Psa 3:3    But you are a shield around me, O LORD; you bestow glory on me and lift up my head.

             

There are three things that David said in this verse of this Psalm. Perhaps to understand it more we need to note the context. The heading on the psalm indicates he wrote it when he was fleeing from his son Absalom when he was leading a rebellion against David. David is on the run.

 

The first thing David declares is that God is his shield. A shield is a protection against an attacker. It is as simple as that. David's knowledge of the Lord says that he trusts that the Lord will protect him from the attacks of those who are chasing him.

 

He next declares that the Lord bestows glory on him. Glory here might mean acclamation or exaltation. When we bestow glory on someone, therefore, we credit them with a good name. David thus sees that the Lord is there for him and will maintain his reputation as the Lord's anointed in the sight of the people.

 

Finally he says that He lifts his head. We bow or drop our heads in dejection when we feel low. We have our heads lifted high when we are triumphant and successful. Thus in these ways David declares his trust that the Lord will see him through this time and will exalt him and lift him to a place of triumph. When we are going through difficult times, can we feel similarly, can we trust that the Lord will bring us through triumphantly?