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In the KJVVerse 15,325 of 31,102
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Commentary on Psalms 88 verses 10–18
10 ¶ Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead? shall the dead arise and praise thee? Selah.
11 Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? or thy faithfulness in destruction?
12 Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
13 But unto thee have I cried, O LORD; and in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee.
14 LORD, why castest thou off my soul? why hidest thou thy face from me?
15 I am afflicted and ready to die from my youth up: while I suffer thy terrors I am distracted.
16 Thy fierce wrath goeth over me; thy terrors have cut me off.
17 They came round about me daily like water; they compassed me about together.
18 Lover and friend hast thou put far from me, and mine acquaintance into darkness.
In these verses,
I. The psalmist expostulates with God concerning the present deplorable condition he was in (Psa 88:10-12): "Wilt thou do a miraculous work to the dead, and raise them to life again? Shall those that are dead and buried rise up to praise thee? No; they leave it to their children to rise up in their room to praise God; none expects that they should do it; and wherefore should they rise, wherefore should they live, but to praise God? The life we are born to at first, and the life we hope to rise to at last, must thus be spent. But shall thy lovingkindness to thy people be declared in the grave, either by those or to those that lie buried there? And thy faithfulness to thy promise, shall that be told in destruction? shall thy wonders be wrought in the dark, or known there, and thy righteousness in the grave, which is the land of forgetfulness, where men remember nothing, nor are themselves remembered? Departed souls may indeed know God's wonders and declare his faithfulness, justice, and lovingkindness; but deceased bodies cannot; they can neither receive God's favours in comfort nor return them in praise." Now we will not suppose these expostulations to be the language of despair, as if he thought God could not help him or would not, much less do they imply any disbelief of the resurrection of the dead at the last day; but he thus pleads with God for speedy relief: "Lord, thou art good, thou art faithful, thou art righteous; these attributes of thine will be made known in my deliverance, but, if it be not hastened, it will come too late; for I shall be dead and past relief, dead and not capable of receiving any comfort, very shortly." Job often pleaded thus, Job 7:8; Job 10:21.
II. He resolves to continue instant in prayer, and the more so because the deliverance was deferred (Psa 88:13): "Unto thee have I cried many a time, and found comfort in so doing, and therefore I will continue to do so; in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee." Note, Though our prayers be not answered immediately, yet we must not therefore give over praying, because the vision is for an appointed time, and at the end it shall speak and not lie. God delays the answer in order that he may try our patience and perseverance in prayer. He resolves to seek God early, in the morning, when his spirits were lively, and before the business of the day began to crowd in - in the morning, after he had been tossed with cares, and sorrowful thoughts in the silence and solitude of the night; but how could he say, My prayer shall prevent thee? Not as if he could wake sooner to pray than God to hear and answer; for he neither slumbers nor sleeps; but it intimates that he would be up earlier than ordinary to pray, would prevent (that is, go before) his usual hour of prayer. The greater our afflictions are the more solicitous and serious we should be in prayer. "My prayer shall present itself before thee, and be betimes with thee, and shall not stay for the encouragement of the beginning of mercy, but reach towards it with faith and expectation even before the day dawns." God often prevents our prayers and expectations with his mercies; let us prevent his mercies with our prayers and expectations.
III. He sets down what he will say to God in prayer. 1. He will humbly reason with God concerning the abject afflicted condition he was now in (Psa 88:14): "Lord, why castest thou off my soul? What is it that provokes thee to treat me as one abandoned? Show me wherefore thou contendest with me." He speaks it with wonder that God should cast off an old servant, should cast off one that was resolved not to cast him off: "No wonder men cast me off; but, Lord, why dost thou, whose gifts and callings are without repentance? Why hidest thou thy face, as one angry at me, that either hast no favour for me or wilt not let me know that thou hast?" Nothing grieves a child of God so much as God's hiding his face from him, nor is there any thing he so much dreads as God's casting off his soul. If the sun be clouded, that darkens the earth; but if the sun should abandon the earth, and quite cast it off, what a dungeon would it be! 2. He will humbly repeat the same complaints he had before made, until God have mercy on him. Two things he represents to God as his grievances: - (1.) That God was a terror to him: I suffer thy terrors, Psa 88:15. He had continual frightful apprehensions of the wrath of God against him for his sins and the consequences of that wrath. It terrified him to think of God, of falling into his hands and appearing before him to receive his doom from him. He perspired and trembled at the apprehension of God's displeasure against him, and the terror of his majesty. Note, Even those that are designed for God's favours may yet, for a time, suffer his terrors. The spirit of adoption is first a spirit of bondage to fear. Poor Job complained of the terrors of God setting themselves in array against him, Job 6:4. The psalmist here explains himself, and tells us what he means by God's terrors, even his fierce wrath. Let us see what dreadful impressions those terrors made upon him, and how deeply they wounded him. [1.] They had almost taken away his life: "I am so afflicted with them that I am ready to die, and" (as the word is) "to give up the ghost. Thy terrors have cut me off," Psa 88:16. What is hell, that eternal excision, by which damned sinners are for ever cut off from God and all happiness, but God's terrors fastening and preying