8 Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings,
He found him in a desert land, And in the waste, howling wilderness; He compassed him about, he watched over him, He preserved him as the apple of his eye.
Jehovah recompense thy work, and let thy reward be full from Jehovah the God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to take refuge.
{To the chief Musician. 'Destroy not.' Of David. Michtam; when he fled from Saul in the cave.} Be gracious unto me, O God, be gracious unto me; for my soul taketh refuge in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings do I take refuge, until the calamities be overpast.
I will sojourn in thy tent for ever; I will take refuge in the covert of thy wings. Selah.
He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou find refuge: his truth is a shield and buckler.
Keep my commandments, and live; and my teaching, as the apple of thine eye.
Jerusalem, Jerusalem, [the city] that kills the prophets and stones those that are sent unto her, how often would I have gathered thy children as a hen gathers her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Psalms 17
Commentary on Psalms 17 Matthew Henry Commentary
Psalm 17
David being in great distress and danger by the malice of his enemies, does, in this psalm, by prayer address himself to God, his tried refuge, and seeks shelter in him.
Some make him, in this, a type of Christ, who was perfectly innocent, and yet was hated and persecuted, but, like David, committed himself and his cause to him that judgeth righteously.
A prayer of David.
Psa 17:1-7
This psalm is a prayer. As there is a time to weep and a time to rejoice, so there is a time for praise and a time for prayer. David was now persecuted, probably by Saul, who hunted him like a partridge on the mountains; without were fightings, within were fears, and both urged him as a suppliant to the throne of mercy. He addresses himself to God in these verses both by way of appeal (Hear the right, O Lord! let my righteous cause have a hearing before thy tribunal, and give judgment upon it) and by way of petition (Give ear unto my prayer v. 1, and again v. 6, Incline thy ear unto me and hear my speech); not that God needs to be thus pressed with our importunity, but he gives us leave thus to express our earnest desire of his gracious answers to our prayers. These things he pleads with God for audience,
Psa 17:8-15
We may observe, in these verses,