TRV
Translation
King James Version
¶ A Psalm of David. Unto thee will I cry, O LORD my rock; be not silent to me: lest, if thou be silent to me, I become like them that go down into the pit.
Complete Jewish Bible
By David: ADONAI, I am calling to you; my Rock, don't be deaf to my cry. For if you answer me with silence, I will be like those who fall in a pit.
Berean Standard Bible
To You, O LORD, I call; be not deaf to me, O my Rock. For if You remain silent, I will be like those descending to the Pit.
American Standard Version
Unto thee, O Jehovah, will I call: My rock, be not thou deaf unto me; Lest, if thou be silent unto me, I become like them that go down into the pit.
World English Bible Messianic
To you, LORD, I call. My rock, don’t be deaf to me; lest, if you are silent to me, I would become like those who go down into the pit.
Geneva Bible (1599)
A Psalme of David. Unto thee, O Lord, doe I crie: O my strength, be not deafe toward mee, lest, if thou answere me not, I be like them that goe downe into the pit.
Young's Literal Translation
By David. Unto Thee, O Jehovah, I call, My rock, be not silent to me! Lest Thou be silent to me, And I have been compared With those going down to the pit.
In the KJVVerse 14,301 of 31,102
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Commentary on Psalms 28 verses 1–5
1 ¶ A Psalm of David. Unto thee will I cry, O LORD my rock; be not silent to me: lest, if thou be silent to me, I become like them that go down into the pit.
2 Hear the voice of my supplications, when I cry unto thee, when I lift up my hands toward thy holy oracle.
3 Draw me not away with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity, which speak peace to their neighbours, but mischief is in their hearts.
4 Give them according to their deeds, and according to the wickedness of their endeavours: give them after the work of their hands; render to them their desert.
5 Because they regard not the works of the LORD, nor the operation of his hands, he shall destroy them, and not build them up.
In these verses David is very earnest in prayer.
I. He prays that God would graciously hear and answer him, now that, in his distress, he called upon him, Psa 28:1, Psa 28:2. Observe his faith in prayer: O Lord, my rock, denoting his belief of God's power (he is a rock) and his dependence upon that power - "He is my rock, on whom I build my hope." Observe his fervency in prayer: "To thee will I cry, as one in earnest, being ready to sink, unless thou come in with seasonable succour." And observe how solicitous he is to obtain an answer: "Be not silent to me, as one angry at my prayers, Psa 80:4. Lord, speak to me, answer me with good words and comfortable words (Zac 1:13); though the thing I pray for has not been given me, yet let God speak to me joy and gladness, and make me to hear them. Lord, speak for me, in answer to my prayers, plead my cause, command deliverances for me, and thus hear and answer the voice of my supplications." Two things he pleads: - 1. The sad despair he should be in if God slighted him: "If thou be silent to me, and I have not the tokens of thy favour, I am like those that go down into the pit (that is, I am a dead man, lost and undone); if God be not my friend, appear not to me and appear not for me, my hope and my help will have perished." Nothing can be so cutting, so killing, to a gracious soul, as the want of God's favour and the sense of his displeasure. I shall be like those that go down to hell (so some understand it); for what is the misery of the damned but this, that God is ever silent to them and deaf to their cry? Those are in some measure qualified for God's favour, and may expect it, who are thus possessed with a dread of his wrath, and to whom his frowns are worse than death. 2. The good hopes he had that God would favour him: I lift up my hands towards thy holy oracle, which denotes, not only an earnest desire, but an earnest expectation, thence to receive an answer of peace. The most holy place within the veil is here, as elsewhere, called the oracle; there the ark and the mercy-seat were, there God was said to dwell between the cherubim, and thence he spoke to his people, Num 7:89. That was a type of Christ, and it is to him that we must lift up our eyes and hands, for through him all good comes from God to us. It was also a figure of heaven (Heb 9:24); and from God as our Father in heaven we are taught to expect an answer to our prayers. The scriptures are called the oracles of God, and to them we must have an eye in our prayers and expectations. There is the word on which God hath caused and encouraged us to hope.
II. He deprecates the doom of wicked people, as before (Psa 26:9, "Gather not my soul with sinners): Lord, I attend thy holy oracle, draw me not away from that with the wicked, and with the workers of iniquity," Psa 28:3. 1. "Save me from being entangled in the snares they have laid for me. They flatter and cajole me, and speak peace to me; but they have a design upon me, for mischief is in their heart; they aim to disturb me, nay, to destroy me. Lord, suffer me not to be drawn away and ruined by their cursed plots; for they have, can have, no power, no success, against me, except it be given them from above." 2. "Save me from being infected with their sins and from doing as they do. Let me not be drawn away by their fallacious arguments, or their allurements, from the holy oracle (where I desire to dwell all the days of my life), to practise any wicked works;" see Psa 141:4. "Lord, never leave me to myself, to use such arts of deceit and treachery for my safety as they use to my ruin. Let no event of Providence be an invincible temptation to me, to draw me either into the imitation or into the interest of wicked people." Good men dread the way of sinners; the best are sensible of the danger they are in of being drawn aside into it; and therefore we should all pray earnestly to God for his grace to keep us in our integrity. 3. "Save me from being involved in their doom; let me not be led forth with the workers of iniquity, for I am not one of those that speak peace while war is in their hearts." Note, Those that are careful not to partake with sinners in their sins have reason to hope that they shall not partake with them in their plagues, Rev 18:4.
