Please God

I Want To
Please God! Psalm 64
Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Worshipful, 1st ed., Be Commentary Series (Colorado Springs, CO: Cook Communications Ministries, 2004), 215.
“The first quality for a commander-in-chief is a
cool head to receive a correct impression of
things,” said Napoleon I. “He should not allow
himself to be confused by either good or bad
news.”
David was probably serving in Saul’s court when

he wrote this psalm (1 Sam. 18–20).
He knew that Saul was his enemy and wanted to

kill him and that most of Saul’s officers were in a
conspiracy against him.
Though he was the anointed king, David had no
authority to oppose Saul, and eventually he had
to flee and hide in the wilderness.
People give us all kinds of trouble, but our battle

is not against flesh and blood, but against Satan
and his hosts (Eph. 6:10ff). This psalm instructs us
what to do in the battles of life.
Seek the Lord’s Protection
(vv. 1–2)
Psalm 64:1–2 (NKJV)

1 Hear my voice, O God, in my meditation;
Preserve my life from fear of the enemy.
2 Hide me from the secret plots of the
wicked, From the rebellion of the workers of
iniquity,
Frequently David addressed the Lord by saying,
“Hear my voice” or “Hear me when I call,” not
because God wasn’t paying attention but
because David was in serious trouble.
Psalm 4:1 (NKJV)

Hear me when I call, O God of my
righteousness! You have relieved me in my
distress; Have mercy on me, and hear my
prayer.
Psalm 27:7 (NKJV)
Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice!
Have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
Psalm 140:6 (NKJV)

I said to the LORD: “You are my God; Hear
the voice of my supplications, O LORD.
The word translated “prayer or meditation” (v. 1, kjv
and nkjv) also means “complaint” or “trouble”.

1 I cry out to the LORD with my voice; With
my voice to the LORD I make my
supplication.
2 I pour out my complaint before Him; I
declare before Him my trouble.
3 When my spirit was overwhelmed within
me, Then You knew my path. In the way in
which I walk They have secretly set a snare
for me.
David didn’t ask God to change the
circumstances but to fortify his own heart and
deliver him from fear.
The fear of the Lord mobilizes us, but the fear of

man paralyzes us.
As a young man, loved by the people but envied

and hated by the king, David faced two problems:
• The insurrection, secret conspiracy of Saul, his
officers, and the open “wickedness” of those
who wanted to please Saul by oppressing
David.
1 Why do the nations rage, And the people
plot a vain thing?
2 The kings of the earth set themselves,
And the rulers take counsel together,
Against the LORD and against His
Anointed, saying,

13 For I hear the slander of many; Fear is
on every side; While they take counsel
together against me, They scheme to take
away my life.
14 But as for me, I trust in You, O LORD; I
say, “You are my God.”
Lies about David were being passed from
person to person and David knew he wasn’t safe
in Saul’s court.
Both his life and his reputation were being

attacked, and only the Lord could rescue him.
Ask For The Lord’s Wisdom
(vv. 3–6)

3 Who sharpen their tongue like a sword,
And bend their bows to shoot their arrows—
bitter words,
4 That they may shoot in secret at the
blameless; Suddenly they shoot at him and
do not fear.
5 They encourage themselves in an evil
matter; They talk of laying snares secretly;
They say, “Who will see them?”
6 They devise iniquities: “We have perfected
a shrewd scheme.” Both the inward thought
and the heart of man are deep.
David knew exactly what the enemy was saying
and doing, and we need to know the strategy of
Satan when he attacks us (2 Cor. 2:11).
2 Corinthians 2:10–11 (NKJV)

10 Now whom you forgive anything, I also
forgive. For if indeed I have forgiven
anything, I have forgiven that one for your
sakes in the presence of Christ,
11 lest Satan should take advantage of
us; for we are not ignorant of his
devices.
As a lion, he comes to devour (1 Peter 5:8),
as a serpent, he comes to deceive (2 Cor. 11:1–4),
and one of his chief weapons is accusation (Rev.

12:10; Zech. 3).
David compared his enemies’ tongues to swords
(55:21; 57:4; 59:7) and their words to poisoned arrows
(57:4; Prov. 25:18; 26:18–19; Jer. 9:8).
Psalm 55:21 (NKJV)

The words of his mouth were smoother
than butter, But war was in his heart; His
words were softer than oil, Yet they were
drawn swords.
Jeremiah 9:8 (NKJV)

Their tongue is an arrow shot out; It speaks
deceit; One speaks peaceably to his
neighbor with his mouth, But in his heart he
lies in wait.
They also set traps for him, confident that
nobody knew what they were doing, not even
the Lord.
Psalm 10:11 (NKJV)

He has said in his heart, “God has
forgotten; He hides His face; He will never
see.”
The Lord Will Frustrate The
Enemy!
For some of Saul’s traps and how the Lord
frustrated them, see 1 Sam. 18–19.
1 Samuel 18:11–12 (NKJV)

