Bible Commentaries
Psalms 88

Introduction

Psalms 88:0

STROPHE DIVISIONS OF MODERN TRANSLATIONS

READING CYCLE THREE (see “Guide to Good Bible Reading”)

FOLLOWING THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR'S INTENT AT PARAGRAPH LEVEL

This is a study guide commentary which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.

Read the chapter in one sitting. Identify the subjects (reading cycle #3). Compare your subject divisions with the five translations above. Paragraphing is not inspired, but it is the key to following the original author's intent, which is the heart of interpretation. Every paragraph has one and only one subject.

1. First paragraph

2. Second paragraph

3. Etc.

CONTEXTUAL INSIGHTS

A. This Psalm is characterized by

1. a series of questions related to the author's sense of rejection by God, cf. Psalms 88:10-12, Psalms 88:14. This Psalm ends with no hope or relief in sight! This is a “dark” Psalm!

2. a series of titles/names for the afterlife

a. Sheol, Psalms 88:3b - BDB 982, see Special Topic: Sheol

b. the pit, Psalms 88:4; Psalms 88:4a - BDB 92 I

c. among the dead, Psalms 88:5; Psalms 88:5a - BDB 559

d. who lie in the grave, Psalms 88:5; Psalms 88:5b - BDB 868

e. whom You remember no more, Psalms 88:5; Psalms 88:5c

f. cut off from Your hand, Psalms 88:0; Psalms 88:0:5d, cf. Lamentations 3:54

g. the lowest pit, Psalms 88:6; Psalms 88:6a - BDB 1066

h. dark places, Psalms 88:6; Psalms 88:6b - BDB 365

i. the depths, Psalms 88:6; Psalms 88:6b - BDB 846 (g, h, i are parallel)

j. the dead, Psalms 88:10; Psalms 88:10a - BDB 559

k. the departed spirits, Psalms 88:10; Psalms 88:10b - BDB 952 I

l. the grave, Psalms 88:11; Psalms 88:11a - BDB 868

m. the place of destruction, Psalms 88:11; Psalms 88:11b - lit. abaddon - BDB 2

n. the darkness, Psalms 88:12; Psalms 88:12a - BDB 365, cf. 1 Samuel 2:9; 1 Samuel 2:9; Job 10:21; Job 17:13; Job 18:18

o. the land of forgetfulness, Psalms 88:12; Psalms 88:12b - BDB 75 construct BDB 674 (unique to this Psalm, cf. Psalms 6:5)

p. darkness, Psalms 88:18; Psalms 88:18b - BDB 365

B. Notice the different words used to describe God's rejection.

1. Your wrath, Psalms 88:7; Psalms 88:7a - BDB 404

2. Your waves, Psalms 88:7b - BDB 991, cf. Psalms 42:7; Psalms 69:1, Psalms 69:14-15; Jonah 2:3

3. You reject, Psalms 88:14; Psalms 88:14a - verb, BDB 276 I, KB 276, Qal imperfect

4. You hide Your face, Psalms 88:14b - verb, BDB 711, KB 771, Hiphil imperfect

5. Your terrors, Psalms 88:15b - BDB 33

6. Your burning anger, Psalms 88:16; Psalms 88:16a - BDB 354

7. Your terrors, Psalms 88:16b - BDB 130 (only here and Job 6:4)

C. It is hard from this brief Psalm to know if the psalmist is

1. sick (possibly leprosy because of his abandonment by family and friends)

2. suffering from judgment

3. feeling a sense of being alone

4. fearful of life's circumstances

Verses 1-9

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Psalms 88:1-9 1O Lord, the God of my salvation, I have cried out by day and in the night before You. 2Let my prayer come before You; Incline Your ear to my cry! 3For my soul has had enough troubles, And my life has drawn near to Sheol. 4I am reckoned among those who go down to the pit; I have become like a man without strength, 5Forsaken among the dead, Like the slain who lie in the grave, Whom You remember no more, And they are cut off from Your hand. 6You have put me in the lowest pit, In dark places, in the depths. 7Your wrath has rested upon me, And You have afflicted me with all Your waves. Selah. 8You have removed my acquaintances far from me; You have made me an object of loathing to them; I am shut up and cannot go out. 9My eye has wasted away because of affliction; I have called upon You every day, O Lord; I have spread out my hands to You.

