isaiah 5:12 (BSB)“At their feasts are the lyre and harp, tambourines and flutes and wine. They disregard the actions of the LORD and fail to see the work of His hands.”Isaiah condemns those who ignore the actions and work of the LORD.
- Romans 12:19 (BSB)“Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but leave room for God’s wrath. For it is written: “Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, says the Lord.””Vengeance belongs to God, so His people leave judgment to Him.
Theological
On what ground does 28:5 say the LORD will tear down the wicked?
Answer: They pay no attention to what the LORD has done
The evildoers mask malice with friendly words (28:3), and David asks that God requite their evil works (28:4). The stated ground of judgment is their disregard for the LORD's works (28:5): refusing to acknowledge what God has done is itself rebellion against Him (Isaiah 5:12). The same duplicity is condemned in Jeremiah 9:8. David's petition commits vengeance to God rather than taking it into his own hands, the principle Paul affirms in Romans 12:19.
- Psalm 28:3-5 (BSB)“Do not drag me away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, who speak peace to their neighbors while malice is in their hearts. Repay them according to their deeds and for their works of evil. Repay them for what their hands have done; bring back on them what they deserve. Since they show no regard for the works of the LORD or what His hands have done, He will tear them down and never rebuild them.”David asks God to repay deceitful evildoers and names their disregard for His works.
- Jeremiah 9:8 (BSB)“Their tongues are deadly arrows; they speak deception. With his mouth a man speaks peace to his neighbor, but in his heart he sets a trap for him.”The prophet describes the same friendly words hiding a trap in the heart.
- Isaiah 5:12 (BSB)“At their feasts are the lyre and harp, tambourines and flutes and wine. They disregard the actions of the LORD and fail to see the work of His hands.”Isaiah condemns those who ignore the actions and work of the LORD.
- Romans 12:19 (BSB)“Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but leave room for God’s wrath. For it is written: “Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, says the Lord.””Vengeance belongs to God, so His people leave judgment to Him.
General
What does David ask God to do for His people in the closing verse (28:9)?
Answer: Rescue them, bless them, and tend and bear them always
David widens his prayer from himself to the whole nation. The LORD gives strength to His people and is a saving fortress for His anointed, the king God has chosen (28:8). David then asks God to save His people, bless them as His own inheritance, care for them like a shepherd, and bear them up for all time (28:9). Israel is called God's inheritance, His own portion (Deuteronomy 32:9). Isaiah pictures God as a shepherd holding His lambs close (Isaiah 40:11), and Jesus says His sheep will never perish, for none can seize them from His grip (John 10:27-28).
- Psalm 28:8-9 (BSB)“The LORD is the strength of His people, a stronghold of salvation for His anointed. Save Your people and bless Your inheritance; shepherd them and carry them forever.”David praises God as His people's strength and prays that He would save, shepherd, and carry them.
- Deuteronomy 32:9 (BSB)“But the LORD’s portion is His people, Jacob His allotted inheritance.”Israel is described as the LORD's own portion and inheritance.
- Isaiah 40:11 (BSB)“He tends His flock like a shepherd; He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart. He gently leads the nursing ewes.”God is pictured as a shepherd who gathers and carries His lambs.
- John 10:27-28 (BSB)“My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them out of My hand.”Jesus the shepherd keeps His sheep so that none of them perish.
Theological
What closing petition for the covenant people does 28:9 offer?
Answer: Rescue them, bless them, and tend and bear them always
The individual lament ends in intercession for the people. The LORD is their strength and the saving refuge of His anointed king (28:8); David prays that He would save them, bless His inheritance, and tend and bear them for all time (28:9). Israel is the LORD's allotted inheritance (Deuteronomy 32:9), and His shepherding care (Isaiah 40:11) reaches its fullness in Christ, who gives His sheep eternal life and keeps them so that none perish (John 10:27-28), the preservation of the saints.
- Psalm 28:8-9 (BSB)“The LORD is the strength of His people, a stronghold of salvation for His anointed. Save Your people and bless Your inheritance; shepherd them and carry them forever.”David praises God as His people's strength and prays that He would save, shepherd, and carry them.
- Deuteronomy 32:9 (BSB)“But the LORD’s portion is His people, Jacob His allotted inheritance.”Israel is described as the LORD's own portion and inheritance.
- Isaiah 40:11 (BSB)“He tends His flock like a shepherd; He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart. He gently leads the nursing ewes.”God is pictured as a shepherd who gathers and carries His lambs.
- John 10:27-28 (BSB)“My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them out of My hand.”Jesus the shepherd keeps His sheep so that none of them perish.
General
True or False: At 28:6, the psalm turns from pleading to praise because David declares that his plea has been heard.
Answer: True
This is true. After asking God to hear him (28:2), David blesses the LORD because his prayer has been heard (28:6). He calls the LORD his strength and shield; he trusted God and was helped, so his heart is glad and he thanks God in song (28:7). David makes the same turn in 6:9. Another psalmist loves the LORD because God bent down to listen (116:1-2), and John assures believers that when they ask according to God's will, He hears them (1 John 5:14-15).
- Psalm 28:6-7 (BSB)“Blessed be the LORD, for He has heard my cry for mercy. The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. Therefore my heart rejoices, and I give thanks to Him with my song.”David praises God for hearing him and describes his trust, help, and joyful thanks.
- Psalm 6:9 (BSB)“The LORD has heard my cry for mercy; the LORD accepts my prayer.”David makes the same turn to assurance that God has heard his plea.
- Psalm 116:1-2 (BSB)“I love the LORD, for He has heard my voice—my appeal for mercy. Because He has inclined His ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live.”The psalmist loves and calls on God because God has listened to him.
- 1 John 5:14-15 (BSB)“And this is the confidence that we have before Him: If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we already possess what we have asked of Him.”Believers can be confident that God hears prayers asked according to His will.
Theological
True or False: In 28:6-7, David moves from petition to thanksgiving on the ground that God has heard him.
Answer: True
This is true. The hinge of the psalm is 28:6: the petition of 28:2 has been answered, and David blesses the LORD. Trust issues in help, and help in thanksgiving and song (28:7). The same movement from plea to assurance appears in 6:9 and 116:1-2, and the New Testament grounds the believer's confidence that God hears prayer offered in line with His will (1 John 5:14-15).
- Psalm 28:6-7 (BSB)“Blessed be the LORD, for He has heard my cry for mercy. The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. Therefore my heart rejoices, and I give thanks to Him with my song.”David praises God for hearing him and describes his trust, help, and joyful thanks.
- Psalm 6:9 (BSB)“The LORD has heard my cry for mercy; the LORD accepts my prayer.”David makes the same turn to assurance that God has heard his plea.
- Psalm 116:1-2 (BSB)“I love the LORD, for He has heard my voice—my appeal for mercy. Because He has inclined His ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live.”The psalmist loves and calls on God because God has listened to him.
- 1 John 5:14-15 (BSB)“And this is the confidence that we have before Him: If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we already possess what we have asked of Him.”Believers can be confident that God hears prayers asked according to His will.