Psalms — Chapter 20

Loading ESV text...

1For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble; may the name of the God of Jacob protect you.

2May He send you help from the sanctuary and sustain you from Zion.

3May He remember all your gifts and look favorably on your burnt offerings. Selah

4May He give you the desires of your heart and make all your plans succeed.

5May we shout for joy at your victory and raise a banner in the name of our God. May the LORD grant all your petitions.

6Now I know that the LORD saves His anointed; He answers him from His holy heaven with the saving power of His right hand.

7Some trust in chariots and others in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.

8They collapse and fall, but we rise up and stand firm.

9O LORD, save the king. Answer us on the day we call.

1The LORD hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee;

2Send thee help from the sanctuary, and strengthen thee out of Zion;

3Remember all thy offerings, and accept thy burnt sacrifice; Selah.

4Grant thee according to thine own heart, and fulfil all thy counsel.

5We will rejoice in thy salvation, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners: the LORD fulfil all thy petitions.

6Now know I that the LORD saveth his anointed; he will hear him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand.

7Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God.

8They are brought down and fallen: but we are risen, and stand upright.

9Save, LORD: let the king hear us when we call.

1Jehovah answer thee in the day of trouble; The name of the God of Jacob set thee up on high;

2Send thee help from the sanctuary, And strengthen thee out of Zion;

3Remember all thy offerings, And accept thy burnt-sacrifice; Selah

4Grant thee thy heart`s desire, And fulfil all thy counsel.

5We will triumph in thy salvation, And in the name of our God we will set up our banners: Jehovah fulfil all thy petitions.

6Now know I that Jehovah saveth his anointed; He will answer him from his holy heaven With the saving strength of his right hand.

7Some [trust] in chariots, and some in horses; But we will make mention of the name of Jehovah our God.

8They are bowed down and fallen; But we are risen, and stand upright.

9Save, Jehovah: Let the King answer us when we call. Psalm 21 For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.

1For the music director, a psalm of David. May the Lord answer you when you are in trouble; may the God of Jacob make you secure.

2May he send you help from his temple; from Zion may he give you support.

3May he take notice of all your offerings; may he accept your burnt sacrifice. (Selah)

4May he grant your heart’s desire; may he bring all your plans to pass.

5Then we will shout for joy over your victory; we will rejoice in the name of our God. May the Lord grant all your requests.

6Now I am sure that the Lord will deliver his chosen king; he will intervene for him from his holy, heavenly temple, and display his mighty ability to deliver.

7Some trust in chariots and others in horses, but we depend on the Lord our God.

8They will fall down, but we will stand firm.

9The Lord will deliver the king; he will answer us when we call to him for help!

1May Yahweh answer you in the day of trouble. May the name of the God of Jacob set you up on high,

2send you help from the sanctuary, grant you support from Zion,

3remember all your offerings, and accept your burned sacrifice. Selah.

4May He grant you your heart’s desire, and fulfill all your counsel.

5We will triumph in your salvation. In the name of our God, we will set up our banners. May Yahweh grant all your requests.

6Now I know that Yahweh saves his anointed. He will answer him from his holy heaven, with the saving strength of his right hand.

7Some trust in chariots, and some in horses, but we trust the name of Yahweh our God.

8They are bowed down and fallen, but we rise up, and stand upright.

9Save, Yahweh! Let the King answer us when we call!

Summary
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
Commentary
Videos
Articles
Reflection

Summary

A royal psalm offered as a pre-battle prayer for the king. The people ask the LORD to answer the king in the day of trouble, send help from the sanctuary, and remember his offerings favorably (vv. 1-3), granting his heart's desire and the success of his plans (v. 4), so that the people can shout for joy and raise banners in God's name (v. 5). The psalm turns to confidence that the LORD saves his anointed and answers him from heaven with mighty acts of deliverance (v. 6). Some trust in military strength like chariots and horses, but the singers trust in the name of the LORD their God, so their enemies will collapse while they rise and stand firm (vv. 7-8). It closes with a final plea for the LORD to save the king and answer when they call (v. 9).