Psalms 88:1 “O Lord” This Psalm uses the covenant name for Deity, YHWH, in a vocative sense three times. See SPECIAL TOPIC: NAMES FOR DEITY.

▣ “the God of my salvation” This title for Deity (cf. Psalms 24:5; Psalms 27:9) is descriptive of what the psalmist wants YHWH to do for him, “save,” “deliver,” “act on his behalf.” This opening verse is the most “positive” line of the Psalm. YHWH is the Covenant God and the psalmist prays but senses no response. He even feels God has purposefully caused his plight!

▣ “I” Notice the number of first person singular pronouns and second person singular pronouns (“You”). This is a very personal cry from a believer to his God.

▣ “I have cried out” This verb (BDB 858, KB 1042) is the first of many perfect verbs. The psalmist is asserting his diligent seeking of God but God has not yet responded (cf. Psalms 88:13-18).

▣ “by day and in the night” This phrase is the psalmist's way of asserting his constant prayer (cf. Psalms 22:2; Psalms 25:5; Psalms 86:3).

Psalms 88:2 This verse has two parallel requests.

1. let my prayer come before You - BDB 97, KB 112, Qal imperfect used in a jussive sense (cf. Psalms 18:6); the psalmist felt his prayer was not being heard (cf. Psalms 88:9, Psalms 88:13, Psalms 88:14)

2. incline Your ear to my cry - BDB 639, KB 692, Hiphil imperative (cf. Psalms 17:6; Psalms 31:2; Psalms 71:2; Psalms 86:1; Psalms 102:2)

Psalms 88:3-9 The psalmist lists the reasons why God should hear and respond (the perfect describes a settled condition).

1. his soul (BDB 659) is full (another perfect) of troubles, Psalms 88:3a

2. his life (BDB 313) has arrived (another perfect) near to Sheol (see Special Topic: Where Are the Dead?), Psalms 88:3b

3. he is reckoned (another perfect) among those who go down to the pit (cf. Psalms 28:1; Psalms 143:7), Psalms 88:4a

4. he has become (another perfect) like a man without strength (i.e., helpless, BDB 33, only here in the OT; Aramaic loan word), Psalms 88:4b

5. he has been forsaken “among the dead”; the adjective translated “forsaken” is lit. “freed,” BDB 344, Psalms 88:5a

NKJV “adrift”

TEV, JPSOA “abandoned”

NJB “left alone”

The MT has “freed” and seems to refer to the freedom from all the responsibilities of life (cf. USB Text Project, p. 350).

6. he whom You remember (another perfect) no more, Psalms 88:5c

7. he whom You cut off (another perfect) from Your hand, Psalms 88:0:5d

8. he whom You have put (another perfect) in the lowest pit, Psalms 88:6a

9. he whom You have put in dark places, in the depths, Psalms 88:6b

10. he on whom Your wrath has rested (lit. “lies heavy,” another perfect) Psalms 88:7a (this verb BDB 701, KB 759 is mostly used of YHWH upporting someone but here, the antithesis)

11. he whom You have afflicted (lit. “overwhelmed,” another perfect) with all Your waves, Psalms 88:7b

12. he whom You have removed his acquaintances far away (another perfect), Psalms 88:8a

13. he whom You have made an object of loathing (another perfect), Psalms 88:8b

14. he whom You have shut up, Psalms 88:8c

15. his eyes have wasted away (another perfect), Psalms 88:9a

16. he has called upon You every day (another perfect), cf. Psalms 88:1b, Psalms 88:9b

17. he has spread out his hands (i.e., prayer, another perfect) to You, Psalms 88:9c

Notice the combination of

1. the psalmist's acts

2. the things he asserts that God has done to him

Psalms 88:7 “Selah” See notes at Psalms 3:2.

Psalms 88:8 “acquaintances” This (BDB 393, KB 390) is a Pual participle from the verb “to know” (see Special Topic: Know). The same form is also in Psalms 88:18 along with

1. lover - BDB 12, KB 17 Qal participle

2. friend - BDB 945

This man felt totally alienated from God and other humans!

