Why read Psalm 3?
Read Psalm 3 when fear or opposition weighs on you. David describes his distress while acknowledging God as his defender; his ability to sleep and wake expresses renewed trust.
You can read this psalm when its themes speak to your circumstances, or as part of your regular reading of the Psalter. This explanation draws on the text itself; the psalm is not reserved for one particular need.
Psalm 3 opens the heart with the call “Lord, how those who trouble me have multiplied...”. It is one of the 8-verse psalms in the 1st Kathisma and is recited both at services and in prayer at home — the Psalter being a foundational book for the Orthodox Christian.
The text of Psalm 3
1. Lord, how those who trouble me have multiplied! Many rise up against me;
2. Many say to my soul: “There is no salvation for him in his God!”
3. But You, O Lord, are my support, my glory and the One who lifts up my head.
4. With my voice I cried to the Lord, and He heard me from His holy mountain.
5. I lay down and slept; I arose, for the Lord will support me.
6. I will not fear thousands of peoples who surround me on every side.
7. Arise, O Lord, save me, my God, for You struck all who oppose me in vain; You crushed the teeth of sinners.
8. Salvation belongs to the Lord, and Your blessing is upon Your people.
When Psalm 3 is read
- For the sick and in difficult hours (it is also read at a vigil).
- At the end of each psalm, tradition adds: «Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.».
Adjacent psalms
Read also
The numbering follows the Orthodox Psalter (Septuagint). The same psalm may have a different number in other Bible editions.
