Psalm 108

The subtitle wasn’t part of the original psalm. And the possible byline “of David,” isn’t necessarily a byline. The vague phrase could mean the song was written by David, about David, or was inspired by David. Almost half of the psalms are attributed to David in this way, 73 of 150. Ancient Jewish history tells of David playing a lyre and writing songs. For one, he wrote a song of mourning at the battlefield death of King Saul and his sons: “How have the mighty fallen!” (2 Samuel 1:19-27 New American Standard Bible). An ancient Jewish scroll from about the time of Jesus, discovered among the famous Dead Sea Scrolls, reports that David wrote 3,600 songs.

Verses 2-6 repeat the message of Psalm 57:7-11, while verses 7-13 repeat the message of Psalm 60:6-12.

Gilead and Manasseh were ancient Israelite territories east of the Jordan River in what are now parts of the Arab countries of Syria and Jordan.

The helmet is possibly a symbol of military power. Ephraim and Judah were the two main Israelite tribes west of the Jordan River, in what are now Israel and Palestinian Territories.

The Israelite capital of Jerusalem was in the tribe of Judah. The scepter—a royal rod—was a symbol of the king’s power.

The ancient kingdom of Edom was south of the Dead See, in what is now the Arab country of Jordan. This was the homeland of Esau, brother of Jacob. The Edomite fortress city of Petra, carved out of solid rock, is a popular tourist attraction.