This is part two of a biblical theology of sleep. I have been so blessed to hear from many of you that your sleep—and your thinking about sleep—has been affected by what we discussed last time. That was primarily just one point of the outline, and today we will only cover point two. We will not get to points three or four yet, so keep that in mind for your notes.
Previously, we learned that sleep is a nightly reminder that God is God, and we are creatures. God does not sleep, but we must. We loo...
This is part two of a biblical theology of sleep. I have been so blessed to hear from many of you that your sleep—and your thinking about sleep—has been affected by what we discussed last time. That was primarily just one point of the outline, and today we will only cover point two. We will not get to points three or four yet, so keep that in mind for your notes.
Previously, we learned that sleep is a nightly reminder that God is God, and we are creatures. God does not sleep, but we must. We looked at Isaiah 40 and Psalm 121:3 (“He who keeps you will not slumber”). We noted every living creature requires sleep—God designed it that way, and it is not a design flaw. We function best with around sixteen hours of wakefulness and approximately eight hours of sleep, though this differs by age and individual. We also saw that neglecting sleep harms us physically, mentally, and emotionally.
No living creature we know of goes without sleep. God alone is unique in His incomparable attributes, one of which is that He never sleeps. As John Piper put it, sleep is a daily reminder from God that we are not God. It is like a repeated refrain that says, “Man is not sovereign; God alone is.”
That was point one: Sleep reminds us we are creatures. Then we started point two: Sleep is an opportunity to humbly and dependently trust God. Each night, it should be a small but real act of faith. We considered Jesus sleeping in a storm-tossed boat, fully resting on God’s rule. Sleep can be the opposite of anxiety—casting our cares on the mighty God who sustains us. We ended last time with David’s testimony in Psalm 4:8: “In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for You alone, O Yahweh, make me dwell in safety.”
Psalm 3: David on the Run
We continue point two by turning from Psalm 4 back to Psalm 3, considering how sleep is an opportunity to humbly and dependently trust God. Psalm 3 is set when David fled from his son Absalom. If you think you have family troubles or stress at work, remember David’s circumstance: His son Amnon violated his half-sister Tamar; Tamar’s brother Absalom killed Amnon in revenge, fled for three years, then conspired against David to make himself king. David had to flee Jerusalem (2 Samuel 15:13–14) weeping, was publicly cursed and stoned (2 Samuel 16), and humiliated by Absalom.
Absalom pursued David to kill him, plunging the nation into civil war. Many close friends turned against David. In this turmoil, Psalm 3 begins:
“O Yahweh, how many are my foes! Many are rising against me; many are saying of my soul, ‘There is no salvation for him in God.’ But You, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head.”
David describes his dire situation yet quickly shifts focus to God—his only hope. Despite mortal danger, he trusts God as his shield and glory. Nothing could reach David except through God’s sovereign hand. Verse 5 says:
“I lay down and slept; I woke again, for Yahweh sustained me.”
Although armies pursued him, David still lay down and slept. He woke alive because “Yahweh sustained” him. That is also why we wake up each morning. God prevents dangers we never even see, so each night is an opportunity to trust Him.
Many of us struggle with anxiety, PTSD, or real fears that rob us of sleep. David knew the horrors of war. Yet if children, job pressures, or other concerns keep us awake, Psalm 3 reminds us that no matter what threats we face, we can rest in God, who alone grants safety. After lying down in faith, when we awaken, we can say, “Thank You, God, that I woke again, for You sustained me.”
Proper sleep itself helps us manage fear and worry—our brains are designed with an amygdala that triggers anxiety and a prefrontal cortex that balances it, which depends on sleep to function well. This dovetails with Scripture’s teaching that our trust in God and receiving His gift of rest go together.
Even unbelievers must sleep, of course—but only believers can do so for God’s glory, approaching bedtime as an expression of faith. That doesn’t mean we always do it perfectly, but it is a nightly opportunity to trust God.
