John Calvin Commentary Psalms 4:8

"In peace will I both lay me down and sleep; For thou, Jehovah, alone makest me dwell in safety." — Psalms 4:8 (ASV)

He concludes by stating that, since he is protected by the power of God, he enjoys as much security and quiet as if he had been defended by all the garrisons on earth. Now, we know that to be free from all fear, and from the torment and vexation of anxiety, is a blessing to be desired above all other things.

This verse, therefore, is a confirmation of the former sentence. It intimates that David justly prefers the joy produced by the light of God’s fatherly love above all other things, because inward peace of mind certainly surpasses all the blessings we can conceive. Many commentators explain this passage as expressing David’s hope that his enemies will be reconciled to him, so that he may sleep with them in peace, God having granted him the peculiar privilege of being able to rest without being disturbed or troubled by anyone.

But in my judgment, the proper meaning is this: he will live as quietly and securely alone as in the midst of a great host, because God defends him. For in the words, I will sleep together, I consider the particle as to be understood, as if the reading were as together; that is to say, as with a multitude.

Some refer לבדד, lebadad, alone, to God, translating the words thus: You alone, O Lord, have set me in safety. But I do not approve of this at all, because by taking away the contrast between these two words, together and alone, much of the beauty of the sentence is lost.

In short, David boasts that the protection of God alone was sufficient, and that under it he sleeps as securely, although destitute of all human guardianship, as if he had had many to keep watch continually over him, or as if he had been defended on all sides by a great company. Let us therefore learn from his example to yield this honor to God—to believe that although there may appear to be no help for us from others, yet under His hand alone we are kept in peace and safety, as if we were surrounded by a great host.