Authorship & Background

Author: Multiple authors — primarily David (73 psalms attributed), plus Asaph (12), Sons of Korah (11), Solomon (2), Moses (1), Heman (1), Ethan (1), and anonymous. The Psalter was compiled over approximately 1000 years and served as Israel's hymnal and prayer book. The book is divided into five 'books' (1-41, 42-72, 73-89, 90-106, 107-150), paralleling the five books of Moses.
Classification: Royal/Community Prayer Psalm
Attributed Author: David — "To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David"
Key Themes: Community praying for the king, trust in God's name vs. military power, pre-battle liturgy, confidence in God's anointed, salvation through divine intervention
Historical Context: Psalm 20 is a pre-battle liturgy — the people pray for their king before he goes to war. It pairs with Psalm 21 (post-battle thanksgiving). The congregation addresses the king (vv.1-5), then a single voice (prophet or king) declares confidence (v.6), and the people affirm collective trust (vv.7-8). The psalm's theology is explicitly anti-militaristic: "Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD" (v.7). Military success comes not from superior equipment but from divine favor. This is the theology that sent David against Goliath with stones instead of armor.
The LORD Hear Thee in the Day of Trouble (vv.1-5): The LORD hear thee in the day of trouble, the name of the God of Jacob defend thee. The whole section is in the second person singular and it is a congregation praying for a king before a campaign, which the references to offerings and to the sanctuary make clear, send thee help from the sanctuary, and strengthen thee out of Zion. And what is asked is specific to the occasion, grant thee according to thine own heart, and fulfil all thy counsel.
Now Know I That the LORD Saveth His Anointed (v.6): Now know I that the LORD saveth his anointed, he will hear him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand. One verse, and the change from the plural prayer to a single confident voice suggests a moment in the liturgy, possibly an answer given at the sanctuary. Whatever prompted it, the verb is now know rather than hope.
Some Trust in Chariots (vv.7-8): Some trust in chariots, and some in horses, but we will remember the name of the LORD our God. It is the sharpest single contrast in the psalter's political theology, and it is the same argument Isaiah makes at 31:1. Chariots were the decisive military technology of the age. And the outcome is put in the perfect tense, they are brought down and fallen, but we are risen, and stand upright.
Save, LORD (v.9): Save, LORD, let the king hear us when we call. The psalm ends as it began, with the congregation asking rather than declaring, and the last clause is ambiguous in the Hebrew as to who is being asked to hear. The English follows one reading; the Septuagint takes it the other way, save the king and hear us.

Map & Geography

  • Zion (v.2): The hill on which Jerusalem/the Temple stood; often used poetically for God's dwelling.

Places on this map

  • JerusalemJerusalemA hill town about 2,500 feet up in the central spine of Judah, roughly 35 miles inland from the Mediterranean and 15 miles west of the Jordan. It sits on no trade route and has no river, which is why it mattered as a fortress and a sanctuary rather than as a market. Wikipedia

Towns sit on their excavated or traditional site. Regions, rivers and seas are ringed rather than dotted, because for those a single point is only an anchor. Coastlines from Natural Earth.

Commentary

  • Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Verse-by-verse commentary on this chapter, written for the everyday reader and freely available online.
  • Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
  • Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.

Videos

Psalm 20 | Some Trust in Chariots | Bible Study
Spoken Gospel

Psalm 20 - The LORD Saves His Anointed
David Guzik

Articles

  • GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of Psalms -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.

Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.

Reflection

  • Praying for Leaders Before the Battle (vv.1-5) — The people intercede for their king before he faces danger, not only after. Do you pray for those in leadership over you before a crisis hits, or only once it arrives?
  • Crediting God Publicly for Victory (v.5) — When victory comes, the people plan to raise their banners in God's name rather than their own. Do you give God visible credit for the wins in your life, or quietly take that credit yourself?
  • Trusting God's Name Over Resources (v.7) — The psalm contrasts trusting in chariots and horses with trusting in the name of the LORD. Where are you tempted to place your confidence in resources or strategy instead of in God?
  • Standing Firm While Others Fall (v.8) — Those who trust human power collapse while those who trust God's name remain standing. Does the outcome of your life so far confirm where your trust has actually been placed?