Panic and Psalm 55

David was at a low point when he penned Psalm 55, a deeply emotional lament written during a time of betrayal and upheaval (Ps. 55:1–3). His life felt out of control, gripped by mortal fear as he faced a reality that left him hunted, exposed, and emotionally shattered. Few, if any, of David’s expectations for how God would order events were being met as circumstances spiraled into chaos. The success he had known was unraveling. Was David still God’s anointed? Yes (2 Sam. 7:8–16). Did that mean he would be spared from tragedy? No (Ps. 89:38–45).

In his lament, David does not sanitize his emotions. Like Habakkuk, he is raw, honest, angry, and fearful, desperately pleading for God to break His silence and intervene in the tragic events unfolding before him (Hab. 1:2–4). David’s panic is not mere paranoia over what could go wrong but a visceral response to a reality in crisis (Ps. 55:4–5). He pours out his thoughts and emotions with spiritual authenticity, accusing God of failing to step in and alter the devastating circumstances (Ps. 55:1–3). His panic reflects the sting of betrayal and the weight of danger, not a failure to adopt a positive outlook or manufacture a silver lining.

A striking feature of Psalm 55 is that God does not directly respond to David’s desperate pleas for explanation, unlike Habakkuk, who was privileged to receive a direct divine response (Hab. 1:5–11; 2:2–20). Habakkuk’s cries were met with God’s clear explanation of His plans, but David’s experience differs. In his anguish, David cries out, “My God, I need you! Oh, how I need you!” (cf. Ps. 55:1–2, 16–17). Unlike Habakkuk, David leans into what he knows to be true about God, expressing unwavering faith in God’s foundational promises (Ps. 55:22). He earnestly pleads for God to address the threats fueling his panic, ultimately laying his burdens at the foot of God’s throne and submitting to God’s sovereign will (Ps. 55:22–23).

David identifies the crisis as rooted in lies and betrayal, recognizing that God’s justice cannot be thwarted by human deception (Ps. 55:9–11, 23). The source of his panic is not mere fear but the reality of unjust malignment—an attempt to undermine God’s sovereignty (Ps. 55:12–14). Yet, David does not devise a counteroffensive or seek to navigate around the crisis. Instead, he gathers his panic and places it at God’s feet (Ps. 55:22), trusting in the divine wisdom, righteousness, and mercy that form the bedrock of God’s character (Ps. 55:16; cf. Ex. 34:6–7). At the foot of the throne—foreshadowing the cross where his Savior would bring ultimate resolution—David submits to God’s authority, confident that God will act according to His perfect will (Ps. 55:23; cf. 1 Pet. 5:7).

David’s lament shows us that faith does not require emotional detachment. The panic is real, and yet he turns to God. That is not weakness. Nor is it irrationally pumping oneself up with obedience to an ideal that masks the reality. David demonstrated a covenantal trust in God, despite the panic that plagued him (Ps. 55:16–17). David’s confidence is not in his perceptions. He recognizes his perceptions are lies, and in an act of will, lays them down, submitting to God. The answer is not muscling through or wrestling to dominate or redirect his thoughts. His willful act is to lay them down, let them go—releasing them to God and depending on his Savior for the resolution. David doesn’t seek control of the situation; he chooses to surrender his panic to what he knows of God, trusting in God’s holiness over all things. The dilemma of David’s panic in Psalm 55 is not to muster obedience to an ideal. David’s actions are not an example of willful action toward a resolution in his own strength, but a release to the will of God despite the circumstances. David’s response is not heroic in the conventional sense. He doesn’t steel himself with stoic resolve. Instead, he collapses into trust. His panic is not a failure of faith—it is the soil from which surrender grows. He lays down his panic and trusts, “I will call upon God . . . He shall hear my voice” (Ps. 55:16–17). His movement is downward—into lament, into vulnerability, into dependence. It isn’t willpower; it is yielding.

The same is true of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane (Matt. 26:37–38). In the face of loss, betrayal, and painful death, Jesus submits to the will of God, letting go of the panic and dropping it at the feet of God. The act of Christ’s obedience is not mustering his own will, but letting go of the circumstances and the resulting panic and releasing the expectations for anything other than the will of God (Matt. 26:39). Resolution is not found in the application of formulaic rules; it is in laying down the fears, trusting in divine holiness and the mercy found in what He accomplished on the cross. Lament is moving down into submission, not moving up into self or personal strength.

Indeed, this is fundamental to the gospel itself. We do not move through this life seeking the solution that best fits our need, decide on Jesus as the best option, then invest ourselves in his cause looking to find ourselves in discovery of a magic formula of fulfillment. The truth of the gospel is we are all in David’s situation of panic and need. There is no escape from circumstances; that is the problem. But God, who so loves us as members of His family, in His mercy and grace extends to us rest from panic through a concrete demonstration of His love at the resurrection of Christ (John 3:16; Rom. 5:8; 1 Cor. 15:3–4). David’s dilemma is our dilemma. And God’s provision, strength, love, and mercy is where we lay down all of it—all of ourselves—submitting to Him and His provision of rest in Christ.

Even when we fail and slide back into the panic—when our spirit stirs and swirls, when what has happened simply cannot be digested mentally and emotionally—the assurance doesn’t come from our own ability to choose an enlightened path, but in surrender. Letting go of whatever may come or has happened and going all in on dependence on God (Ps. 55:22; Phil. 4:6–7).

After feeding the five thousand with loaves and fishes, many people abandoned Jesus, and He asks Peter if he too is going to leave. Peter’s response is, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68). Peter got it. David got it too. Go to the Savior. Go to Christ. Lean in, and lean in hard. Let go and release the panic and pain to Him. It is in His strength, His provision, His supply that rest is found. David knew it in Psalm 55. And we know it too. Our assurance is in Him.

Click Here for: A Prayer for the Panic Attack