Psalms 11:1

In the Lord put I my trust,.... Not in himself, in his own heart, nor in his own righteousness and strength; nor in men, the greatest of men, the princes of the earth; nor in his armies, or any

In the LORD put I my trust: how say ye to my soul, Flee as a bird to your mountain?

Psalms 11 This Psalm seems to have been composed by David when he was persecuted by Saul, and forced to flee from place to place for safety. David encourageth himself in God, , against the wicked designs of his enemies, ,3. The providence and justice of God, , to the righteous and wicked, . In the Lord, i.e. in his faithfulness, who hath promised, and will, I doubt not, give me the kingdom. How say ye? either, 1. Ye my friends; who through diffidence and despondency advised him to this course. Or, 2. Ye my enemies; who said it scoffingly and insultingly. How say ye? With what face or reason can you say thus to him, who hath the Lord God Almighty for his refuge? To my soul, i.e. to me, as 7:2. Flee as a bird, suddenly and swiftly, and to some remote place, where thou mayst be out of Saul’ s reach. Feed not thyself with vain hopes of the kingdom, but consult for thy own safety, which thou canst not do without taking the wings of a dove, or some other bird, that thou mayst flee away out of the land, and be at rest, as thou sayest, . Or, Flee away, O thou bird, thou little silly bird, lest the royal eagle seize upon thee. To your mountain, i.e. to some of your mountains in Judah, and there hide thyself. But this was David’ s common practice; and therefore there was no need that any should advise him to it, or that he should reprove them for that advice. Or, from your mountain i.e. from the mountain or mountainous country of Judah, as it is called, ; the mountain being frequently put for a mountainous country, as 23:7 10:6,40, and oft elsewhere. Or, from your mountains, in which thou and thy companions use to hide yourselves. Flee into some foreign land, where you may be safe. For this was the design of David’ s enemies, as he complains, ; and afterward, when David was under sore temptations, it was his practice once or twice.

Psalms 11:1 « To the chief Musician, [A Psalm] of David. » In the LORD put I my trust: how say ye to my soul, Flee [as] a bird to your mountain?Ver. 1. In the Lord put I my trust] This was that which David had and held, wherewith to answer him that reproached him (and it was an excellent good one), that he trusted in God’ s word, Psalms 119:42. When it was that he gave this answer, "In the Lord put I my trust" (whether when Saul’ s courtiers, under pretence of friendship, counselled him to quit the court for fear of Saul, which he was very loth to do, see the like Nehemiah 6:10 Luke 13:31, or else when he was with Samuel at Naioth, 1 Samuel 19:18, &c., where his carnal friends might advise him, as Peter did his Master, Matthew 16:22, with a Fuge, fuge, David, cite, citius, citissime Flee, flee david, quick, quicker, most quickly), is uncertain. But this is certain, that all the troops of ungodliness aim and act vigorously to cast down the castle of confidence we have in God. This, therefore, we must be sure to secure, as the serpent doth his head, the soldier his shield, Ephesians 6:16. This is the victory whereby we overcome the world (with its allurements or affrightments) even our faith, 1 John 5:4. The believer walketh about as a conqueror; and he alone is the man whom the heathen poet elegantly describeth (Horat. Carm. lib. iii. Od. 7): Iustum et tenacem propositi virum, Non civium ardor prava iubentium, Non vultus instantis tyranni Mente quatit solida, &c. Si fractus illabatur orbis, Impavidum ferient ruinae. The poet instanceth in Hercules and Bacchus, but had he known of David, Moses, Micah, Nehemiah, Daniel and his three friends, &c., he would rather have pitched upon them, or some others of those worthies of whom the world was not worthy, Hebrews 11:38. Flee as a bird to your mountain?] Get you gone, you and your followers (the Hebrew word flee is plural), or flee to your mountain, O bird; see you not the fowler’ s snare? and will you not away with all speed? Thus they sought to fright him (as birds are fearful, Isaiah 16:2), and to make him flee from his place, as a bird fleeth from her nest, Proverbs 27:8. But he was never without his cordial, the same that relieved him at the sack of Ziklag, where, in the fail of all other comforts, he "encouraged himself in the Lord his God," 1 Samuel 30:6, he knew that, as birds flying, so will the Lord of hosts defend his people; defending also he will deliver them, and passing over he will preserve them, Isaiah 31:5. This, though it were not written in David’ s days, yet he had the good assurance of it in his soul.

(1) Put I my trust.—Better, as in Psalms 7:1, I find my refuge.Flee as a bird.—Literally, flee ye a bird. The plural verb, with the singular noun, offers a difficulty which is not obviated by the reading which changes the verb to the singular, since your mountain has the plural suffix. We may supply the sign of comparison, as elsewhere sometimes omitted (Psalms 22:14); “flee ye like a bird;” or we may, with Ewald, take the noun as collective—a flock of birds. The idea of trepidation is conveyed in the original by the verb, which suggests the hurried flap of wings. Dr. Thomson, in The Land and the Book, finds in the habits of the dove an illustration of the passage; and compares Psalms 55:6, “Oh that I had wings as a dove!”

PSALM XI David's friends advise him to flee to the wilderness from Saul's fury, 1-3. He answers that, having put his trust in God, knowing that he forsakes not those who confide in him, and that he will punish the ungodly, he is perfectly satisfied that he shall be in safety, 4-7. NOTES ON PSALM XI The inscription is, To the chief Musician, A psalm of David. By the chief musician we may understand the master-singer; the leader of the band; the person who directed the choir: but we know that the word has been translated, To the Conqueror; and some deep and mystical senses have been attributed to it, with which I believe the text has nothing to do. Verse 1. In the Lord put I my trust: how say ye] Some of David's friends seem to have given him this advice when they saw Saul bent on his destruction: "Flee as a bird to your mountain;" you have not a moment to lose; your ruin is determined; escape for your life; get off as swiftly as possible to the hill-country, to some of those inaccessible fortresses best known to yourself; and hide yourself there from the cruelty of Saul. To which advice he answers, "In the Lord put I my trust," shall I act as if I were conscious of evil, and that my wicked deeds were likely to be discovered? Or shall I act as one who believes he is forsaken of the protection of the Almighty? No: I put my trust in him, and I am sure I shall never be confounded.

1–3. Faith’s indignant repudiation of faint-hearted counsel in the hour of danger.

In the Lord put I my trust - This, in general, expresses the state of mind of the author - a state of feeling which runs through the entire psalm.

1. Flee as a bird, etc.—Literally, Flee, bird, to your mountain. The ancient versions read, as a bird. The particle of comparison is implied.