Psalm 52

Ask the Lord to use this text and this time to bring you nearer to Him. Ask that He will teach you and open your eyes to see His truth. After praying, read the entire psalm two times through.

¹Why do you boast of evil, you mighty man? Why do you boast all day long, you who are a disgrace in the eyes of God?
²Your tongue plots destruction; it is like a sharpened razor, you who practice deceit.
³You love evil rather than good, falsehood rather than speaking the truth. Selah
⁴You love every harmful word, O you deceitful tongue!
⁵Surely God will bring you down to everlasting ruin: He will snatch you up and tear you from your tent; he will uproot you from the land of the living. Selah ⁶The righteous will see and fear; they will laugh at him, saying, ⁷"Here now is the man who did not make God his stronghold but trusted in his great wealth and grew strong by destroying others!
⁸But I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in God's unfailing love for ever and ever.
⁹I will praise you forever for what you have done; in your name I will hope, for your name is good. I will praise you in the presence of your saints.


Background to the Psalm:

When we reach this part of David’s life (I Samuel 21:1-22:19), we see Saul in hot pursuit of killing David and David fleeing from death. David, the son of Jesse, enters a small town called Nob. When the priest of the Lord there asks David why he is alone, he says King Saul “charged me with a certain matter and said to me, “No one is to know anything about your mission and your instructions.’” (21:2) David uses this ploy to sneak into the town of Nob. The priest there blesses David by giving him consecrated bread, and protection from Saul.
Meanwhile, Saul hears that David has been discovered. When Saul asks why they have conspired against him, one man by the name of Doeg admits, “I saw the son of Jesse come to Abimelech”. Saul is enraged! He was unaware of David presence in Nob, and the blessings that were bestowed on him through Abimelech. After Doeg sells the priest out, Saul orders that the “priests of the Lord” are killed. No one in Saul’s court will dare kill the holy priests because they fear God. Doeg, however, turns and kills eighty-five of the priests that day!

What man is David referring to in verse one?

Doeg is the man David is referring to. He was a “treacherous” man that “thrived on a wicked and false way of life, loving words that devour” (The Bible Knowledge Commentary). In Psalm 52, David contrasts the way of the wicked (Doeg) verses the way of the righteous (himself).

Read verses 1-7.
We all can relate to the wicked man in some way, if not several. Do you see any of the wicked man’s mentality in your own life? What does David say will happen to this man? (v. 5)

In verse 8, how does David define himself? The olive tree represents prosperity and longevity (Ryrie Study Bible). When we have our faith in Christ, we are freed from the condemnation that the wicked will receive, and in this present life, he begins to cultivate our hearts to be more like His.

What wicked things in your heart do you need to Lord to help you with? How has God already transformed some of your old self into something new?

Thank Him for the work he has done in your life, and ask that He continue to cultivate your heart.