Psalm 140:1 NKJV
Deliver me, O Lord, from evil men;
Preserve me from violent men,
A Cry for Rescue
My Notes
Deliver me, O Lord, from evil men; Preserve me from violent men,” Psalm 140:1 (NKJV)
Some days don’t start with a song—they start with a cry. Psalm 140 opens without small talk or a warm-up of praise. David goes straight to the point: “Deliver me… Preserve me.” He has enemies, and he knows it. But more importantly, he has a Deliverer, and he runs to Him.
He goes straight to a desperate, urgent plea: “Deliver me, O Lord…” This tells us something incredibly freeing about our relationship with God: He meets us in our raw urgency. When the pressure from difficult, toxic, or downright malicious people is boiling over, God doesn’t expect us to perform a perfect religious ritual before we ask for help. He invites us to run straight into His presence and cry out for rescue.
David categorizes his opposition into two types, which actually show the progression of unchecked sin:
- The Evil Man: This represents malice brewing in the heart. These are individuals who are implacable, unpitying, and unscrupulous. They scheme in the dark and take pleasure in seeing others fall.
- The Violent Man: This is what happens when internal evil gets liberty to manifest. The malice inside finally boils over into outward passion, hostility, and destructive behavior.
Scripture reminds us that “the evil man” is not just one person but a pattern—hearts set against God and His people. David faced Saul, Doeg, Ahithophel, and others. Jesus faced Herod, Judas, and leaders who conspired against Him. The church has faced violent persecution and deceptive teaching throughout history. So don’t be surprised by opposition. Be steadfast in prayer.
“Deliver me” and “preserve me” are two sides of hope:
- Deliver: God can bring you out—from plots, traps, and accusations that seem to close in.
- Preserve: God can keep you sustained under pressure, protected so evil does not have the last word.
So, what is David’s remedy? He doesn’t plot revenge. He doesn’t try to out-manipulate his abusers. He turns to God in prayer. Charles Spurgeon wisely noted that a person under attack could not do a wiser thing. Why? Because Jehovah’s infinite goodness is more than a match for all the concentrated evil in the universe.
When you place your defense completely in God’s hands, He protects you in a few distinct ways:
- He can keep you entirely out of the enemy’s reach.
- He can sustain your spirit and keep your character pure even while you are under their power.
- He can rescue you at the final second when defeat seems absolutely certain.
Even if God, in His sovereign wisdom, does not instantly remove “the man” from your situation, He guarantees to keep you from “the evil one.” Just like Jesus prayed in the Lord’s Prayer—“Deliver us from the evil one”—God shields your soul so that the malice of others cannot warp your heart or destroy your eternal destiny.
Prayer
Abba, right now, I bring You the situations and the people that feel overwhelming, toxic, or unfair in my life. I confess that sometimes I want to take matters into my own hands, plot my own defense, or match anger with anger. Please forgive me, and deliver me from that temptation. I ask that You step in as my Shield and my Fortress. Deliver me from those who mean harm, and preserve me from the chaos of violent words and actions. Hide me under the shadow of Your wings. If the situation doesn’t change today, I pray that You protect my heart from becoming bitter or compromised. Thank You that Your infinite goodness is infinitely stronger than any evil I will face. I trust You with my safety. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Key Takeaways
- Raw Honesty is Welcomed: God accepts our urgent, unfiltered prayers when we are in distress; we don’t need a prelude of perfection to ask for His help.
- Prayer Over Payback: The ultimate defense against toxic or violent people is not retaliation, but bringing the situation directly to the Lord and leaving our defense in His hands.
- Soul Preservation: While God may not always alter our circumstances immediately, He promised to preserve our souls from being corrupted or destroyed by the malice we face.
Cross References (NKJV)
2 Thessalonians 3:2
“and that we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men; for not all have faith.”
Psalm 52:1
“Why do you boast in mischief, O mighty man? The goodness of God endures continually.”
Psalm 18:2-3
“The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; So shall I be saved from my enemies.”
Matthew 6:13
“And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”
Things to Think About
- Where do I most need to pray “Deliver me” and “Preserve me” today? Name the situation before God.
- What reactions (fear, anger, control) compete with prayer when I face opposition?
- How has God preserved me in past seasons of pressure? List two ways and thank Him.
- Is there anyone I’m tempted to fight in the flesh rather than bring to God in prayer?
Proverb for Today
The horse is prepared for the day of battle, But deliverance is of the Lord. Proverbs 21:31 NKJV
Daily Scripture
God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, Hebrews 1:1-3 NKJV
Closing
“The Lord bless you and keep you;The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you;The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.” ’ Numbers 6:24-26 NKJV
Grace be with you. Amen.
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Summary of Commentaries:
These commentaries emphasize David’s urgent prayer for rescue from real, historical adversaries like Saul or Doeg, serving as a type for Christ and the persecuted church. Human malice originates in the heart before erupting into overt, dangerous violence. Because human strategy cannot defeat such deceitful and implacable opposition, believers must look to God by faith. Jehovah’s infinite goodness serves as the ultimate preserver, shielding the soul even when physical circumstances remain unchanged.
