Lesson 2

Psalm 59

READ: 1 Samuel 16-19, Psalm 59

1. In which book of the five books of Psalms is this psalm found?

2. What kind of parallelism (synonymous as in 49:1 and 24:1, antithetical as in 1:6, or synthetic as in 119:11) is found in 59:11?

3. What kind of parallelism is found in 59:2?

4. What kind of parallelism is found in 59:17?

5. List the events of David's life up to the writing of this Psalm.

Ps. 59:TITLE	What chapter of 1 Samuel describes the event referred to in the title of Psalm 59? The wording of this title is particularly similar to what verse in 1 Samuel?

59:1	Why does David say "enemies" plural? (Cf. 1 Sam. 19:11.)

59:3	To what event does the phrase "They lie in wait" refer?
	Why does David describe his enemies as "mighty" (KJV, ASV) or "fierce" (NAS)?
	Did David feel that they had just cause to seek his life?
	Did Jonathan believe that David's enemies had just cause to seek his life? (Cf. 1 Sam. 19:5.)

59:6	In what city did David and Michal live at the time of these events? (See 1 Sam. 15:34, 18:1-2.)
	In what city did Saul's messengers "return at evening" and "go round about"? (1 Sam. 19:11, but see also 19:20-21.)

59:7	What did David's enemies think the answer to their question was?
	What was the true answer? (59:8)

59:10	The phrase translated "mine enemies" in the ASV and KJV, or "my foes" in the NAS, could literally be translated to say what? (Check your footnote.)

59:11	Why "slay them not"?

59:12	What might have been the lies which they spoke? (cf. 1 Sam. 24:9)

59:13	Does this verse contradict the plea to "slay them not" of verse eleven?
	What is meant by "Jacob"? (Cf. Gen. 32:38, Num. 23:7)
	Did David think that God was only the God of Israel?

59:14-15	Who is represented by the "meat" of "food" in verse 15?
	What kind of noises do unsatisfied dogs make?
	What kind of noises did these unsatisfied enemies make? (Cf. 59:7)

59:16-17	To whom did David attribute his deliverance?