Ps. 5 is a morning prayer, written in the same spirit as Ps. 4, an evening prayer. The circumstances under which the two psalms were written were probably similar. After a night of calm sleep the psalmist utters this prayer before entering God’s house (v. 7). He is confident that God, who will not allow wicked men to prevail, will surely cause those who trust in Him to have fullness of joy. The psalm begins with prayer to God, then expresses unwavering confidence in God, pleads for God’s guidance in life’s perplexities, and finally, exhorts all to put their trust in God.

On the superscription see pp. 616, 627, 629.

 The psalmist prays that God may regard not only his words but their intent, the secret and unexpressed desires of his heart. The word for “meditation,” hagig, is found only here and in Ps. 39:3, where it is translated “musing.” It seems to indicate “groaning,” or “a sigh.” By hagig the psalmist may have referred to what Paul called stenagmoi, “groanings” (Rom. 8:26). “Prayer is the soul’s sincere desire, unuttered or expressed.”