upon their guilty consciences? [2.] They had almost taken away the use of his reason: When I suffer thy terrors I am distracted. This sad effect the terrors of the Lord have had upon many, and upon some good men, who have thereby been put quite out of the possession of their own souls, a most piteous case, and which ought to be looked upon with great compassion. [3.] This had continued long: From my youth up I suffer thy terrors. He had been from his childhood afflicted with melancholy, and trained up in sorrow under the discipline of that school. If we begin our days with trouble, and the days of our mourning have been prolonged a great while, let us not think it strange, but let tribulation work patience. It is observable the Heman, who became eminently wise and good, was afflicted and ready to die, and suffered God's terrors, from his youth up. Thus many have found it was good for them to bear the yoke in their youth, that sorrow has been much better for them than laughter would have been, and that being much afflicted, and often ready to die, when they were young, they have, by the grace of God, got such an habitual seriousness and weanedness from the world as have been of great use to them all their days. Sometimes those whom God designs for eminent services are prepared for them by exercises of this kind. [4.] His affliction was now extreme, and worse than ever. God's terrors now came round about him, so that from all sides he was assaulted with variety of troubles, and he had no comfortable gale from any point of the compass. They broke in upon him together like an inundation of water; and this daily, and all the day; so that he had no rest, no respite, not the lest breathing-time, no lucid intervals, nor any gleam of hope. Such was the calamitous state of a very wise and good man; he was so surrounded with terrors that he could find no place of shelter, nor lie any where under the wind. (2.) That no friend he had in the world was a comfort to him (Psa 88:18): Lover and friend hast thou put far from me; some are dead, others at a distance, and perhaps many unkind. Next to the comforts of religion are those of friendship and society; therefore to be friendless is (as to this life) almost to be comfortless; and to those who have had friends, but have lost them, the calamity is the more grievous. With this the psalmist here closes his complaint, as if this were that which completed his woe and gave the finishing stroke to the melancholy piece. If our friends are put far from us by scattering providences, nay, if by death our acquaintance are removed into darkness, we have reason to look upon it as a sore affliction, but must acknowledge and submit to the hand of God in it.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 10–18. Public domain.
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Augustine of HippoAD 430
Exposition on Psalm 88
For this purpose he briefly sketches in what follows the troubles of Christ's body. For it is not in the Head alone that they took place, since it is said to Saul too, "Why do you persecute Me?" [Acts 9:4] and Paul himself, as if placed as an elect member in the same body, says, "That I may fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh." [Colossians 1:24] "Why then, Lord, have You cast off my soul? Why hidest Thou Your face from me?"
"I am poor, and in toils from my youth up: and when lifted up, I was thrown down, and troubled" [Psalm 88:15].
"Your wraths went over me: Your terrors disturbed me" [Psalm 88:16].
"They came round about me all day like water: they compassed me about together" [Psalm 88:17].
"A friend You have put far from me: and mine acquaintance from my misery" [Psalm 88:18]. All these evils have taken place, and are happening in the limbs of Christ's body, and God turns away His face from their prayers, by not hearing as to what they wish for, since they know not that the fulfilment of their wishes would not be good for them. The Church is "poor," as she hungers and thirsts in her wanderings for that food with which she shall be filled in her own country: she is "in toils from her youth up," as the very Body of Christ says in another Psalm, "Many a time have they overcome me from my youth." And for this reason some of her members are lifted up even in this world, that in them may be the greater lowliness. Over that Body, which constitutes the unity of the Saints and the faithful, whose Head is Christ, go the wraths of God: yet abide not: since it is of the unbelieving only that it is written, that "the wrath of God abides upon him." [John 3:36] The terrors of God disturb the weakness of the faithful, because all that can happen, even though it actually happen not, it is prudent to fear; and sometimes these terrors so agitate the reflecting soul with the evils impending around, that they seem to flow around us on every side like water, and to encircle us in our fears. And as the Church while on pilgrimage is never free from these evils, happening as they do at one moment in one of her limbs, at another in another, he adds, "all day," signifying the continuation in time, to the end of this world. Often too, friends and acquaintances, their worldly interests at stake, in their terror forsake the Saints; of which says the Apostle, "all men forsook me: may it not be laid to their charge." [2 Timothy 4:16] But to what purpose is all this, but that early in the morning, that is, after the night of unbelief, the prayers of this holy Body may in the light of faith prevent God, until the coming of that salvation, which we are at present saved by hoping for, not by having, while we await it with patience and faithfulness. Then the Lord will not repel our prayers, as there will no longer be anything to be sought for, but everything that has been rightly asked, will be obtained: nor will He turn His face away from us, since we shall see Him as He is: [1 John 3:2] nor shall we be poor, because God will be our abundance, all in all: [1 Corinthians 15:28] nor shall we suffer, as there will be no more weakness: nor after exaltation shall we meet with humiliation and confusion, as there will be no adversity there: nor bear even the transient wrath of God, as we shall abide in His abiding love: nor will His terrors agitate us, because His promises realized will bless us: nor will our friend and acquaintance, being terrified, be far from us, where there will be no foe to dread.
