TRV
Translation
King James Version
For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks?
KJV (with Strong's)
For in death H4194 there is no remembrance H2143 of thee: in the grave H7585 who shall give thee thanks H3034?
American Standard Version
For in death there is no remembrance of thee: In Sheol who shall give thee thanks?
World English Bible Messianic
For in death there is no memory of you. In Sheol, who shall give you thanks?
Geneva Bible (1599)
For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the graue who shall prayse thee?
Young's Literal Translation
For there is not in death Thy memorial, In Sheol, who doth give thanks to Thee?
In the KJVVerse 13,991 of 31,102
Study This Verse
Commentary on Psalms 6 verses 1–7
1 ¶ To the chief Musician on Neginoth upon Sheminith, A Psalm of David. O LORD, rebuke me not in thine anger, neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure.
2 Have mercy upon me, O LORD; for I am weak: O LORD, heal me; for my bones are vexed.
3 My soul is also sore vexed: but thou, O LORD, how long?
4 Return, O LORD, deliver my soul: oh save me for thy mercies' sake.
5 For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks?
6 I am weary with my groaning; all the night make I my bed to swim; I water my couch with my tears.
7 Mine eye is consumed because of grief; it waxeth old because of all mine enemies.
These verses speak the language of a heart truly humbled under humbling providences, of a broken and contrite spirit under great afflictions, sent on purpose to awaken conscience and mortify corruption. Those heap up wrath who cry not when God binds them; but those are getting ready for mercy who, under God's rebukes, sow in tears, as David does here. Let us observe here,
I. The representation he makes to God of his grievances. He pours out his complaint before him. Whither else should a child go with his complaints, but to his father? 1. He complains of bodily pain and sickness (Psa 6:2): My bones are vexed. His bones and his flesh, like Job's, were touched. Though David was a king, yet he was sick and pained; his imperial crown could not keep his head from aching. Great men are men, and subject to the common calamities of human life. Though David was a stout man, a man of war from his youth, yet this could not secure him from distempers, which will soon make even the strong men to bow themselves. Though David was a good man, yet neither could his goodness keep him in health. Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick. Let this help to reconcile us to pain and sickness, that it has been the lot of some of the best saints, and that we are directed and encouraged by their example to show before God our trouble in that case, who is for the body, and takes cognizance of its ailments. 2. He complains of inward trouble: My soul is also sorely vexed; and that is much more grievous than the vexation of the bones. The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity, if that be in good plight; but, if that be wounded, the grievance is intolerable. David's sickness brought his sin to his remembrance, and he looked upon it as a token of God's displeasure against him; that was the vexation of his soul; that made him cry, I am weak, heal me. It is a sad thing for a man to have his bones and his soul vexed at the same time; but this has been sometimes the lot of God's own people: nay, and this completed his complicated trouble, that it was continued upon him a great while, which is here intimated in that expostulation (Psa 6:3), Thou, O Lord! how long? To the living God we must, at such a time, address ourselves, who is the only physician both of body and mind, and not to the Assyrians, not to the god of Ekron.
II. The impression which his troubles made upon him. They lay very heavily; he groaned till he was weary, wept till he made his bed to swim, and watered his couch (Psa 6:6), wept till he had almost wept his eyes out (Psa 6:7): My eye is consumed because of grief. David had more courage and consideration than to mourn thus for any outward affliction; but, when sin sat heavily upon his conscience and he was made to possess his iniquities, when his soul was wounded with the sense of God's wrath and his withdrawings from him, then he thus grieves and mourns in secret, and even his soul refuses to be comforted. This not only kept his eyes waking, but kept his eyes weeping. Note, 1. It has often been the lot of the best of men to be men of sorrows; our Lord Jesus himself was so. Our way lies through a vale of tears, and we must accommodate ourselves to the temper of the climate. 2. It well becomes the greatest spirits to be tender, and to relent, under the tokens of God's displeasure. David, who could face Goliath himself and many another threatening enemy with an undaunted bravery, yet melts into tears at the remembrance of sin and under the apprehensions of divine wrath; and it was no diminution at all to his character to do so. 3. True penitents weep in their retirements. The Pharisees disguised their faces, that they might appear unto men to mourn; but David mourned in the night upon the bed where he lay communing with his own heart, and no eye was a witness to his grief, but the eye of him who is all eye. Peter went out, covered his face, and wept. 4. Sorrow for sin ought to be great sorrow; so David's was; he wept so bitterly, so abundantly, that he watered his couch. 5. The triumphs of wicked men in the sorrows of the saints add very much to their grief. David's eye waxed old because of his enemies, who rejoiced in his afflictions and put bad constructions upon his tears. In this great sorrow David was a type of Christ, who often wept, and who cried out, My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, Heb 5:7.
