This psalm was written by Asaph, who was either a temple musician or songwriter for the house band. He’s credited with writing a dozen psalms, which back in the old days would have been an album’s worth of songs, six tunes per side. So far I like Asaph. As for King David, I have qualms.
Asaph must have been a bass player. Aren’t they always the easiest-going ones, standing off to the side as they lay down their funky grooves? Or maybe he was a drummer, perched up on his trap set’s throne in back, watching for a signal from the lead singer, the dude with all the moves.
In this psalm (and in his first hit that debuted at No. 50), Asaph notices that bad people seem to thrive in life, while good people seem to suffer more. He doesn’t understand why YHWH allows this to be, until one day this sideman lays down his ax (or his sticks) and knocks on YAH’s door.
He slips into “the sanctuary of God” and — BAM! — he’s hit between the eyes with the power of the universe whose nature from him had always been hid. In its most fearsome aspect — as the great YHWH — the iSoul says, “I’ll make things right. All you gotta do is sing a mean tune, kid.”