Psalms — Chapter 62

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1For the choirmaster. According to Jeduthun. A Psalm of David. In God alone my soul finds rest; my salvation comes from Him.

2He alone is my rock and my salvation. He is my fortress; I will never be shaken.

3How long will you threaten a man? Will all of you throw him down like a leaning wall or a tottering fence?

4They fully intend to cast him down from his lofty perch; they delight in lies; with their mouths they bless, but inwardly they curse. Selah

5Rest in God alone, O my soul, for my hope comes from Him.

6He alone is my rock and my salvation; He is my fortress; I will not be shaken.

7My salvation and my honor rest on God, my strong rock; my refuge is in God.

8Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts before Him. God is our refuge. Selah

9Lowborn men are but a vapor; the exalted are but a lie. Weighed on the scale, they go up; together they are but a vapor.

10Place no trust in extortion or false hope in stolen goods. If your riches increase, do not set your heart upon them.

11God has spoken once; I have heard this twice: that power belongs to God,

12and loving devotion to You, O Lord. For You will repay each man according to his deeds.

1Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from him cometh my salvation.

2He only is my rock and my salvation; he is my defence; I shall not be greatly moved.

3How long will ye imagine mischief against a man? ye shall be slain all of you: as a bowing wall shall ye be, and as a tottering fence.

4They only consult to cast him down from his excellency: they delight in lies: they bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly. Selah.

5My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him.

6He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defence; I shall not be moved.

7In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.

8Trust in him at all times; ye people, pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah.

9Surely men of low degree are vanity, and men of high degree are a lie: to be laid in the balance, they are altogether lighter than vanity.

10Trust not in oppression, and become not vain in robbery: if riches increase, set not your heart upon them.

11God hath spoken once; twice have I heard this; that power belongeth unto God.

12Also unto thee, O Lord, belongeth mercy: for thou renderest to every man according to his work.

1My soul waiteth in silence for God only: From him [cometh] my salvation.

2He only is my rock and my salvation: [He is] my high tower; I shall not be greatly moved.

3How long will ye set upon a man, That ye may slay [him], all of you, Like a leaning wall, like a tottering fence?

4They only consult to thrust him down from his dignity; They delight in lies; They bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly. Selah

5My soul, wait thou in silence for God only; For my expectation is from him.

6He only is my rock and my salvation: [He is] my high tower; I shall not be moved.

7With God is my salvation and my glory: The rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.

8Trust in him at all times, ye people; Pour out your heart before him: God is a refuge for us. Selah

9Surely men of low degree are vanity, and men of high degree are a lie: In the balances they will go up; They are together lighter than vanity.

10Trust not in oppression, And become not vain in robbery: If riches increase, set not your heart [thereon].

11God hath spoken once, Twice have I heard this, That power belongeth unto God.

12Also unto thee, O Lord, belongeth lovingkindness; For thou renderest to every man according to his work. Psalm 63 A Psalm of David when he was in the wilderness of Judah.

1For the music director, Jeduthun; a psalm of David. For God alone I patiently wait; he is the one who delivers me.

2He alone is my protector and deliverer. He is my refuge; I will not be upended.

3How long will you threaten a man like me? All of you are murderers, as dangerous as a leaning wall or an unstable fence.

4They spend all their time planning how to bring their victim down. They love to use deceit; they pronounce blessings with their mouths, but inwardly they utter curses. (Selah)

5Patiently wait for God alone, my soul! For he is the one who gives me hope.

6He alone is my protector and deliverer. He is my refuge; I will not be shaken.

7God delivers me and exalts me; God is my strong protector and my shelter.

8Trust in him at all times, you people! Pour out your hearts before him. God is our shelter. (Selah)

9Men are nothing but a mere breath; human beings are unreliable. When they are weighed in the scales, all of them together are lighter than air.

10Do not trust in what you can gain by oppression. Do not put false confidence in what you can gain by robbery. If wealth increases, do not become attached to it.

11God has declared one principle; two principles I have heard: God is strong,

12and you, O Lord, demonstrate loyal love. For you repay men for what they do.

1My soul rests in God alone. My salvation is from him.

2He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress— I will never be greatly shaken.

3How long will you assault a man, would all of you throw him down, Like a leaning wall, like a tottering fence?

4They fully intend to throw him down from his lofty place. They delight in lies. They bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly. Selah.

5My soul, wait in silence for God alone, for my expectation is from him.

6He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress. I will not be shaken.

7With God is my salvation and my honor. The rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.

8Trust in him at all times, you people. Pour out your heart before him. God is a refuge for us. Selah.

9Surely men of low degree are just a breath, and men of high degree are a lie. In the balances they will go up. They are together lighter than a breath.

