Psalms 34

By David; when he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, who drove him away, and he departed.

I will bless the LORD at all times. His praise will always be in my mouth.

My soul shall boast in the LORD. The humble shall hear of it and be glad.

Oh magnify the LORD with me. Let’s exalt his name together.

I sought the LORD, and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.

They looked to him, and were radiant. Their faces shall never be covered with shame.

This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.

The LORD’s angel encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them.

Oh taste and see that the LORD is good. Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.

Oh fear the LORD, you his saints, for there is no lack with those who fear him.

The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger, but those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing.

Come, you children, listen to me. I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

Who is someone who desires life, and loves many days, that he may see good?

Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking lies.

Depart from evil, and do good. Seek peace, and pursue it.

The LORD’s eyes are toward the righteous. His ears listen to their cry.

The LORD’s face is against those who do evil, to cut off their memory from the earth.

The righteous cry, and the LORD hears, and delivers them out of all their troubles.

The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves those who have a crushed spirit.

Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all.

He protects all of his bones. Not one of them is broken.

Evil shall kill the wicked. Those who hate the righteous shall be condemned.

The LORD redeems the soul of his servants. None of those who take refuge in him shall be condemned.

Chapter overviewAI-generated

Overview.
This chapter is a psalm of individual thanksgiving turning into communal praise and didactic instruction, celebrating God’s faithful deliverance from trouble and calling others to trust and obey Him. It unfolds as both a testimony and an exhortation, rooted in personal experience of divine salvation and grounded in the assurance of God’s abiding presence with the righteous.

Flow.

Begins with a vow to bless and boast in the Lord continually, inviting others to join in magnifying His name.
Recounts personal and corporate experiences of divine rescue: answered prayer, freedom from fear, and the radiant hope of those who look to God.
Shifts to instructive wisdom, urging the fear of the Lord, moral integrity, and pursuit of peace, supported by affirmations of God’s attentiveness to the righteous.
Closes with a strong declaration of God’s protective care, the certainty of deliverance, and ultimate redemption for those who take refuge in Him.

Connections.
Following chapter 33, which extols the Lord’s sovereignty, faithfulness, and care for those who fear Him, this psalm personalizes that trust through a lived testimony of answered prayer and deliverance. The call to “fear the LORD” and the confidence in His hearing and saving () are now illustrated concretely in the life of one who has cried out and been rescued. The didactic tone leading into moral instruction anticipates the wisdom orientation of later psalms like 37 and 119, while the theme of God’s redemption prepares for the messianic and suffering motifs developed further in chapters like 22 and 51.

What it teaches.
God is worthy of unceasing praise because He is good and actively delivers those who fear Him (WCF 3.7). He hears the cry of the afflicted, draws near to the brokenhearted (HC LD 6), and preserves the righteous even through many afflictions, ensuring their ultimate redemption (WCF 17.1; Canons of Dort 5.8). The fear of the Lord includes moral obedience—turning from evil, pursuing peace, and guarding speech (Eph. 4:25; WCF 19.5)—and is inseparable from trusting in His provision, since those who seek Him lack no good thing (WCF 16.5; HC Q/A 1). The promise that no bone of the righteous is broken () is noted as fulfilled in Christ (), signifying both God’s tender preservation and the typological depth of the psalm.

Apply.
Trust the nearness of the Lord in your affliction and respond with worship that draws others into His goodness.

AI-generated. Not a substitute for Scripture, your pastor, or the confessions.