the melody - a thing which frequently happens in the midst of the strophe. In the Psalm before us it stands at the close of the 1st, 2nd, and 4th strophes. The reason of its omission after the third is evident.
Not a few of the Psalms bear the date of the time of the persecution under Saul, but only this and probably Psa 63:1-11 have that of Absolom. The Psalter however contains other Psalms which reflect this second time of persecution. It is therefore all the more easy to accept as tradition the inscription: when he fled before Absolom, his son. And what is there in the contents of the Psalm against this statement? All the leading features of the Psalm accord with it, viz., the mockery of one who is rejected of God 2Sa 16:7., the danger by night 2Sa 17:1, the multitudes of the people 2Sa 15:13; 2Sa 17:11, and the high position of honour held by the psalmist. Hitzig prefers to refer this and the following Psalm to the surprize by the Amalekites during David's settlement in Ziklag. But since at that time Zion and Jerusalem were not free some different interpretation of Psa 3:5 becomes necessary. And the fact that the Psalm does not contain any reference to Absalom does not militate against the inscription. It is explained by the tone of 2Sa 19:1 [[[Bible_(King_James)/2_Samuel|2Sa 18:33]] Engl.]. And if Psalms belonging to the time of Absalom's rebellion required any such reference to make them known, then we should have none at all.
Verses 1-2
Psa 3:1-2 (Hebrew_Bible_3:2-3) The first strophe contains the lament concerning the existing distress. From its combination with the exclamative מה, רבּוּ is accented on the ultima (and also in Psa 104:24); the accentuation of the perf. of verbs עע very frequently (even without the Waw consec.) follows the example of the strong verb, Ges. §67 rem. 12. A declaration then takes the place of the summons and the רבּים implied in the predicate רבּוּ now becomes the subject of participial predicates, which more minutely describe the continuing condition of affairs. The ל of לנפשׁי signifies “in the direction of,” followed by an address in Psa 11:1 (= “to”), or, as here and frequently (e.g., Gen 21:7) followed by narration (= “of,”