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 88:16 articulates a profound and unmitigated cry of despair from the psalmist, Heman the Ezrahite, who feels utterly overwhelmed by the direct and terrifying manifestation of God's wrath. This verse is a stark expression of suffering, where the psalmist perceives divine judgment as an inescapable, destructive force that has not merely afflicted him but has actively "cut him off," bringing him to the brink of annihilation and isolation, without any apparent hope of relief or restoration.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Psalm 88:16 employs several powerful literary devices to convey the psalmist's profound anguish. Personification is evident in "Thy fierce wrath goeth over me," where wrath is depicted as an active, moving entity, like a flood or wave, overwhelming the psalmist. This is further reinforced by "thy terrors have cut me off," where terrors are given the agency to perform a destructive action, severing the psalmist's connection to life. The use of Hyperbole is present in the psalmist's declaration that he is "cut off," suggesting an extreme state of desolation and near-death, even if not literally dead at the moment of utterance. This exaggeration serves to emphasize the overwhelming nature of his suffering. Furthermore, the verse uses Metaphor to describe the wrath and terrors as forces that actively destroy and isolate, rather than merely causing discomfort. The entire verse functions as a powerful Lament, a form of poetic expression characterized by an outpouring of grief, complaint, and petition, often without a resolution of hope, which is particularly characteristic of Psalm 88.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Psalms 88:16 presents a challenging theological perspective, where God is perceived not as a distant or benevolent deity, but as the direct source of overwhelming suffering and terrifying judgment. This raw expression of divine wrath, experienced as a personal assault, highlights the biblical tension between God's justice and His mercy, and the human struggle to reconcile intense suffering with a loving God. It underscores the reality that faith can encompass moments of profound alienation and despair, where the believer feels utterly abandoned and even attacked by the very source of their hope. This psalm validates the experience of those who feel God's hand is against them, providing a biblical voice for the darkest nights of the soul, while implicitly inviting a deeper exploration of God's character and the nature of suffering.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Psalms 88:16 offers a profound and unsettling mirror to the human experience of suffering, particularly when that suffering feels directly inflicted or allowed by God. It reminds us that the biblical narrative is not always one of triumphant faith and immediate resolution, but also includes the raw, unvarnished cries of those who feel utterly forsaken. For the believer, this verse validates the reality of spiritual struggle and the permission to voice even the most agonizing questions and accusations to God. It teaches us that authentic faith does not always require a façade of strength or understanding; sometimes, it is simply the desperate cry from the depths of despair. In a world where pain is often spiritualized away or met with platitudes, Psalm 88:16 stands as a testament to God's capacity to hear and hold even our most difficult emotions, reminding us that true lament, however dark, is still a form of prayer and engagement with the divine. It encourages empathy for those in profound spiritual or emotional darkness, acknowledging that God's presence can sometimes be perceived as a source of terror rather than comfort.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Does Psalm 88:16 imply that God is cruel or unjust?
Answer: Psalm 88:16 reflects the psalmist's perception and experience of God's wrath and terrors, not necessarily a definitive theological statement on God's character. In moments of extreme suffering, individuals often interpret their pain as divine punishment or abandonment, even when God's ultimate purposes may be different. The Bible presents God as both just and merciful, capable of wrath against sin but also abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, as seen in Exodus 34:6-7. This verse gives voice to the raw, unmediated anguish of a person who feels overwhelmed by divine judgment, allowing for the full spectrum of human emotion to be expressed within the context of faith. It serves as a reminder that God can handle our honest, even painful, questions and accusations.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
While Psalm 88:16 portrays a profound sense of abandonment and overwhelming divine wrath, it finds its ultimate Christ-centered fulfillment not in a direct parallel of Jesus experiencing God's wrath for His own sin, but in His bearing the wrath due to humanity. On the cross, Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, became sin for us, experiencing a profound and unique separation from the Father as He absorbed the full weight of divine judgment against human sin, as described in 2 Corinthians 5:21. His cry, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" (from Psalm 22:1), echoes the psalmist's sense of being "cut off" by divine action. Jesus perfectly identified with the depths of human suffering and separation from God, not as a result of His own sin, but as a substitutionary act. Through His suffering and death, the "fierce wrath" and "terrors" that would have "cut off" humanity were poured out upon Him, so that those who believe might never experience that ultimate separation but might instead find reconciliation and eternal life, as promised in Romans 5:9-10. Thus, the despair of Psalms 88:16, though seemingly without hope, ultimately points to the one who entered the deepest darkness to bring the light of salvation.