III. The petitions which he offers up to God in this sorrowful and distressed state. 1. That which he dreads as the greatest evil is the anger of God. This was the wormwood and the gall in the affliction and the misery; it was the infusion of this that made it indeed a bitter cup; and therefore he prays (Psa 6:1), O Lord! rebuke me not in thy anger, though I have deserved it, neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure. He does not pray, "Lord, rebuke me not; Lord, chasten me not;" for, as many as God loves he rebukes and chastens, as a father the son in whom he delights. He can bear the rebuke and chastening well enough if God, at the same time, lift up the light of his countenance upon him and by his Spirit make him to hear the joy and gladness of his loving-kindness; the affliction of his body will be tolerable if he have but comfort in his soul. No matter though sickness make his bones ache, if God's wrath do not make his heart ache; therefore his prayer is, "Lord, rebuke me not in thy wrath; let me not lie under the impressions of that, for that will sink me." Herein David was a type of Christ, whose sorest complaint, in his sufferings, was of the trouble of his soul and of the suspension of his Father's smiles. He never so much as whispered a complaint of the rage of his enemies - "Why do they crucify me?" or the unkindness of his friends - "Why do they desert me?" But he cried with a loud voice, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Let us thus deprecate the wrath of God more than any outward trouble whatsoever and always beware of treasuring up wrath against a day of affliction. 2. That which he desires as the greatest good, and which would be to him the restoration of all good, is the favour and friendship of God. He prays, (1.) That God would pity him and look upon him with compassion. He thinks himself very miserable, and misery is the proper object of mercy. Hence he prays, "Have mercy upon me, O Lord! in wrath remember mercy, and deal not with me in strict justice." (2.) That God would pardon his sins; for that is the proper act of mercy, and is often chiefly intended in that petition, Have mercy upon me. (3.) That God would put forth his power for his relief: "Lord, heal me (Psa 6:2), save me (Psa 6:4), speak the word, and I shall be whole, and all will be well." (4.) That he would be at peace with him: "Return, O Lord! receive me into thy favour again, and be reconciled to me. Thou hast seemed to depart from me and neglect me, nay, to set thyself at a distance, as one angry; but now, Lord, return and show thyself nigh to me." (5.) That he would especially preserve the inward man and the interests of that, whatever might become of the body: "O Lord! deliver my soul from sinning, from sinking, from perishing for ever." It is an unspeakable privilege that we have a God to go to in our afflictions, and it is our duty to go to him, and thus to wrestle with him, and we shall not seek in vain.
