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Psalm 38 | King James Audio Bible
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Psalm 38 is a heartfelt expression of repentance and a plea for divine assistance in the face of suffering and affliction. Attributed to King David, this psalm vividly portrays the anguish of a soul burdened by sin and illness, seeking God’s mercy and restoration.
Acknowledging Sin and Suffering: Psalm 38 begins with a sober acknowledgment of the psalmist’s condition. It is a cry for help, recognizing that the distress faced is a consequence of personal transgressions. The psalmist describes feeling the weight of sin like arrows piercing the soul, causing physical and emotional suffering.
Physical and Emotional Affliction: The psalmist vividly portrays the physical and emotional pain experienced due to the burden of sin. The imagery of festering wounds, stench, and feebleness reflects the depth of the suffering. This serves as a reminder of the real and tangible consequences of sin on both body and spirit.
Isolation and Hostility: Throughout the psalm, the psalmist expresses a sense of isolation and abandonment. Friends and loved ones keep their distance, and enemies plot against him. This isolation intensifies the psalmist’s longing for God’s presence and intervention.
A Cry for Mercy and Healing: Amidst the suffering and isolation, the psalmist turns to God in earnest prayer. He acknowledges his sin, confesses his wrongdoings, and pleads for God’s mercy and forgiveness. The psalmist recognizes that only God can offer healing and relief from the anguish he faces.
The Assurance of God’s Response: Despite the depth of suffering and the psalmist’s acknowledgment of his own sin, there is an underlying trust in God’s faithfulness. The psalmist believes that God will hear his cries for help and come to his aid. This trust in God’s character and the expectation of divine intervention provide a glimmer of hope amidst the distress.
A Cry for Deliverance: The psalmist closes with a heartfelt plea for God not to forsake him but to hasten to his aid. He acknowledges that God is his salvation, and he seeks deliverance from his adversaries.
Psalm 38 | King James Audio Bible KJV | Love Revealed By Jesus Christ
O Lord, rebuke me not in thy wrath: neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure.
For thine arrows stick fast in me, and thy hand presseth me sore.
There is no soundness in my flesh because of thine anger; neither is there any rest in my bones because of my sin.
For mine iniquities are gone over mine head: as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me.
My wounds stink and are corrupt because of my foolishness.
I am troubled; I am bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day long.
For my loins are filled with a loathsome disease: and there is no soundness in my flesh.
I am feeble and sore broken: I have roared by reason of the disquietness of my heart.
Lord, all my desire is before thee; and my groaning is not hid from thee.
My heart panteth, my strength faileth me: as for the light of mine eyes, it also is gone from me.
My lovers and my friends stand aloof from my sore; and my kinsmen stand afar off.
They also that seek after my life lay snares for me: and they that seek my hurt speak mischievous things, and imagine deceits all the day long.
But I, as a deaf man, heard not; and I was as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth.
Thus I was as a man that heareth not, and in whose mouth are no reproofs.
For in thee, O Lord, do I hope: thou wilt hear, O Lord my God.
For I said, Hear me, lest otherwise they should rejoice over me: when my foot slippeth, they magnify themselves against me.
For I am ready to halt, and my sorrow is continually before me.
For I will declare mine iniquity; I will be sorry for my sin.
But mine enemies are lively, and they are strong: and they that hate me wrongfully are multiplied.
They also that render evil for good are mine adversaries; because I follow the thing that good is.
Forsake me not, O Lord: O my God, be not far from me.
Make haste to help me, O Lord my salvation.
Key Themes Of The Psalm For Reflection | Love Revealed By Jesus Christ
- Acknowledgment of Sin and Guilt: The psalmist openly admits his wrongdoing and recognizes the impact of sin on his life.
- Physical and Emotional Suffering: The psalmist vividly describes the physical and emotional pain that accompanies the burden of sin, using imagery of wounds, stench, and feebleness.
- Isolation and Abandonment: The psalmist conveys a sense of isolation as friends and loved ones distance themselves, while enemies plot against him.