10Don’t trust in oppression. Don’t become vain in robbery. If riches increase, don’t set your heart on them.

11God has spoken once; twice I have heard this, that power belongs to God.

12Also to you, Lord, belongs loving kindness, for you reward every man according to his work.

Summary
Authorship & Background
Commentary
Videos
Articles
Reflection

Summary

A psalm of quiet trust, in which David describes waiting in silence for God alone as his rock, salvation, and defense, unshaken despite hostile plots against him (vv. 1-4). He renews that same resolve mid-psalm, urging his own soul to wait only for God and inviting the people to pour out their hearts before him as a refuge (vv. 5-8). David then warns against putting confidence in human status, oppression, or increasing riches, since people of every rank are ultimately insubstantial (vv. 9-10). The psalm closes with the twin truths David has heard from God himself — that power belongs to God, and that steadfast love belongs to the Lord, who repays everyone according to what they have done (vv. 11-12).

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: Trust / Confidence Psalm
Attributed Author: David (directed to Jeduthun, a worship leader)
Key Themes: Waiting on God alone, soul silence before God, God as rock and fortress, the vanity of human trust, power and mercy belong to God
Historical Context: This psalm is directed "to Jeduthun" (one of David's three chief musicians — 1 Chronicles 16:41-42). It may date from Absalom's rebellion when David faced both political conspiracy (v.4) and personal betrayal (v.4b — "they bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly"). The repeated word "only" (Hebrew "ak") appears six times, making it the psalm's key word. David insists that God alone is sufficient — not human alliances, not wealth, not power. The psalm moves from personal testimony (vv.1-7) to public exhortation (vv.8-12) and concludes with one of Scripture's clearest statements about God's nature: power and mercy belong to Him.
My Soul Waiteth upon God (vv.1-2): Truly my soul waiteth upon God, from him cometh my salvation. The Hebrew word behind waiteth carries silence in it, so what is described is a deliberate quiet rather than patience. Then the titles, he only is my rock and my salvation, he is my defence, I shall not be greatly moved, and the qualifier greatly is honest rather than triumphant.
How Long Will Ye Imagine Mischief (vv.3-4): How long will ye imagine mischief against a man, ye shall be slain all of you, as a bowing wall shall ye be, and as a tottering fence. The images are of structures about to fall. And the charge against them is the gap between speech and intent, they bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly.
He Only Is My Rock (vv.5-7): My soul, wait thou only upon God, for my expectation is from him. The psalm turns and addresses itself, as Psalm 42 does, and then repeats the titles of verse 2 with one change: I shall not be moved, without the greatly. Between the two statements the opponents have been described, and the confidence has gone up rather than down.
Pour Out Your Heart Before Him (v.8): Trust in him at all times, ye people, pour out your heart before him, God is a refuge for us. One verse, addressed outward to a congregation rather than upward, and the instruction to pour out the heart is the psalter's plainest invitation to pray badly if necessary.
Men of Low Degree Are Vanity (vv.9-10): Surely men of low degree are vanity, and men of high degree are a lie, when laid in the balance, they are altogether lighter than vanity. Both ends of the social scale are weighed and both come up light. Then the practical warning, trust not in oppression, and become not vain in robbery, if riches increase, set not your heart upon them, which concedes that the riches may in fact increase.
Power Belongeth unto God (vv.11-12): God hath spoken once, twice have I heard this, that power belongeth unto God. The formula is a wisdom device for emphasis, and what is heard is put in two halves that the psalm holds together, power and mercy, also unto thee, O Lord, belongeth mercy. And the closing clause is the one Paul quotes in Romans 2:6, for thou renderest to every man according to his work.

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 62 | God is My Fortress and Salvation | Bible Study
Spoken Gospel

Psalm 62 - My Only Rock, My Only Salvation
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

  • Silence Before God (v.1) — David's soul waits in silence for God alone, trusting Him as the sole source of salvation. What would it look like for you to actually be still and wait instead of scrambling for control?
  • Steadfast Even When Shaken (v.2) — God is described as a rock and fortress so secure David will not be "greatly moved," even under attack. Where do you need reminding that God keeps you standing even when everything around you sways?
  • Pouring Out an Unfiltered Heart (v.8) — David invites all people to trust God at all times and pour out their hearts before Him without holding back. Are you bringing God your raw, honest thoughts, or only the polished, presentable version?
  • The Emptiness of Human Trust (vv.9-10) — People of every rank are lighter than a breath, and riches gained by oppression or increase are not to be trusted. What are you tempted to lean on instead of God — status, money, or other people's opinions?
  • Power and Steadfast Love Belong to God (vv.11-12) — God has declared that both strength and steadfast love are His alone, and He repays every person justly. Does your view of God hold His power and His mercy together, or do you emphasize one at the expense of the other?