We all have the same instinct: If something is wrong → act. If people put you under pressure → respond. If the future is uncertain → take control.
You feel that. I feel that. This is part of the human experience.
Psalm 62 says the complete opposite: Do nothing—and wait.
Not as a “tactic” or strategy. Not as mere passivity or quietism. But a deliberate, intentional, choice. The decision to not act—to not take control, to not correct narratives—is one of the most blatant (and nerve wracking) expressions of trust in the living God. But it’s not without good reason.
Here’s how the poem starts:
For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken. (Psalm 62:1-2)
David explicitly roots his decision to remain silent and not act in who God is and what he has done. Here is the Christian message: God has decided to be in a good mood with you by judging all your sin in Jesus on the cross. At that moment he legally declared you have the legal standing of Christ himself (his righteousness). David is assured this is true, and therefore he chooses to entrust his situation to this God. It doesn’t mean refusing to act where God has given you responsibility. It means refusing to act to secure your own outcome.
How long will all of you attack a man to batter him, like a leaning wall, a tottering fence? They only plan to thrust him down from his high position. They take pleasure in falsehood. They bless with their mouths, but inwardly they curse. (Psalm 62:3-4)
Perhaps you also are being attacked by others. They prey on his weaknesses, distort the truth, and speak with divided tongues. Of course you feel huge pressure to act when people behave like this—David did. And since the Psalms are ultimately the prayers of Jesus: he felt this pressure too. God understands this pressure you feel. That’s why he put this prayer in the Bible for you.
For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God. (Psalm 62:5-7)
This kind of trust and choice not to act does not come naturally to any of us. That’s why David speaks to himself. He tells himself objective truths in the middle of a crushing situation. Those truths are God’s character. He is the God who defends the weak. This is why he is a safe place of refuge.
Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. (Psalm 62:8)
David and Jesus don’t just show us how to rely on God in this way, they actively encourage us to do so. This is why God gave you prayer. For moments of crisis, pressure, stress—when all other things you could trust fail, God won’t. He wants to hear you ask him for help. He wants to draw you to himself. Because as you ask and pour out your heart before him, he will act to show you he is your God.
Those of low estate are but a breath; those of high estate are a delusion; in the balances they go up; they are together lighter than a breath. Put no trust in extortion; set no vain hopes on robbery; if riches increase, set not your heart on them. (Psalm 62:9-10)
Because God is the true power and rock of the whole universe, the people you deal with and their apparent power and influence are just a mirage. They’re a breath—they look solid, but they vanish. That’s why David, Jesus even, urges us not to rely on our own power. Extortion, robbery, riches—all of them give us the delusion of power and control. The mighty fall in an instant. The weak and poor are raised in a moment. Hollywood, major banks, politics, circles of reputation. Security is like vapour. It could vanish any moment. Don’t trust leveraging authority, or accusation, or money, or anything that gives you the illusion of power. All these can disappear overnight.
Once God has spoken; twice have I heard this: that power belongs to God, and that to you, O Lord, belongs steadfast love. For you will render to a man according to his work. (Psalm 62:11)
Don’t trust in power you see, because true power belongs to God. God will judge rightly. He will judge all according to their works. Which means you are not the one who secures the verdict—the pressure is off!
Even here, inaction is what is truly rewarded. On the cross, Christ gave his life of perfect works to you. When the books will be opened, those who trust in him will be judged by his works on their behalf, instead of their own. Christ has given his good works to you. He is your rock.
That gift is real, whether you believe it or not. But only as I trust this rock do I enjoy the confidence that I can be effective through inaction. If I rely on myself now, I will act furiously to try and take control, and if I rely on myself on the last day—if I refuse to allow Christ’s works to stand for mine—then I’ll be judged accordingly. That’s what “trust” means.
God gives you this trust through his promises. And that’s why he gave you the church— a place where you receive the rock who is for you, and the assurance he is in control. Come and receive this:
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