Article: Psalm 4: The Key to a Good Night’s Sleep By Ross Lester. (original source here). Ross lives in Blairgowrie, Johannesburg with his wife Sue and young son, Daniel. He is lead pastor and elder at Bryanston Bible Church.

For the choir director; on stringed instruments. A Psalm of David.

1 Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness!
You have relieved me in my distress;
Be gracious to me and hear my prayer.
2 O sons of men, how long will my honor become a reproach?
How long will you love what is worthless and aim at deception? Selah.
3 But know that the LORD has set apart the godly man for Himself;
The LORD hears when I call to Him.
4 Tremble, and do not sin;
Meditate in your heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.
5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness,
And trust in the LORD.
6 Many are saying, “Who will show us any good?”
Lift up the light of Your countenance upon us, O LORD!
7 You have put gladness in my heart,
More than when their grain and new wine abound.
8 In peace I will both lie down and sleep,
For You alone, O LORD, make me to dwell in safety.

Reflection:
Psalm 3 and Psalm 4 are said to be a pair that are intended to go together. They function as bookends for a day. Psalm 3 is a Psalm for the morning (which is probably why it is so angry), and Psalm 4 is a song for the evening. A lullaby, if you like; a soothing song to hum along to before you fall asleep.

Do you ever struggle to sleep? The key to a good night’s sleep, according to David, is to know that what God thinks about your right standing before him is way more important than what you or others believe about it. In verse 1 of the Psalm, David uses a name for God that isn’t used anywhere else in Scripture. He calls him “God of my righteousness.” Now, because it is such a unique term in the Scripture, there is a lot of argument about how best to express it. C.H. Spurgeon was fascinated by the term, and he explained it this way:

It means, Thou art the author, the witness, the maintainer, the judge, and the rewarder of my righteousness; to thee I appeal from the calumnies and harsh judgments of men. Herein is wisdom, let us imitate it and always take our suit, not to the petty courts of human opinion, but into the superior court, the King’s Bench of heaven. (The Treasury of David, Vol 1, Pg. 34)

As David was being pursued by forces led by his son Absalom, he was having a lot of accusations thrown at him. They must have kept him up at night. “You are a sham, David. You were a lousy king. Remember what you did with Bathsheba? Even your own son hates you.”

I reckon that a lot of us have voices of accusation that keep us up at night. I don’t know what they sound like to you, but I certainly experience them at times in my life. Continue reading →