11 And Saul cast the spear, for he said, “I
will pin David to the wall!” But David
escaped his presence twice.
12 Now Saul was afraid of David, because
the LORD was with him, but had departed
from Saul.
The human heart is “deep” and that there are
always new dangers to avoid, so he constantly
sought the Lord’s wisdom as he made decisions.
Jeremiah 17:9 (NKJV)

“The heart is deceitful above all things, And
desperately wicked; Who can know it?
Seek the Lord in what to do in your tough
situations!
James 1:5 (NKJV)

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of
God, who gives to all liberally and without
reproach, and it will be given to him.
Trust The Lord For Victory
(vv. 7–8)

7 But God shall shoot at them with an
arrow; Suddenly they shall be wounded.
8 So He will make them stumble over their
own tongue; All who see them shall flee
away.
By depending on the Lord and obeying His
directions, David was confident that God would
defeat his enemies.
“Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his

might” (Eph. 6:10).
David’s enemies shot arrows at him suddenly (vv.

3–4), so the Lord suddenly shot arrows at them (v.
7).
Hebrews 10:30–31 (NKJV)
30 For we know Him who said, “Vengeance
is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. And
again, “The LORD will judge His people.”
31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of
the living God.
They tried to trip him and trap him (v. 5), so the
Lord caused David’s enemies to stumble and fall
(v. 8, amp).

1 The LORD is my light and my salvation;
Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the
strength of my life; Of whom shall I be
afraid?
2 When the wicked came against me To eat
up my flesh, My enemies and foes, They
stumbled and fell.
God would use their own sword-like tongues to
fight against them, and they would end up in
shame and disgrace (v. 8).
Isaiah 54:15–17 (NKJV)
15 Indeed they shall surely assemble, but
not because of Me. Whoever assembles
against you shall fall for your sake.
16 “Behold, I have created the blacksmith
Who blows the coals in the fire, Who brings
forth an instrument for his work; And I have
created the spoiler to destroy.
17 No weapon formed against you shall
prosper, And every tongue which rises
against you in judgment You shall condemn.
This is the heritage of the servants of the
LORD, And their righteousness is from Me,”
Says the LORD.
The very weapons that the enemy uses
against us, the Lord uses to defeat them.
Give Glory To The Lord
(vv. 9–10)

9 All men shall fear, And shall declare the
work of God; For they shall wisely consider
His doing.
10 The righteous shall be glad in the LORD,
and trust in Him. And all the upright in heart
shall glory.
As the nation watched the defeat of David’s
enemies and his exaltation as king, it all brought
great glory to the Lord. Some people stood and
shook their heads in disbelief (v. 8a).
Dr. Bob Cook used to say, “If you can explain

what’s going on, the Lord didn’t do it.” Faith
expects to see God do the impossible!
The nation had a new fear of the Lord as they

saw sin judged and their godly king vindicated.
9 I will wait for You, O You his Strength; For
God is my defense.
10 My God of mercy shall come to meet me;
God shall let me see my desire on my enemies.
11 Do not slay them, lest my people forget;
Scatter them by Your power, And bring them
down, O Lord our shield.
12 For the sin of their mouth and the words of
their lips, Let them even be taken in their pride,
And for the cursing and lying which they speak.
13 Consume them in wrath, consume them,
That they may not be; And let them know that
God rules in Jacob To the ends of the earth.
Selah
The people praised the Lord for what He had
done, and as they worshiped, they meditated on
His character and His purposes.
It isn’t enough to know the works of the Lord; we

must also seek to understand His way and learn
how to please Him.

6 The LORD executes righteousness And
justice for all who are oppressed.
7 He made known His ways to Moses, His
acts to the children of Israel.
David’s great concern was that the Lord be
glorified, and that was why God blessed Him.
Rejoice!

Please God

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I Want To

Please God! Psalm 64

David was probably serving in Saul’s court when

He knew that Saul was his enemy and wanted to

People give us all kinds of trouble, but our battle

Psalm 64:1–2 (NKJV)

Psalm 4:1 (NKJV)

Psalm 140:6 (NKJV)

Psalm 142:1–3 (NKJV)

The fear of the Lord mobilizes us, but the fear of

As a young man, loved by the people but envied

Psalm 31:13–14 (NKJV)

Both his life and his reputation were being

Psalm 64:3–6 (NKJV)

2 Corinthians 2:10–11 (NKJV)

as a serpent, he comes to deceive (2 Cor. 11:1–4),

and one of his chief weapons is accusation (Rev.

Psalm 55:21 (NKJV)

Jeremiah 9:8 (NKJV)

Psalm 10:11 (NKJV)

1 Samuel 18:11–12 (NKJV)

Jeremiah 17:9 (NKJV)

James 1:5 (NKJV)

Psalm 64:7–8 (NKJV)

“Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his

David’s enemies shot arrows at him suddenly (vv.

Psalm 27:1–2 (NKJV)

Psalm 64:9–10 (NKJV)

Dr. Bob Cook used to say, “If you can explain

The nation had a new fear of the Lord as they

It isn’t enough to know the works of the Lord; we

Psalm 103:6–7 (NKJV)

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