Psalms 38:1-12

Prayer of a Suffering Penitent.

1 O LORD, 1rebuke me not in Your wrath, And chasten me not in Your burning anger.
2 For Your 2arrows have sunk deep into me, And 3Your hand has pressed down on me.
3 There is 4no soundness in my flesh 5because * of Your indignation; There is no health 6in my bones because * of my sin.
4 For my 7iniquities are gone over my head; As a heavy burden they weigh too much for me.
5 My wounds grow foul and fester Because * of 8my folly.
6 I am bent over and 9greatly bowed down; I 10go mourning all day long.
7 For my loins are filled with 11burning, And there is 12no soundness in my flesh.
8 I am 13benumbed and badly crushed; I 14groan because of the agitation of my heart.
9 Lord, all 15my desire is before You; And my 16sighing is not hidden from You.
10 My heart throbs, 17my strength fails me; And the 18light of my eyes, even that has gone from me.
11 My 19loved ones and my friends stand aloof * from my plague; And my kinsmen 20stand afar off.
12 Those who 21seek my life 22lay snares for me; And those who 23seek to injure me have threatened destruction, And they 24devise treachery all day long.

Psalms 38:1-12 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 38

\\<>\\. This psalm was composed by David under some sore affliction, and when in great distress of mind by reason of sin, perhaps his sin with Bathsheba; and was written as a memorial of his sense of sin, of his great afflictions, and deliverance from them; and therefore is said to be "to bring to remembrance", or to refresh his memory with the said things. Kimchi and Ben Melech think the psalm was made for the sake of such as are in distress, to put them in mind and teach them how to pray. The Targum calls the psalm, ``a good remembrance concerning Israel;'' and Jarchi says it was to remember the distress of Israel before the Lord, and that it is said with respect to all Israel; though others think the word "lehazcir" is the name of a psalm tune; and Aben Ezra was of opinion that it was the first word of some pleasant poem. The Septuagint version adds, ``concerning the sabbath,'' as if it was wrote to put persons in mind of that day; whereas there is nothing in the whole psalm that has any such tendency.

Cross References 24

  • 1. Psalms 6:1
  • 2. Job 6:4
  • 3. Psalms 32:4
  • 4. Isaiah 1:6
  • 5. Psalms 102:10
  • 6. Job 33:19; Psalms 6:2; Psalms 31:10
  • 7. Ezra 9:6; Psalms 40:12
  • 8. Psalms 69:5
  • 9. Psalms 35:14
  • 10. Job 30:28; Psalms 42:9; Psalms 43:2
  • 11. Psalms 102:3
  • 12. Psalms 38:3
  • 13. Lamentations 1:13, 20; Lamentations 2:11; Lamentations 5:17
  • 14. Job 3:24; Psalms 22:1; Psalms 32:3
  • 15. Psalms 10:17
  • 16. Psalms 6:6; Psalms 102:5
  • 17. Psalms 31:10
  • 18. Psalms 6:7; Psalms 69:3; Psalms 88:9
  • 19. Psalms 31:11; Psalms 88:18
  • 20. Luke 23:49
  • 21. Psalms 54:3
  • 22. Psalms 140:5
  • 23. Psalms 35:4
  • 24. Psalms 35:20

Footnotes 9

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