Psalm 5 returns us to the morning. As Psalm 3 taught us how to wake in confidence and Psalm 4 how to lie down in peace, Psalm 5 shows us how to begin the day before the Lord. Once again, David’s prayer speaks beyond his own experience. As with Psalms 2 through 4, his words foreshadow the prayers of Christ, the righteous King, who comes before the Father on behalf of His people.
The psalm opens with a simple, dependent plea: “Give ear to my words, O LORD; consider my groaning.” David begins the day not with self-assurance, but with need. He rises to pray because the Lord is his King and his God, and because the morning is the appointed time to seek Him. This is not ritual confidence, but covenant trust—the belief that the Lord hears and responds to His people.
Very quickly, the psalm confronts us with the holiness of God. The Lord does not delight in wickedness; evil cannot dwell with Him. Pride, deceit, and violence are named not merely as personal failings, but as offenses against God’s righteous character. David’s prayer presses us to examine our own hearts, especially the subtle sins of pride and self-glory that so easily take root. Left to ourselves, we do not naturally seek God’s presence—we resist it.
And yet, the psalm turns on a single, gracious confession: “But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love, will enter your house.” David knows that access to God is not earned. He stands before the Lord only because of God’s covenant mercy. The righteousness that allows him to pray is not his own possession, but a gift grounded in God’s faithful love.
From this place of grace, David asks the Lord to lead him in righteousness, to make His way straight before him in the midst of enemies. The danger is real, and the opposition is strong, but David’s hope is not in personal strength. It is in God’s guidance and protection. The Lord is both holy Judge and faithful refuge.
The psalm closes with assurance rather than anxiety. Verses 11 and 12 declare the final word: those who take refuge in the Lord rejoice; those who love His name are protected; the righteous are blessed. God surrounds His people with favor as with a shield. Refuge, not self-justification, marks the righteous life.
Here again, redemptive history comes into clear focus. David’s morning prayer finds its true fulfillment in Christ. He alone is the perfectly righteous One who delights in God’s holiness, speaks without deceit, and walks blamelessly before the Father. He alone enters God’s presence by right—and yet He does so for us. Through His obedience, death, and resurrection, Christ opens the way for sinners to draw near with confidence.
United to Him, we are counted righteous, welcomed into God’s presence, and sheltered by His favor. Psalm 5 teaches us to begin the day not trusting in ourselves, but taking refuge in Christ. As we pray this psalm, we learn to face the day under God’s gracious rule, confident that the Lord who hears in the morning will also guard His people until the day’s end.
Lyrics
Lord give ear unto my words,
To my thoughts attentive be;
Hear my cry, my King, my God,
I will make my prayer to Thee.
With the morning light, O Lord,
Thou shalt hear my voice arise,
And expectant I will bring
Prayer as morning sacrifice.
Lord let all who take
Refuge in Your name
Find Your favor as a shield
Joyfully Proclaim
Joyfully Proclaim
O Lord you are a God
Who delightest not in sin;
Evil shall not dwell with Thee,
Nor the proud Thy favor win.
Evildoers Thou dost hate,
Lying tongues Thou wilt defeat;
God abhors the man who loves
Violence and base deceit.
Lord let all who take
Refuge in Your name
Find Your favor as a shield
Joyfully Proclaim
Lord Lead in Your way
In Your righteousness
and Your blessings evermore
on your people lay
on your people lay
In the fullness of Your grace
To Your house I will repair,
Bowing toward Thy holy place,
In Thy fear will worship there.
Psalm 5
Lead Me in Your Righteousness
To the choirmaster: for the flutes. A Psalm of David.
[1] Give ear to my words, O LORD;
consider my groaning.
[2] Give attention to the sound of my cry,
my King and my God,
for to you do I pray.
[3] O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch.
[4] For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
evil may not dwell with you.
[5] The boastful shall not stand before your eyes;
you hate all evildoers.
[6] You destroy those who speak lies;
the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.
[7] But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,
will enter your house.
I will bow down toward your holy temple
in the fear of you.
[8] Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness
because of my enemies;
make your way straight before me.
[9] For there is no truth in their mouth;
their inmost self is destruction;
their throat is an open grave;
they flatter with their tongue.
[10] Make them bear their guilt, O God;
let them fall by their own counsels;
because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out,
for they have rebelled against you.
[11] But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
let them ever sing for joy,
and spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may exult in you.
[12] For you bless the righteous, O LORD;
you cover him with favor as with a shield. (ESV)