Psalm 139: God’s Omniscience and Our Rest
Next, turn to Psalm 139, another psalm of David. It may be the clearest biblical treatment of God’s omniscience. God knows everything, not just as an observer but as the sovereign ordainer of all. David connects this doctrine to how we lie down to sleep.
He begins:
“O Yahweh, You have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Yahweh, You know it altogether.”
God knows when we sit, stand, travel, or lie down. He knows every word we speak before we say it, and He knows the intention behind each word. This would terrify someone in rebellion, but David finds comfort. God knows our hearts. For those in Christ, this is reassuring because He’s already forgiven sin and given us new hearts.
Verse 5 says:
“You hem me in, behind and before, and lay Your hand upon me.”
For rebels, that “hemming in” is an inescapable siege; for believers, it is a hedge of protection. Nothing passes to us without God allowing it. This doesn’t mean life goes as we want, but as He wills. Verse 16 affirms God’s ordaining of our every day.
David marvels in verse 6 that such knowledge is “too wonderful.” Verses 7–16 show God’s presence in heaven, in death, across the seas—everywhere. No darkness hides us from Him, for even the night is bright to God (v. 12).
David considers our most vulnerable moment: the womb. God formed us there (v. 13), seeing us in total darkness, ordaining every day of our lives before we existed (v. 16). That’s why David exclaims in verse 17–18:
“How precious to me are Your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! … I awake, and I am still with You.”
David likely fell asleep in the night, meditating on God’s countless thoughts. Rather than counting sheep, he counted the precious truths of God. Whether asleep or awake, God’s presence abides with His people. The bed—quiet and dark—can be a prime time to meditate on God, especially if sleep won’t come easily. Several psalms mention meditating on God in the night (e.g., Psalm 63:5–6; Psalm 77:6; Psalm 149:5).
When we sleep in that vulnerable darkness, God sees as clearly as midday. If we wake, we say, “I am still with You.” If, in God’s will, we die in our sleep, we trust every one of our ordained days was fulfilled, and we awaken to be with Him in a final sense.
Psalm 127: Vain Toil vs. Trusting Rest
Finally, consider Psalm 127, a Song of Ascents by Solomon, focusing on God’s behind-the-scenes work in daily life. It says:
“Unless Yahweh builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless Yahweh watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for He gives to His beloved sleep.”
If the Lord is not in our work, it’s futile. That doesn’t mean we do nothing; Scripture commends diligent labor (Proverbs 10:4, Colossians 3:23). The point is that anxious striving—cutting sleep short because we think everything depends on us—reveals a lack of trust. Jesus asks, “Which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?” (Matthew 6). James reminds us, “If the Lord wills, we will live” (James 4).
Psalm 127 says it’s vain to rise early and stay up late if you are “eating the bread of anxious toil.” The same God who calls us to diligent work also designed us to need sleep. We labor by His power, in His will, and we rest by faith, trusting He provides. Only believers can truly rest, knowing God continues working for us. He “gives to His beloved sleep,” and that is a remarkable gift for those who love Him.
Conclusion & Puritan Prayer
Charles Spurgeon said, “Sleep is the gift of God. We think we lay our heads on our pillows and thus sleep, but not a man would close his eyes did not God put His fingers on his eyelids. He draws the curtain of darkness, bids the sun shut its burning eye, and says, ‘Sleep, My child; I give thee sleep.’”
Below is a prayer adapted from the Puritans (Piercing Heaven):
“Refresh me tonight, Lord. Set apart this night’s rest so I may enjoy Your sweet blessing and benefit. With this refreshing sleep, enable me to walk before You, doing the good works You have appointed. While I sleep, You who do not slumber, watch over me in Your holy providence. Protect me from harm, and let no enemy gain power.
I commit myself and all who belong to me to Your protection. If it is Your will to call me in my sleep, have mercy, and receive my soul into Your heavenly kingdom. Perfect the good work You have begun in me, to the glory of Your name and the salvation of my soul. Amen.”
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