III. He imprecates the just judgments of God upon the workers of iniquity (Psa 28:4): Give them according to their deeds. This is not the language of passion or revenge, nor is it inconsistent with the duty of praying for our enemies. But, 1. Thus he would show how far he was from complying with the workers of iniquity, and with what good reason he had begged not to be drawn away with them, because he was convinced that they could not be made more miserable then to be dealt with according to their deeds. 2. Thus he would express his zeal for the honour of God's justice in the governing world. "Lord, they think all well that they do, and justify themselves in their wicked practices. Lord, give them after the work of their hands, and so undeceive those about them, who think there is no harm in what they do because it goes unpunished," Psa 94:1, Psa 94:2. 3. This prayer is a prophecy that God will, sooner or later, render to all impenitent sinners according to their deserts. If what has been done amiss be not undone by repentance, there will certainly come a reckoning day, when God will render to every man who persists in his evil deeds according to them. It is a prophecy particularly of the destruction of destroyers: "They speak peace to their neighbours, but mischief is in their hearts; Lord, give them according to their deeds, let the spoilers be spoiled, and let those be treacherously dealt with who have thus dealt treacherously;" see Isa 33:1; Rev 18:6; Rev 13:10. Observe, He foretels that God will reward them, not only according to their deed, but according to the wickedness of their endeavours; for sinners shall be reckoned with, not only for the mischief they have done, but for the mischief they would have done, which they designed, and did what they could to effect. And, if God go by this rule in dealing with the wicked, surely he will do so in dealing with the righteous, and will reward them, not only for the good they have done, but for the good they have endeavoured to do, though they could not accomplish it.
IV. He foretels their destruction for their contempt of God and his hand (Psa 28:5): "Because they regard not the works of the Lord and the operations of his hands, by which he manifests himself and speaks to the children of men, he will destroy them in this world and in the other, and not build them up." Note, A stupid regardlessness of the works of God is the cause of their ruin. Why do men question the being or attributes of God, but because they do not duly regard his handiworks, which declare his glory, and in which the invisible things of him are clearly seen? Why do men forget God, and live without him, nay, affront God, and live in rebellion against him, but because they consider not the instances of that wrath of his which is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men? Why do the enemies of God's people hate and persecute them, and devise mischief against them, but because they regard not the works God has wrought for his church, by which he has made it appear how dear it is to him? See Isa 5:12.
In singing this we must arm ourselves against all temptations to join with the workers of iniquity, and animate ourselves against all the troubles we may be threatened with by the workers of iniquity.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 1–5. Public domain.
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Origen of AlexandriaAD 253
SELECTIONS FROM THE PSALMS 28:1
Frequently, in Scripture, the righteous are said to have called out to God. Each one tries to beseech God with a cry, and I may say with an unusual cry. He goes to his bedroom closet, locks the door and calls out to God: “Do not be silent before me.” It was written of Moses, Aaron and Joshua the son of Nun. Indeed, they were the worthy ones to whom God spoke. He spoke through the prophets whenever the people stood before God. Let us not think that God speaks to us externally, for those righteous thoughts that are in our hearts are the words we speak and the voice through which God speaks to us. Understand this when Scripture says that God spoke to this one or that. Thus Scripture testifies, “Blessed is the one whose help is from you.…” We have this help through which the word of God is received. Holy is that one … who hears the word of the Lord and does it.
Diodorus of TarsusAD 390
COMMENTARY ON PSALM 28
I shall attribute the fact of the victory not to my virtue but to you, the God who proved its source for me.
Augustine of HippoAD 430
Exposition on Psalm 28
"Unto You, O Lord, have I cried; My God, be not silent from me" [Psalm 28:1]. Unto You, O Lord, have I cried; My God, separate not the unity of Your Word from that which as Man I am. "Lest at any time Thou be silent from me: and I shall be like them that go down into the pit." For from this, that the Eternity of Your Word ceases not to unite Itself to Me, it comes that I am not such a man as the rest of men, who are born into the deep misery of this world: where, as if You are silent, Your Word is not recognised.
Theodoret of CyrusAD 458
COMMENTARY ON THE PSALMS 28:1
If you keep silence with me and deprive me of your help, I shall immediately be consigned to death, which he called “pit,” since the grave is dug like a pit.
