The title is, "To the chief Musician upon Neginoth, an instructive Psalm of David, when the Ziphites came to Saul, and said, Doth not David conceal himself among us?"

Ziph was a village in the southern part of Palestine. David having taken refuge in the mountains of that country, the Ziphites went to Saul, and informed him of the fact. Saul, with his army, immediately went thither, and was on one side of a mountain while David was on the other. Just when he was about to fall into the hands of his merciless pursuer, an express came to Saul that the Philistines had invaded Israel, on which he gave up the pursuit, and returned to save his country, and David escaped to En-gedi. See the account in 1 Samuel 23:19-29. It is supposed to have been after this deliverance that he composed this Psalm. Neginoth, from נגן nagan, to strike or play on some kind of instrument, probably signifies stringed instruments, such as were played on with a plectrum.

Verse Psalms 54:1. Save me, O God, by thy name — Save me by thyself alone; so name here may be understood. The name of God is often God himself. David was now in such imminent danger of being taken and destroyed, that no human means were left for his escape; if God therefore had not interfered, he must have been destroyed. See the introduction above.