The historical occasion of this psalm is stated in the title. Saul’s soldiers surround the house of David to kill him. Saul had made it the official policy of the kingdom that David must die. Jonathan had confronted Saul, and Saul swore an oath that David would not die. Profanely, Saul went back on his oath, and now Saul’s evil dogs surround David’s house to carry out Saul’s orders. There appears to be no way out!

And God seems to sleep! Does he not see? Does he not hear? Does he have no sense of urgency as the reprobate enemies of his beloved David assault him? The enemies even encourage themselves in their plots, so that no one hears their proud boasts and no one will avenge their evil deeds.

Awake, O Jehovah, God of hosts, the God of Israel! Jehovah, the God of hosts, is the triune God of the covenant before whom all creatures, even the enemies of his covenant, are but soldiers in his army who do his pleasure and carry out his will. The God of Israel is the sovereign God of election who of one race of men has determined two kinds of people. God loves his elect and appointed them to salvation in Christ, the elect one. And God hates the reprobate and appointed them to destruction. Between those two peoples and those two kingdoms, God placed an antithesis, so that there is hatred between Christ and Belial and between the elect and the reprobate.

Awake, O Jehovah! Awake to visit all the heathen! Strange prayer that is. David prays that Jehovah of hosts will judge all the nations. But were the nations at this time arrayed against David? Was it not Saul and the reprobate enemies of David within Israel who threatened him? Yes, but that opposition of Saul was just one part of the whole opposition of the heathen nations against God and his kingdom all history long, which will culminate in the antichrist, who will make himself lord of all the nations and oppose God and his Christ. So Christ in his type pleads the common cause of the church. Always the church in history, a hut in a garden of cucumbers and a besieged city, finds herself threatened by the nations, and her existence in the world seems to hang by a thread.

Awake, O Jehovah, to visit with judgment those reprobate enemies represented in the nations. And if God is judge of all the nations, then how much more is he not judge in his church when the enemies take the form of false and profane brethren, whose mouths are full of proud lies and cursing and who go back on their oaths and professions of the truth?

Awake, O Jehovah, and be not merciful to any wicked transgressors! David’s prayer! Christ’s prayer! A prayer for the salvation of God’s church in the destruction of the reprobate enemies of that church. For the defense of his covenant, Jehovah will shake himself out of his apparent slumber like a mighty man, and he will have his enemies in derision. He will laugh at them.

Yes, that was the cross and resurrection. By the skin of his teeth, David escaped Saul. Christ delivered up himself to the death of the cross. There Jehovah was merciful to his people and punished their sins in his Son, and there God crushed decisively the wicked enemies of his covenant, who had thought to destroy the Lord’s anointed at the cross. And on Sunday morning Jehovah had them in derision. Such he does always for his church. He shows no mercy to the enemies of his people, and Christ will appear to put his enemies to an end finally.