Psalm 3 says, “I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the LORD sustained me” Psalm 3:5. The line uses ordinary rest and waking as evidence of ongoing protection in the middle of danger Psalm 3:6.
In Psalm 3:5–6 the speaker describes a normal human act—lying down to sleep—and treats waking up as evidence of steady care from Yahweh. That lived experience then becomes the reason for a new stance toward danger: even if enemies seem countless and surround him, he chooses not to be afraid. These lines sit inside a short prayer that begins with the speaker naming how many opponents he has and how threatened he feels (Psalm 3:1–2). He then states his confidence that Yahweh is his shield and the one who restores his honor, and he reports calling out and being answered (Psalm 3:3–4).
These verses connect ordinary human experience (sleeping and waking) with the speaker’s belief that Yahweh is actively supporting him. The text’s explicit logic is simple: he slept, he woke, and he explains that ongoing life and safety as “Yahweh sustains me” (a support/holding-up idea; sustains).
A common mistake is to turn the wording into a slogan. The better reading keeps the phrase tied to the passage, the speaker, and the problem the book is addressing.
Start with Psalms 3:5, then read the surrounding section so the answer stays connected to the passage's flow.
5I laid myself down and slept. I awakened; for Yahweh sustains me.