Commentators on psalms frequently distinguish between various types of psalms, which they call genres. A typical classification might be: hymns, laments, thanksgiving psalms, psalms of remembrance, psalms of confidence, wisdom psalms, and kingship psalms.
Did David consciously prophecy the Lord's resurrection? He may have, but it is not necessary to think so. To be sure, Peter termed him a prophet in Acts 2. But later in his first letter, Peter wrote that the prophets "searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow" (1 Peter 1:10, 11). This means that David did not necessarily understand that he was writing of Jesus' resurrection when he composed verse 10.
First, David says of, “LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup.” The word "portion" can have two meanings. It can refer to one's portion in the land, that is, one's estate or inheritance. Or it can refer to one's daily portion of food, a ration. Since it is linked to the word "cup" in this verse and since the idea of an inheritance in the land occurs in the verse after this, in verse 6, the "portion" in verse 5 is probably the singer's daily ration of food or, by extension, other necessities. It is what we ask for in the Lord's Prayer when we recite, "Give us this day our daily bread." It means that we are looking to God for our provisions.
1. The psalmist's relationship to God (vv. 1, 2). The opening verses begin with a statement of the psalmist's relationship to God, and the essence of that relationship is in the names for God he uses. The first word is el, translated simply "God" in verse l. El is the most common name for God. But the unique quality of this name is that it delineates God as "the strong (or mighty) one." It is appropriately chosen in verse l, for it is in God as the mighty one that the psalmist takes refuge.
The reason why this psalm is such a clear prophecy of Jesus' resurrection is the startling claim found in the second half of verse 10. The first part is impressive but not startling. It is an expression of faith that God will not abandon the psalmist to the grave. That could have been spoken by anyone of the Old Testament saints. It represents a high expression of faith, of course. The only thing that quite matches it is Job's declaration: "I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes—I and not another" (19:25-27). So although David's statement is strong and unusual, it is not an impossible statement for any of the Old Testament saints to have uttered, as I said. Any one of them could have spoken of God preserving them beyond the grave.