IV. The pleas with which he enforces his petitions, not to move God (he knows our cause and the true merits of it better than we can state them), but to move himself. 1. He pleads God's mercy; and thence we take some of our best encouragements in prayer: Save me, for thy mercies' sake. 3. He pleads God's glory (Psa 6:5): "For in death there is no remembrance of thee. Lord, if thou deliver me and comfort me, I will not only give thee thanks for my deliverance, and stir up others to join with me in these thanksgivings, but I will spend the new life thou shalt entrust me with in thy service and to thy glory, and all the remainder of my days I will preserve a grateful remembrance of thy favours to me, and be quickened thereby in all instances of service to thee; but, if I die, I shall be cut short of that opportunity of honouring thee and doing good to others, for in the grave who will give the thanks?" Not but that separate souls live and act, and the souls of the faithful joyfully remember God and give thanks to him. But, (1.) In the second death (which perhaps David, being now troubled in soul under the wrath of God, had some dreadful apprehensions of) there is no pleasing remembrance of God; devils and damned spirits blaspheme him and do not praise him. "Lord, let me not lie always under this wrath, for that is sheol, it is hell itself, and lays me under an everlasting disability to praise thee." Those that sincerely seek God's glory, and desire and delight to praise him, may pray in faith, "Lord, send me not to that dreadful place, where there is no devout remembrance of thee, nor are any thanks given to thee." (2.) Even the death of the body puts an end to our opportunity and capacity of glorifying God in this world, and serving the interests of his kingdom among men by opposing the powers of darkness and bringing many on this earth to know God and devote themselves to him. Some have maintained that the joys of the saints in heaven are more desirable, infinitely more so, than the comforts of saints on earth; yet the services of saints on earth, especially such eminent ones as David was, are more laudable, and redound more to the glory of the divine grace, than the services of the saints in heaven, who are not employed in maintaining the war against sin and Satan, nor in edifying the body of Christ. Courtiers in the royal presence are most happy, but soldiers in the field are more useful; and therefore we may, with good reason, pray that if it be the will of God, and he has any further work for us or our friends to do in this world, he will yet spare us, or them, to serve him. To depart and be with Christ is most happy for the saints themselves; but for them to abide in the flesh is more profitable for the church. This David had an eye to when he pleaded this, In the grave who shall give thee thanks? Psa 30:9; Psa 88:10; Psa 115:17; Isa 38:18. And this Christ had an eye to when he said, I pray not that thou shouldst take them out of the world.
We should sing these verses with a deep sense of the terrors of God's wrath, which we should therefore dread and deprecate above any thing; and with thankfulness if this be not our condition, and compassion to those who are thus afflicted: if we be thus troubled, let it comfort us that our case is not without precedent, nor, if we humble ourselves and pray, as David did, shall it be long without redress.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 1–7. Public domain.
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Gregory of NazianzusAD 390
ON HIS FATHER’S SILENCE, ORATION 16:7
It is better to be punished and cleansed now than to be transmitted to the torment to come, when it is the time of chastisement, not of cleansing. For as he who remembers God here is conqueror of death (as David has most excellently sung), so the departed have not in the grave confession and restoration; for God has confined life and action to this world, and to the future the scrutiny of what has been done.
Gregory of NyssaAD 395
ON THE INSCRIPTIONS OF THE PSALMS 2:11.146-47
For he who has made the inheritance known has also mentioned the octave, which becomes both the boundary of the present time and the beginning of the age to come. Now the characteristic feature of the octave is that it no longer affords those who are in it opportunity to procure things good or bad, but one hands over instead the sheaves from whatever seeds he has sown for himself through his works. For this reason he prescribes here that the one who is exercised in the same victories effect repentance, as such zeal is idle in hades.
Didymus the BlindAD 398
FRAGMENTS ON THE PSALMS 6:6
The saints are not only mindful of God as they hold on to this life but even more so when they are separated from this perishable body. What, therefore, does he say? No one who is mindful of you falls into that death that sin brings forth, that is, that death that separates the sinning spirit from a life of virtue. I desire to be mindful of you by turning toward your kindness. Save me, lest I be consumed in death when my prevailing weakness has turned against me and my spirit is thoroughly distraught. For it is also said, he is not mindful of you who dies; but he who is mindful of you does not fall into that death about which the Savior said: “He who hears my word will not see death in eternity.”