Commentaries:
Charles Spurgeon
“Deliver me, O LORD, from the evil man.” It reads like a clause of the Lord’s prayer, “Deliver us from evil.” David does not so much plead against an individual as against the species represented by him, namely, the being whose best description is—”the evil man.” There are many such abroad; indeed, we shall not find an unregenerate man who is not in some sense an evil man, and yet all are not alike evil. It is well for us that our enemies are evil: it would be a horrible thing to have the good against us. When “the evil man” bestirs himself against the godly, he is as terrible a being as a wolf, or a serpent, or even a devil. Fierce, implacable, unpitying, unrelenting, unscrupulous, he cares for nothing but the indulgence of his malice. The persecuted man turns to God in prayer; he could not do a wiser thing. Who can meet the evil man and defeat him, save Jehovah himself, whose infinite goodness is more than a match for all the evil in the universe? We cannot of ourselves baffle the craft of the enemy, but the Lord knoweth how to deliver his saints. He can keep us out of the enemy’s reach, he can sustain us when under his power, he can rescue us when our doom seems fixed, he can give us the victory when defeat seems certain; and in any and every case, if he does not save us from the man, he can keep us from the evil. Should we be at this moment oppressed in any” measure by ungodly men, it will be better to leave our defense with God than to attempt it ourselves.
“Preserve me from the violent man.” Evil in the heart simmers in malice, and at last boils in passion. Evil is a ragtag thing when it getteth liberty to manifest itself; and so “the evil man” soon develops into “the violent man.” What watchfulness, strength, or valour can preserve the child of God from deceit and violence? There is but one sure Preserver, and it is our wisdom to hide under the shadow of his wings. It is a common thing for good men to be assailed by enemies: David was attacked by Saul, Doeg, Ahithophel, Shimei, and others; even Mordecai, sitting humbly in the gate, had his Haman; and our Lord, the Perfect One, was surrounded by those who thirsted for his blood. We may not, therefore, hope to pass through the world without enemies, but we may hope to be delivered out of their hands, and preserved from their rage, so that no real harm shall come of their malignity. This blessing is to be sought by prayer and expected by faith.
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Enduring Word
Deliver me, O LORD, from evil men. Many times in David’s life, he suffered under the presence and pressure of evil and violent men. This desperate song came from such a time, and shows its urgency by having no prelude of praise or contemplation. David went straight to his plea. (Guzik)
i. “The singer was being slandered by evil and violent men, who were prepared if occasion offered to add actual violence to their lying speech.” (Morgan)
ii. “Slander and calumny must always precede and accompany persecution, because malice itself cannot excite people against a good man, as such; to do this, he must first be represented as a bad man.” (Horne)
iii. “The persecuted man turns to God in prayer; he could not do a wiser thing. Who can meet the evil man and defeat him, save Jehovah himself, whose infinite goodness is more than a match for all the evil in the universe?” (Spurgeon)
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Albert Barnes
Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man – That is, evidently from some particular man who was endeavoring to injure him; some personal enemy. All the circumstances mentioned agree well with the supposition that Saul is intended.
Preserve me from the violent man – Margin, as in Hebrew, “man of violences.” That is, one who has committed violence so often, who has so frequently done wrong, that this may be considered a characteristic of the man. This would apply well to the repeated acts of Saul in persecuting David and endeavoring to do him injury.
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John Gill
Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man,…. Either Saul, so Theodoret; or rather Doeg, according to R. Obadiah: but Jarchi interprets it of Esau; by whom he means Edom, or Rome, or rather the Christians in general. Were his sense confined to the Papists, he might be thought to be much in the right; for this is applicable enough to the man of sin, and his followers: for it may be understood collectively of a body of evil men; all men are evil by nature, their hearts, thoughts, words, works, and ways. David’s enemies were evil men, and so were Christ’s; as Herod, Judas in particular, and the Jews in general: and such are the enemies of God’s people; the world, profane sinners, persecutors, and false teachers; and to be delivered from such is desirable, and to be prayed for, and a happiness when enjoyed; see 2 Thessalonians 3:2.
preserve me from the violent man: or, “the man of violences”; of a violent spirit, that breathes out slaughter and death; of a fierce countenance, of blustering words, and furious actions. Such a man was Doeg; who loved evil, and all devouring words, devised mischief, and boasted in it, Psalm 52:1; and Herod, who in his wrath, being disappointed, ordered sit the infants in and about Bethlehem to be slain; and the Jews, who were violently set on the death of Christ, and vehemently desired it: and such are all violent persecutors of the church of God, who clothe themselves with the garment of violence, and drink the wine of it; and to be preserved from such is a great mercy.
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Matthew Henry
In this, as in other things, David was a type of Christ, that he suffered before he reigned, was humbled before he was exalted, and that as there were many who loved and valued him, and sought to do him honor, so there were many who hated and envied him, and sought to do him mischief, as appears by these verses, where,
He gives a character of his enemies, and paints them out in their own colors, as dangerous men, whom he had reason to be afraid of, but wicked men, whom he had no reason to think the righteous God would countenance. There was one that seems to have been the ring-leader of them, whom he calls the evil man and the man of violences (v. 1, 4), probably he means Saul. The Chaldee paraphrast (v. 9) names both Doeg and Ahithophel, but between them there was a great distance of time. Violent men are evil men. But there were many besides this one who were confederate against David, who are here represented as the genuine offspring and seed of the serpent.
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