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
Psalms 28:1 opens with a fervent and desperate plea from King David to the LORD, whom he addresses as his unshakeable "rock." This verse establishes an urgent tone of supplication, revealing David's profound fear that divine silence or inaction would be tantamount to abandonment, leading him into a state of utter despair and spiritual death, metaphorically akin to those who descend into the grave. It encapsulates the raw human experience of crying out for God's immediate intervention amidst overwhelming distress, grounded in a foundational trust in His steadfast and unchanging character.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Psalms 28:1 is rich with literary artistry that amplifies its emotional and theological impact. The most prominent device is Metaphor, specifically in the phrase "O LORD my rock." God is not literally a rock, but the term powerfully conveys His attributes of strength, stability, permanence, and reliability as a secure refuge and an unshakeable foundation. This metaphor grounds David's desperate cry in a deep theological understanding of God's unchanging character. Personification is evident in the plea "be not silent to me," attributing the human quality of silence (or speech/response) to God, emphasizing the psalmist's fervent desire for God's active, vocal intervention. The phrase "go down into the pit" serves as potent Imagery and a form of Euphemism for death or Sheol, evoking a sense of utter despair, destruction, and separation from the living. Furthermore, the entire verse is an act of Apostrophe, a direct address to an absent or inanimate entity, in this case, God, highlighting the intensely personal and urgent nature of David's prayer. The repetition of "be silent to me" also functions as Epizeuxis, the immediate repetition of a word or phrase for emphasis, powerfully underscoring the psalmist's profound fear of divine non-response.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Psalms 28:1 encapsulates a foundational theological truth: the absolute dependence of humanity upon God's active presence and responsiveness. David's raw cry underscores the biblical understanding that true life, hope, and deliverance flow from God alone. His fear of divine silence is not a sign of weak faith, but rather a profound recognition that God's withdrawal or inaction is the ultimate catastrophe, leading to a state of spiritual and existential death. Conversely, his address to God as "my rock" affirms a deep covenantal relationship, where God is not merely a distant deity but a personal, unshakeable refuge. This verse teaches that authentic prayer involves honest expression of both trust and fear, acknowledging God's sovereignty while earnestly pleading for His intervention. It sets a precedent for believers to bring their deepest anxieties and most urgent needs before the LORD, confident in His character even when His presence feels distant.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Psalms 28:1 offers a timeless and profoundly relevant model for prayer and faith in the face of life's overwhelming challenges. In moments of deep distress, when we feel unheard, abandoned, or teetering on the brink of despair, David's cry provides a sacred permission slip to voice our deepest fears to God. It reminds us that our faith is not about suppressing our anxieties but about bringing them honestly before the One who is our "rock." When the world feels unstable and our foundations crumble, we are called to anchor ourselves in the unchanging character of the LORD. This verse validates the human fear of divine silence, acknowledging that the perceived absence of God's voice or intervention can be terrifying. Yet, it simultaneously directs us to the only true source of help, encouraging persistent and fervent supplication. We are invited to trust that God's silence is never indifference, and that He hears the cries of His children, ultimately delivering them from despair and destruction, just as He did for David. Our hope rests not in our ability to endure, but in God's unwavering faithfulness to respond.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
What does "the pit" signify in this verse?
Answer: In Psalms 28:1, "the pit" (Hebrew: bôwr) is a powerful and multi-layered metaphor. Primarily, it refers to the grave or Sheol, the common biblical understanding of the realm of the dead. For David, becoming "like them that go down into the pit" signifies not only physical death but also a state of utter hopelessness, destruction, and spiritual oblivion. It represents being cut off from the land of the living, from the community, and crucially, from God's active presence and blessing. It implies a descent into despair and a loss of all vitality, a fate worse than mere suffering, akin to complete annihilation or abandonment by God. This imagery is often used in the Psalms to describe the ultimate consequence of God's perceived withdrawal or judgment, as seen in Psalms 88:4-6.
Why is God's silence so feared by David?
Answer: David's profound fear of God's silence stems from several deeply rooted theological and existential concerns. For a covenant people like Israel, God's active communication and intervention were synonymous with His presence, favor, and life itself. If God were to be "silent," it would imply His indifference, His absence, or His refusal to act on David's behalf. This would be tantamount to abandonment, leaving David utterly vulnerable to his enemies and the forces of death and despair. God's silence would mean a cessation of His protection, guidance, and deliverance, effectively sealing David's fate and consigning him to the "pit." It's a fear that the very source of life and hope has withdrawn, leaving him to face destruction alone. This sentiment is echoed in other laments, where the psalmist desperately pleads for God to not hide His face or to hear his prayer.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Psalms 28:1, with its urgent cry to God as "my rock" and the profound fear of divine silence, finds its ultimate and most poignant fulfillment in the person and work of Jesus Christ. David's plea powerfully foreshadows the ultimate human experience of divine abandonment expressed by Christ on the cross. When Jesus cried out, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?," He experienced the terrifying silence and withdrawal of the Father as He bore the full weight of humanity's sin, truly becoming "like them that go down into the pit" on our behalf. Yet, unlike David's fear of permanent descent, Christ's experience of the pit was temporary and redemptive. He is the true and ultimate "Rock," the cornerstone upon whom the entire edifice of salvation rests, offering an unshakeable foundation for all who believe. His descent into death and the grave was not a defeat but a triumph, as God did not remain silent but raised Him up, freeing Him from the agony of death because it was impossible for death to hold Him. Now, as our resurrected Lord, Jesus is never silent to His people; He continually intercedes for us at the Father's right hand, ensuring that we, who are united with Him, will never truly "go down into the pit" of eternal separation, but will find eternal life and security in Him, our living and responsive Rock of Salvation.