David ruled Israel from about 1010 to 970 B.C. David was a military hero (1 Samuel 17:41-54; 18:6-7), but he also was remembered as a musician and poet (1 Samuel 16:14-23; 2 Samuel 22:1-51; 2 Chronicles 29:30). The temple was not built until the reign of David’s son, Solomon, but David is given credit for making the preparations for music to be played and psalms to be sung as part of worship in the temple (1 Chronicles 6:31-32; 16:4-36; 25:1-2).

David may have written some of the psalms, but many were written after David's time. The psalms that contain David's name in their title probably were collected in memory of David. The titles of Psalm 3 and twelve other psalms mention events in David’s life. These titles were added by the collectors of the psalms. The intent was not to mislead readers but rather to invite readers to see in David and his life an example of how a psalm might apply to their own lives. For instance, the title of Psalm 3 refers to the rebellion of David’s son, Absalom.

God promised David that his family would rule forever (2 Samuel 7). A long line of his family members did rule until 586 B.C., when Jerusalem was destroyed and the people of Judah were taken into exile. At that time it seemed to the Israelites that God's promise to David had been broken. Even so, the hope for a good ruler like David did not disappear. Many years later, Jesus’s followers would view him as a king in David's family line (Matthew 1:1; Luke 1:27, 32). Jesus was given the same titles used for King David and the kings that followed him. One of those titles was “chosen one” (Psalm 2:2). Another title was “Son of God” (Psalm 2:2, 7; Mark 1:1).

As God’s representative on earth, David and all of Israel’s kings were to use their authority to work for “peace and justice” by defending “the poor” (Psalm 72:3-4). Compare this to the work Jesus said he had come to do (Luke 4:16-18).