Psalms 17:6

"I have called upon thee, for thou wilt answer me, O God:

Incline thine ear unto me, and hear my speech.

Show thy marvelous lovingkindness,

O thou that savest by thy right hand them that take refuge in thee

From those that rise up against them.

Keep me as the apple of the eye;

Hide me under the shadow of thy wings,

From the wicked that oppress me,

My deadly enemies that compass me about."

In these verses, David mentioned the fact that God would hear him, a truth established by countless times when God had indeed heard him (Psalms 17:6), and he also mentioned God's lovingkindness (Psalms 17:7), indicating here that David's appeal is premised and grounded, "Upon the Covenant Love of God who has time and again revealed himself as the Saviour of those who take refuge in him from their adversaries."[14]

"Apple of the eye ... shadow of thy wings." These figures appear in Deuteronomy 32:10-12; and Christ himself said, "How often would I have gathered thee unto myself as a hen gathereth her brood under her wings" (Luke 13:34). There is an unsurpassed beauty and tenderness in such expressions.

"My deadly enemies" (Psalms 17:9). David's enemies sought nothing less than the absolute destruction and death of the psalmist. God had called David to lead Israel, the Chosen People, in those times following the apostasy of King Saul; and David was fully conscious of the responsibility that rested upon him, feeding his confidence that God would indeed hear and protect him.