Personal Praise: God Saves the King (vv. 1-8). David offers wholehearted praise to the Lord (Matt. 15:8) for delivering him and his army from the enemy nations that attacked Israel. His aim was to honor the Lord, not to glorify himself. His joy was in the Lord, not just in the great victory that he had been given (Phil. 4:4), and he wanted to tell everybody about God’s wonderful works. (See vv. 14; 103:1-2; 117:1; 138:1; 1 Peter 2:9; and Eph. 2:7.) “God Most High” is El Elyon (see 7:17; 18:13; 21:7). This was the name that Abraham honored after God gave him victory over the kings (Gen. 14).

David describes the victory in verses 3-6, verses that should be read in the past tense: “Because my enemies were turned back …” Note the repeated “You have” (or “Thou hast”) in verses 4-6. God turned the enemy back, and in their retreat, they stumbled and perished before the Lord. Why did the Lord do this? To maintain the right of David to be king of Israel and accomplish God’s purposes in this world. God’s rebuke is an expression of His anger (2:5; 76:6). To “blot out” a name meant to destroy the person, place, or nation completely (83:4; Ex. 17:14; Deut. 25:19; 1 Sam. 15; and see Deut. 9:14; 29:20). In contrast to the wiping out of the nations, the Lord and His great name stand forever. His throne cannot be overthrown. In fact, in the victory God gave David, the king saw a picture of the final judgment and victory when God will judge the world, and Paul referred to verse 8 in his address in Athens (Acts 17:31).