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Psalm 38

A penitential psalm of deep suffering. David describes physical agony and social isolation as consequences of his sin. His friends stand far off and enemies plot against him. He waits in silence for God to answer.

PsalmsPsalm 38 of 15022 versesBerean Standard Bible

If God speaks to you through Psalm 38, record what He said in Doxa and come back to it.

A Psalm of David, for remembrance.

1

O LORD, do not rebuke me in Your anger or discipline me in Your wrath.

2

For Your arrows have pierced me deeply, and Your hand has pressed down on me.

3

There is no soundness in my body because of Your anger; there is no rest in my bones because of my sin.

4

For my iniquities have overwhelmed me; they are a burden too heavy to bear.

5

My wounds are foul and festering because of my sinful folly.

6

I am bent and brought low; all day long I go about mourning.

7

For my loins are full of burning pain, and no soundness remains in my body.

8

I am numb and badly crushed; I groan in anguish of heart.

9

O Lord, my every desire is before You; my groaning is not hidden from You.

10

My heart pounds, my strength fails, and even the light of my eyes has faded.

11

My beloved and friends shun my disease, and my kinsmen stand at a distance.

12

Those who seek my life lay snares; those who wish me harm speak destruction, plotting deceit all day long.

13

But like a deaf man, I do not hear; and like a mute man, I do not open my mouth.

14

I am like a man who cannot hear, whose mouth offers no reply.

15

I wait for You, O LORD; You will answer, O Lord my God.

16

For I said, “Let them not gloat over me—those who taunt me when my foot slips.”

17

For I am ready to fall, and my pain is ever with me.

18

Yes, I confess my iniquity; I am troubled by my sin.

19

Many are my enemies without cause, and many hate me without reason.

20

Those who repay my good with evil attack me for pursuing the good.

21

Do not forsake me, O LORD; be not far from me, O my God.

22

Come quickly to help me, O Lord my Savior.

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Cross-references for Psalm 38

  • Psalm 38:4Psalm 40:12

    “For evils without number surround me; my sins have overtaken me, so that I cannot see. They are more than the hairs of my head, and my heart has failed within me.”

  • Psalm 38:4Ezra 9:6

    “and said: “O my God, I am ashamed and embarrassed to lift up my face to You, my God, because our iniquities are higher than our heads, and our guilt has reached the heavens.”

  • Psalm 38:9Psalm 10:17

    “You have heard, O LORD, the desire of the humble; You will strengthen their hearts. You will incline Your ear,”

  • Psalm 38:20Psalm 35:12

    “They repay me evil for good, to the bereavement of my soul.”

  • Psalm 38:22Psalm 27:1

    “The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life—whom shall I dread?”

Cross-references from OpenBible.info, licensed CC BY.

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If God speaks to you through Psalm 38

Doxa is where you record what God has said to you, in the words it came in, weigh it against Scripture with people you trust, and come back to it in the years that follow.

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