Psalms 88:9 Psalms 88:9 is similar in content to Psalms 88:1 and may be an example of inclusio.

Verses 10-12

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Psalms 88:10-12 10Will You perform wonders for the dead? Will the departed spirits rise and praise You? Selah. 11Will Your lovingkindness be declared in the grave, Your faithfulness in Abaddon? 12Will Your wonders be made known in the darkness? And Your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?

Psalms 88:10-12 This strophe describes the general OT view of the joyless, silent existence of the conscious soul/person/self in the afterlife.

1. God did not deliver (“save”) from the dead

2. the dead do not praise God (cf. Psalms 6:5; Psalms 30:9; Psalms 115:17; Isaiah 38:18)

3. God's faithfulness is not declared in the grave (cf. Isaiah 38:18)

4. God's acts of deliverance (BDB 810, see Special Topic: Wonderful Things) are not declared in the darkness

5. God's righteousness (i.e., His acts of salvation) is not declared in the land of forgetfulness

Psalms 88:10

NASB“the departed spirits” NKJV, TEV“the dead” NRSV, JPSOA, REB“the shades” NJB“the shadows”

This Hebrew root (BDB 952) has two connotations/usages.

1. race of giants (see Special Topic: Terms Used for Tall/Powerful Warriors or People Groups) - Genesis 14:5; Genesis 15:20; Deuteronomy 2:20; Deuteronomy 3:11; Joshua 17:15; 1 Chronicles 20:4

2. the departed/the conscious dead - Job 26:5-6; Proverbs 2:18; Proverbs 9:18; Proverbs 21:16; Isaiah 14:9; Isaiah 26:11-19; this usage is common in Wisdom Literature (see SPECIAL TOPIC: WISDOM LITERATURE)

Because of Isaiah 14:0 and Ezekiel 28:0 it is possible to see these as departed kings and powerful humans, now in Sheol, their power and prestige gone. There is a detailed discussion of this term in NIDOTTE, vol. 3, pp. 1173-1180.

▣ “Selah” See notes at Psalms 3:2.

Verses 13-18

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Psalms 88:13-18 13But I, O Lord, have cried out to You for help, And in the morning my prayer comes before You. 14O Lord, why do You reject my soul? Why do You hide Your face from me? 15I was afflicted and about to die from my youth on; I suffer Your terrors; I am overcome. 16Your burning anger has passed over me; Your terrors have destroyed me. 17They have surrounded me like water all day long; They have encompassed me altogether. 18You have removed lover and friend far from me; My acquaintances are in darkness.

Psalms 88:13-18 This repeats the emphasis of the previous verses. The psalmist feels estranged from God and family and friends! He is alone! This Psalm ends in despair (cf. Psalms 88:14)! He does not understand what is happening to him, either physically or spiritually!

Psalms 88:15 Does this verse imply that the psalmist has been sick from his youth and is near death or is this imagery of a prolonged sense of abandonment by God?

The verb in the MT (BDB 806, KB 918, Qal imperfect) can be from one of two roots.

1. אפונה - BDB 67, either (1) “to be helpless,” (2) “to be confused,” or (3) “very, very much”

2. פון - found only here and meaning uncertain

3. פוג - “to grow numb” (NET Bible)

This verse is difficult to translate because the MT is difficult (JPSOA footnote)

LXX “and after being exalted,

I was humbled and became perplexed”

Peshitta “I have been proud, but now I am humbled and crushed”

Psalms 88:18 “in darkness” The same consonants can mean “withholding” (Peshitta). JPSOA takes the MT “darkness” and translates it as “cannot see.”

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

This is a study guide commentary which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.

These discussion questions are provided to help you think through the major issues of this section of the book. They are meant to be thought provoking, not definitive.

1. As you read this Psalm what is your first impression?

2. What is the psalmist's problem?

3. Why does he feel God has abandoned him? Does he express any hope? How?

4. Describe the OT view of the afterlife.

5. Why is Psalms 88:4 so painful?

6. Does the psalmist express any hope that God will hear, come, help?