Context

Figures of Speech

vv.4-5, bound by an inclusio (ודעו / ודמו) evoke images of eerie quietude (דמם) and darkness (משׁכב), as people lie on their beds at night in contemplative silence. By contrast, vv.7-8, also bound by an inclusio (רבים / רבו) introduce the contrasting image of light (אור) which gives sight (יראנו) and life/abundance (רבב). In other words, vv.7-8 represent the dawning of day upon the darkness of night (vv.4-5). The pivotal point between the two is v.6 (the center of the psalm: צדק [cf.v.2a], בטח [cf.v.9c]) which depicts a turning to Yahweh with worship (v.6a) and trust (v.6b). Repentance (v.6) hastens the dawn – the transition from a life of darkness and silence (vv.4-5) to one of light and blessing (vv.7-8).
The themes of darkness/evening and light/morning, which are prominent in vv.4-8, appear at the beginning and end of the psalm as well. The first word of the psalm (בְּקָרְאִי) sounds like the word for "morning" (בֹּקֶר), and the final verse of the psalm (v.9) evokes the image of evening (אשׁכבה ואישׁן). The Psalm thus alternates between images of morning and evening:

Morning (v.2)

Evening (vv.4-5)

Morning (vv.7-8)

Evening (v.9)

figurative/evocative language is concentrated in v.5, perhaps marking the thematic peak of the psalm.
- metonymy: רגזו
- idom: אמרו בלבבכם
- imagery: lying down to sleep (cf. v.9); silence,

Historical background

The King is the one who is speaking in this Psalm. In fact, he is the subject, the “I” and the “we,” in almost all of the Psalms, as I believe Eaton has shown successfully in his book, Kingship and the Psalms.^[1]
What is the crisis behind the lament? I suggest that a crisis of drought, or a lack of rain, makes the diverse details of the Psalm hang together very well. We note in verse 7, “Many are saying, ‘Who can show us any good?’ ” The word “good” is a metonymy for rain, which is absolutely crucial to an agricultural economy in the land of Palestine. Rain is essential for crops, for the flocks and herds, and above all for human survival. It is the good par excellence. It is the key to the Good Life. This interpretation of Psalm 4:7 can be corroborated from parallel passages of Scripture. First consider Jeremiah 5:24, 25:

They do not say to themselves,

‘Let us fear the LORD our God,

who gives autumn and spring rains in season,

who assures us of the regular weeks of harvest.’

Your wrongdoings have kept these away;

your sins have deprived you of good (NIV).

Here we can see that the word “good” is parallel to the “autumn and spring rains in season” as well as to “the regular weeks of harvest.” Consequently the term “good” is employed by Jeremiah as a metonymy for rain. Secondly, notice the same thing in Psalm 85:12(13) - “The LORD will indeed give what is good, and our land will yield its harvest” (NIV). Once again we see that “good” is parallel to the word “harvest.”
In the ancient Near East the king was held responsible for the rain.^[2]
The crisis of drought, however, is only the beginning of the problem. The central issue is the danger of turning to false gods or idolatry. Look at verse 3.

How long, O men, will you turn my

glory into shame?

How long will you love delusions and

seek false gods? SELAH (NIV)

A number and variety of derogatory expressions for idolatry are employed in the Old Testament:

אָוֶן = nothing: Isaiah 41:29, Hosea 12:12, I Samuel 15:23, Isaiah 1:13, 66:3, Zechariah 10:2
אֱלִֹיל = weak/worthless thing: Leviticus 19:4, 26:1, Isaiah 2:8, 18, 20bis, Psalm 96:5 (= I Chronicles 16:26), Psalm 97:7
הֶבֶל = breath/vapour: Jeremiah 10:15, 16:19, 51:18, Deuteronomy 32:21, I Kings 16:13, 26, Jeremiah 8:19, 10:8, 14:22, Psalm 31:7, Jonah 2:9 (all plural; for singular see 2 Kings 17:15 and Jeremiah 2:5 and cf. Jeremiah 10:15, 16:19, and 51:18)
רִיק = emptiness: Psalm 4:2 - Note the association of הבל and ריק in Isaiah 30:7 and 49:4
כָזָב = lie: Amos 2:4, Psalm 40:5
שָׁוְא = emptiness: Jeremiah 18:15, Jonah 2:9, Psalm 31:7
שֶׁקֶר = falsehood: Jeremiah 10:14, 51:17, Isaiah 44:20

These terms all refer to idols as deception or non-entities.
In addition, note that the verbs used in Psalm 4:2 are appropriate for idolatry. The verb אהב is occasionally used of idolatrous worship (cf. Hosea 4:18 and Jeremiah 8:2) and the verb בקשׁ is frequently used of seeking God, often in a cultic setting^[3] Thus the language of Psalm 4:3 lends itself much more suitably to the idea that the men of rank are resorting to idolatry rather than the interpretation that they are receiving false and unfounded accusations against David and his reputation.
The Canaanites worshipped Baal, the son of Dagon. Also known as Hadad, Baal was the rain god, or the god of the storm. A stele found in the temple at the ancient city of Ugarit pictures Baal as a handsome young man standing strong, grasping a forked spear in his left hand and brandishing a club over his head with his right.Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; refs with no name must have content His club represents thunder; his lance represents lightning. The horns of his helmet are the horns of a bull, his cult symbol, which represents life and fertility. There were other gods too, in the ancient Near East which represented fertility and life. David, the King, attacks these false gods as a delusion and a lie. How appropriate to the situation of Psalm 4 are the words of the prophet Jeremiah:

“... My people have exchanged their Glory

for worthless idols.

