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Psalm 4 · a question people ask

Who are the "sons of men" of 4:2, and what had happened?

In the text

The psalm doesn't say. Its title gives no occasion: "For the Chief Musician; on stringed instruments. A Psalm by David" (4:1). The title of the psalm before it does give one, "A Psalm by David, when he fled from Absalom his son" (Psalm 3:1), but Psalm 4's title doesn't point back to it. The psalm says what these people do: "Will you love vanity and seek after falsehood?" (4:2). In Hebrew vanity is riq, which Brown-Driver-Briggs gives as "emptiness, vanity", and falsehood is kazav, "lie, falsehood, deceptive thing". And it asks, "how long shall my glory be turned into dishonor?" (4:2). It doesn't say how, or by whom, and these notes don't fill it in.

The verses

“For the Chief Musician; on stringed instruments. A Psalm by David. Answer me when I call, God of my righteousness. Give me relief from my distress. Have mercy on me, and hear my prayer. You sons of men, how long shall my glory be turned into dishonor? Will you love vanity and seek after falsehood? Selah.”
Psalm 4:1-2 · World English Bible
“A Psalm by David, when he fled from Absalom his son. LORD, how my adversaries have increased! Many are those who rise up against me.”
Psalm 3:1 · World English Bible

From Favor's study of Psalm 4

Psalm 4: Answer me when I call

"Answer me when I call" (4:1) and "The LORD will hear when I call to him" (4:3) share one Hebrew word, beqor'i. In the first verse the psalm asks for relief, rachav, being made wide, in distress, tsar, a tight place. And Strong's gives the safety of the last verse (4:8) as "from 982", the verb of "Put your trust in the LORD" (4:5).

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Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Every answer cites the verses it rests on. What we believe · All Bible questions