John ChrysostomAD 407
COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS 6:4
[When the psalmist says] “for in death there is no one to remember you,” [he is] not implying that our existence lasts only as far as the present life: perish the thought! After all, he is aware of the doctrine of resurrection. Rather, it is that after our departure from here there would be no time for repentance. For the rich man praised God and repented, but in view of its lateness it did him no good. The virgins wanted to get some oil, but no one gave any to them. So this is what this man requests, too, for his sins to be washed away in this life so as to enjoy confidence at the tribunal of the fearsome judge.
JeromeAD 420
HOMILY ON PSALM 105[106]
While you are still in this world, I beg of you to repent. Confess and give thanks to the Lord, for in this world only is he merciful. Here, he is able to be compassionate to the repentant, but because there he is judge, he is not merciful. Here, he is compassionate kindness; there, he is judge. Here, he reaches out his hand to the falling; there, he presides as judge.
Augustine of HippoAD 430
Exposition on Psalm 6
"For in death there is no one that is mindful of You" [Psalm 6:5]. He knows too that now is the time for turning unto God: for when this life shall have passed away, there remains but a retribution of our deserts. "But in hell who shall confess to You?" [Luke xvi] That rich man, of whom the Lord speaks, who saw Lazarus in rest, but bewailed himself in torments, confessed in hell, yea so as to wish even to have his brethren warned, that they might keep themselves from sin, because of the punishment which is not believed to be in hell. Although therefore to no purpose, yet he confessed that those torments had deservedly lighted upon him; since he even wished his brethren to be instructed, lest they should fall into the same. What then is, "But in hell who will confess to You?" Is hell to be understood as that place, whither the ungodly will be cast down after the judgment, when by reason of that deeper darkness they will no more see any light of God, to whom they may confess anything? For as yet that rich man by raising his eyes, although a vast gulf lay between, could still see Lazarus established in rest: by comparing himself with whom, he was driven to a confession of his own deserts. It may be understood also, as if the Psalmist calls sin, that is committed in contempt of God's law, death: so as that we should give the name of death to the sting of death, because it procures death. "For the sting of death is sin." [1 Corinthians 15:56] In which death this is to be unmindful of God, to despise His law and commandments: so that by hell the Psalmist would mean that blindness of soul which overtakes and enwraps the sinner, that is, the dying. "As they did not think good," the Apostle says, "to retain God in" their "knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind." [Romans 1:28] From this death, and this hell, the soul earnestly prays that she may be kept safe, while she strives to turn to God, and feels her difficulties.
Theodoret of CyrusAD 458
COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS 6:5
It is not in death but in life that one recalls God. Likewise, confession and reform do not come to the departed in hades. God confined life and action to this life; there, however, he conducts an evaluation of performance. And in any case this is proper to the eighth day, giving no longer opportunity for preparation by good or bad deeds to those who have arrived at it; instead, whatever works you have sown for yourself you will have occasion to reap. For this reason he obliges you to practice repentance here, there being no practice of this kind of effort in hades.
Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
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SUMMARY
This verse from Psalm 6 presents a profound lament from King David, who, in the throes of severe suffering, desperately pleads for divine preservation from the brink of death. His argument hinges on the ancient Israelite understanding that in the state of death, specifically within the shadowy realm of Sheol, the active remembrance of God and the vibrant, embodied expression of thanksgiving cease. David's appeal is a powerful rhetorical strategy, rooted in the conviction that the living are uniquely positioned to offer conscious, communal worship to God, thereby appealing to God's own glory and His desire for the praise of His covenant people.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Psalms 6:5 employs several potent literary devices to convey David's desperate plea. The most prominent is the Rhetorical Question, "in the grave who shall give thee thanks?" This question is not posed to elicit information but to make a forceful assertion: no one in the grave can offer the kind of vibrant, active thanksgiving that the living can. This device underscores the urgency and desperation of David's appeal, framing his survival as beneficial to God's own glory. Additionally, the verse uses Parallelism in its structure, with the first clause ("For in death [there is] no remembrance of thee") being conceptually mirrored and reinforced by the second ("in the grave who shall give thee thanks?"). This synonymous parallelism intensifies the core message, emphasizing the cessation of active worship in death. The overall tone of the psalm, and this verse in particular, is a profound Lament and Plea, characteristic of the Penitential Psalms, where the psalmist pours out his distress and makes an earnest appeal for divine intervention based on a compelling argument.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
This verse, while reflecting an ancient Israelite understanding of Sheol, carries profound theological weight regarding the value of life and the nature of worship. It underscores the biblical emphasis on the present life as the primary arena for active, conscious, and embodied praise of God. David's plea is not a denial of a continued existence, but an expression of the deep desire to continue in a dynamic, responsive relationship with God, offering Him the thanks and remembrance that are uniquely possible in the land of the living. It highlights that God desires the praise of His people, and that our lives are a gift to be used for His glory, a testament to His goodness and mercy.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
While the New Testament offers a clearer revelation of resurrection and eternal life, transforming our understanding of death for believers, David's heartfelt cry in Psalms 6:5 still resonates deeply. It serves as a powerful reminder to cherish our present life as the God-given opportunity to worship, serve, and give thanks. Our time on earth is finite, and every moment is a precious chance to engage in intentional praise and devotion. This verse motivates us to live lives that honor God, seeking His mercy and deliverance in trials, so that we may continue to bear witness to His goodness and actively participate in His kingdom work. It encourages us to make the most of our earthly existence as the unique sphere for embodied worship and faithful obedience, recognizing that our praise here has a distinct quality and purpose in the grand narrative of God's redemptive plan.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
What is the Old Testament understanding of "Sheol" as reflected in this verse?
Answer: In the Old Testament, "Sheol" (Hebrew: שְׁאוֹל) generally refers to the grave or the common abode of the dead, a shadowy, silent realm beneath the earth. It was not typically conceived as a place of vibrant, conscious interaction with God or active, vocal worship, unlike the dynamic relationship enjoyed by the living. Psalms 6:5 reflects this understanding, where David laments that in death, he would no longer be able to actively remember God or give Him thanks in the same embodied, communal way as he could in life. This perspective emphasizes the profound value placed on physical life as the arena for covenant relationship and public worship, a theme echoed in other passages such as Psalms 30:9 and Isaiah 38:18.
Does this verse imply that Old Testament believers did not believe in an afterlife or eternal praise?
Answer: No, this verse does not necessarily imply a complete denial of an afterlife or eternal existence for the soul. Rather, it reflects the specific Old Testament understanding that the active, embodied, and communal forms of praise and remembrance ceased in Sheol. The focus is on the cessation of the vibrant, earthly worship experienced by the living, not on the ultimate destiny of the soul. While the Old Testament's revelation of the afterlife was progressive and less explicit than the New Testament's, there are hints of a continued existence and even hope beyond the grave, as seen in passages like Job 19:25-27 and Psalms 16:10-11. Psalms 6:5 is a desperate plea for preservation of life for the sake of earthly worship, not a comprehensive theological treatise on the afterlife.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Psalms 6:5, with its poignant lament over the cessation of praise in death, finds its ultimate fulfillment and transformation in Jesus Christ. David's fear of being silenced by death is utterly overcome by the resurrection of Christ. Jesus, through His death and glorious resurrection, conquered the power of death and the grave, opening the way for believers to experience eternal life and unending praise. The New Testament declares that for those in Christ, "death is swallowed up in victory" (1 Corinthians 15:54). Because Jesus "is the resurrection and the life," those who believe in Him "will live, even though they die" (John 11:25), and their praise will never cease. The shadow of Sheol, where remembrance and thanksgiving were thought to end, is dispelled by the light of Christ's triumph. We are now called to live lives of active praise and worship, not out of fear of being silenced, but out of the glorious hope that our remembrance and thanksgiving to God will continue eternally in His presence, empowered by the Spirit and secured by the finished work of the Lamb of God, who is worthy of all praise (Revelation 5:9-10).