Be appalled at this, O heavens,

and shudder with great horror,”

declares the Lord.

“My people have committed two sins:

They have forsaken me,

the spring of living water,

and have dug their own cisterns,

broken cisterns that cannot hold water.”

(Jeremiah 2:11-13, NIV)

In a land where rain is absolutely essential for survival it is no wonder that the LORD is spoken of as “the fountain of living water” (Jeremiah 2:13, 17:13). Consider too, the words of the prophet Zechariah.

Ask the LORD for rain in the springtime;

it is the LORD who makes the storm clouds.

He gives showers of rain to men,

and plants of the field to everyone.

The idols speak deceit,

diviners see visions that lie;

they tell dreams that are false,

they give comfort in vain.

Therefore the people wander like sheep

oppressed for lack of a shepherd.

(Zechariah 10:1,2, NIV)

Here the prophet Zechariah addresses the people in much the same way that the King speaks to his nobles in Psalm 4:2.,

Cultural background

"The original thrust and context of the psalm remain uncertain."^[4],

Reference/allusions

There are a number of allusions to the Aaronic blessing of Num. 6:24-26‎: יְבָרֶכְךָ֥ יְהוָ֖ה וְיִשְׁמְרֶֽךָ׃
יָאֵ֙ר יְהוָ֧ה׀ פָּנָ֛יו אֵלֶ֖יךָ וִֽיחֻנֶּֽךָּ׃
יִשָּׂ֙א יְהוָ֤ה׀ פָּנָיו֙ אֵלֶ֔יךָ
וְיָשֵׂ֥ם לְךָ֖ שָׁלֽוֹם׃

v.2c. חנני (Num. 6:25, ויחנך)
v.7b. נסה עלינו אור פניך (Num. 6:25, יאר יהוה פניו אליך; Num. 6:26, ישׂא יהוה פניו אליך)
- the two petitions (Num. 6:25a, 26a) are conflated in a single petition (Ps.4:7b)
v.9c. שׁלום (Num. 6:26b, שׁלום)

See also Ps. 44:3, 80:3, 7, 19, 119:135, Dt 32:20<--this last point by Brad.Willits-->,

Alluded to in NT

The Old Greek translation of Psalm 4:5 (ὀργίζεσθε καὶ μὴ ἁμαρτάνετε) is quoted by Paul in Eph. 4:26. Interestingly, Paul expands on the quotation, adding what may be his own interpretation: ὁ ἥλιος μὴ ἐπιδυέτω ἐπὶ τῷ παροργισμῷ ὑμῶν. He draws on the image of the setting sun which is already implicit in this evening psalm (v.5b, 9). Verse 5 of Psalm 4 is indeed the most linguistically marked verse in the Psalm (it occurs in the middle of the psalm and contains a cluster of repeated words and figurative/evocative language), though 5a, quoted in Ephesians, is less marked than 5b.,

Other

Canonical Context
Psalm 4 has a number of connections to Psalm 3. These are primarily lexical; a number of words (קרא, ענה, שׁכב, ישׁן, רבב) and exact phrases (כְּבוֹדִי, רַבִּים אְמְרִים) appear in both psalms. Furthermore, both psalms have a related set of images at their center (middle line): lying down to sleep (3:6a; 4:5) and waking up again (3:6b). The two psalms have thus been viewed as a morning and evening psalm respectively. There may also be a connection with Psalm 2: "The strong admonition delivered [by the son of God] to the 'sons of men' is comparable to the warning which the king utters to 'the kings and judges of the earth' in Psalm 2."^[5]

↑ John Eaton, Kingship and the Psalms (London: SCM Press, 1976).
↑ See Walter Beyerlin, ed. Near Eastern Religious Texts Relating to the Old Testament, 148; Roland de Vaux, Ancient Israel, Vol. I, 110-113 and citing Psalm 72; John Eaton, Kingship and the Psalms (London: SCM Press, 1976).
↑ Wagner, בקשׁ in Theological Dictionary of The Old Testament, eds. G. Johannes Botterweck and Helmer Ringgren, transl. John T. Willis, rev. ed. Eerdmans, 1977. Vol. II, pp. 229-241.
↑ Peter Craigie, Psalms. 1-50. Word Biblical Commentary (Waco: Word Books, 1983), 79.
↑ John Eaton, Kingship and the Psalms (London: SCM Press, 1976), 29.

[1] John Eaton, Kingship and the Psalms (London: SCM Press, 1976).

[2] See Walter Beyerlin, ed. Near Eastern Religious Texts Relating to the Old Testament, 148; Roland de Vaux, Ancient Israel, Vol. I, 110-113 and citing Psalm 72; John Eaton, Kingship and the Psalms (London: SCM Press, 1976).

[3] Wagner, בקשׁ in Theological Dictionary of The Old Testament, eds. G. Johannes Botterweck and Helmer Ringgren, transl. John T. Willis, rev. ed. Eerdmans, 1977. Vol. II, pp. 229-241.

[4] Peter Craigie, Psalms. 1-50. Word Biblical Commentary (Waco: Word Books, 1983), 79.

[5] John Eaton, Kingship and the Psalms (London: SCM Press, 1976), 29.

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Psalm 4/Context

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