Knowing The Word in Psalms 16

You Will Not Abandon My Soul

A Miktam of David.

1 Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge. 2 I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.”

3 As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight.

4 The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply; their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out or take their names on my lips.

5 The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot. 6 The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.

7 I bless the Lord who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me. 8 I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.

9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices; my flesh also dwells secure. 10 For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption.

11 You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Comments

David is confident in God with a deep trust. He will not abandon him in life or in death. In the New Testament, both Peter and Paul quote verse 10 of this psalm as proof of the resurrection of Jesus. Because David did not rise after his death, they argue that Psalm 16 must refer to Jesus and his resurrection from the dead.

Prayer

O God, give to us all such a vision of Jesus’s risen glory that we, like David, may trust his power; that we too may know that nothing can separate us from his loving purposes; and that we too will rise up from future death, receive our reward, and live with Jesus for ever and ever.