What does Psalms Chapter 54 say, and which statements belong to its speaker?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

The Latin incipit is Exaudi, Deus. The speaker’s petitions, recollections and future declarations retain their distinct wording. Edition interpretations remain separate from verse speech; no universal safety or clinical guarantee is established.

Chapter breakdown

The Latin incipit is Exaudi, Deus. The separate heading describes persecution and applies the psalm to Christ persecuted by Jews and betrayed by Judas. The inscription is unto the end, in verses, understanding for David. The speaker asks God to hear and not despise prayer, describing grief under enemies' voice, iniquities cast upon him and wrathful trouble. His heart is troubled, death's fear falls upon him, and trembling and darkness cover him. He wishes for a dove's wings to fly and rest, then says he has gone far off flying and abode in wilderness, waiting for the one who saved him from pusillanimity and storm.

He asks the Lord to cast down and divide tongues because he saw iniquity and contradiction in the city. Iniquity shall surround its walls day and night, with labor, injustice, usury and deceit in its streets. The city is not named Jerusalem. He contrasts a reviling enemy he could have borne or a hater from whom perhaps he would have hidden with a man of one mind, guide and familiar, who shared sweetmeats and walked with him in God's house in consent. He calls for death and descent alive into hell upon those with wickedness in dwellings. The separate note treats these expressions as prophetic foretelling of punishment and approval of justice, distinguishing unlawful uncharitable curses.

He has cried to God and says the Lord will save. Evening, morning and noon he will speak and declare, and God shall hear and redeem his soul in peace from those drawing near. Many were with him; the separate note says many in company combined to attack him. God shall hear and the Eternal humble people with no change and no fear of God. The passage speaks of a stretched hand in repayment, a defiled covenant, wrath dividing a countenance, a drawn-near heart and words smoother than oil that are darts. These difficult pronouns do not independently identify a particular traitor's actions. A separate note explains God's wrath against wicked deceit. The closing exhortation casts care upon the Lord, who shall sustain and not let the just waver forever; bloody deceitful men shall not live half their days, and the speaker will trust.

The story inside

Opening: The Latin incipit is Exaudi, Deus. Development: The speaker’s petitions, recollections and future declarations retain their distinct wording. Conclusion: Edition interpretations remain separate from verse speech; no universal safety or clinical guarantee is established.

Lessons worth keeping

1
The Latin incipit is Exaudi, Deus.
2
The speaker’s petitions, recollections and future declarations retain their distinct wording.
3
Edition interpretations remain separate from verse speech; no universal safety or clinical guarantee is established.

Test your recall

Which images and requests does the speaker use, and what does the chapter leave unresolved?

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 60882–60883
And I said: Who will give me wings like a dove, and I will fly and be at rest?
Lines 60904–60907
But thou a man of one mind, my guide, and my familiar, 54:15. Who didst take sweetmeats together with me: in the house of God we walked with consent.
Lines 60912–60916
Let death, etc.... This, and such like imprecations which occur in the psalms, are delivered prophetically; that is, by way of foretelling the punishments which shall fall upon the wicked from divine justice, and approving the righteous ways of God: but not by way of ill will, or uncharitable curses, which the law of God disallows.
Lines 60920–60921
Evening and morning, and at noon I will speak and declare: and he shall hear my voice.
Lines 60936–60937
His words are smoother than oil, and the same are darts.
Lines 60943–60944
Cast thy care upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall not suffer the just to waver for ever.