Psalm 57 Study Notes

57:5 Glory (Hb kavod) carries the idea of “heavy” or “weighty” in the sense of “important” (see word study at 24:7-10). God’s glory can either be a physical manifestation, such as that which came down on the ark of the covenant (Ex 40:34-35), or be used to represent his significance, perhaps connected with his reputation or “name” (Ps 29:2; 66:2). In this verse his significance is over the whole earth, meaning beyond anything on earth. Verse 11 repeats the same words as v. 5.

57:6 The desire for enemies to fall into their own traps is a common request in these types of prayers (see note at 7:14-16).

57:7-8 My soul here is literally “my glory” from the same Hebrew word (kavod) as v. 5. Here it represents the person but creates an interesting wordplay within the psalm.

57:9 The praise . . . among the peoples and nations demonstrates that the Lord’s authority is over all the nations of the earth (see notes at 18:49; 22:27-31).