- Plea for God’s Mercy: Amidst suffering, the psalmist turns to God, confessing his sins and earnestly seeking divine mercy and forgiveness.
- Trust in God’s Faithfulness: Despite the suffering and guilt, there is an underlying trust in God’s character and faithfulness, with the expectation that God will hear his cries for help.
- Expectation of Divine Intervention: The psalmist believes that God will come to his aid and deliver him from his adversaries, serving as a source of hope in his distress.
In his commentary on the psalms, Saint Augustine invites us to reflect on the nature of prayer in the light of the Incarnation. Christ, he says, prays for us, prays in us, and is the one to whom we pray. This threefold pattern expresses the deep mystery of how Christ, as both God and man, draws us into communion with the Father. At the centre of Augustine’s reflection is the conviction that Christ is inseparably united to his Church. Christ is the Head; the Church is his Body. Together, they form one person, what Augustine elsewhere calls the Totus Christus – the whole Christ. This means that the voice of the Church in prayer is the voice of Christ; and the voice of Christ, especially in the Psalms, is the voice of his Body. We speak to God in him, and he speaks to God in us [ … ]
The paralyzed man would not have been able to come to Jesus without the help of his friends. It is his friends’ faith, and their initiative and bravery, as well as his own that work together to find a way to come to Jesus. Jesus is touched by their faith and their friendship. We may think now as well about the help we give others and the help which we receive from others, in matters of faith and as we confess our sins and seek spiritual healing. Our sins can be like a form of spiritual paralysis, in which condition we may rely a great deal on our friends to bring us back to Jesus [ … ]
Christian Art | George Herbert | The Temple | The Church | The Sinner George Herbert | The Temple | The Church | The Sinner Lord, how I am all ague, when I seek What I have treasur’d in my memorie! Since, if my soul make even with the week, Each seventh note by right is due to thee. I finde there quarries of pil’d vanities, But shreds of holinesse, that dare not venture To shew their face, since crosse to thy decrees. There the circumference earth is, heav’n the centre. In so much dregs the quintessence is small: The spirit and good extract of my heart Comes to about the many hundredth part. Yet Lord restore thine image, heare my call: And though my hard heart scarce to thee can grone, Remember that thou once didst write in stone. George Herbert | The Temple | The Church | The Sinner The poet reflects on his spiritual state, describing a struggle with weakness, sin, and the desire for divine alignment. The poem opens with the poet addressing God, expressing discomfort, likened to an ‘ague’ (fever or chill), when he searches his memory for spiritual treasures. This ‘ague’ suggests both a physical and spiritual unease, revealing the tension the poet feels in self-examination. The second line conveys a sense of regret as the poet searches for ‘treasur’d’ holiness in his memory. He recognizes that, although he might strive to keep his soul ‘even with the week’, dedicating every seventh day to God, he falls short. This phrase reflects the expectation to honour the Sabbath, but the poet’s efforts are met with disappointment in their perceived spiritual emptiness. The poet goes on to examine his inner self, describing ‘quarries of pil’d vanities’ that dominate his mind. Here, ‘quarries’ implies an overwhelming quantity of earthly or superficial concerns, while ‘vanities’ suggests that these concerns are meaningless in the context of divine expectation. In contrast, he finds only ‘shreds of holinesse’, fragmented attempts at righteousness, which he hesitates to bring forward as these elements are ‘crosse to thy decrees’, or in opposition to God’s laws. This imagery underscores the poet’s internal conflict and recognition of shortcomings. Further, the poet contrasts earth and heaven, saying that ‘the circumference earth is, heav’n the centre.’ This phrase symbolizes the poet’s focus on worldly concerns (the circumference) that orbit around a neglected spiritual core (the heavenly center). The poet reflects that his life is filled with ‘dregs’, the lesser, unrefined aspects of his being, while ‘quintessence’, or the purest part of himself, is scarce. This ‘quintessence’ is described as the ‘spirit and good extract’ of the poet’s heart, amounting to a ‘many hundredth part’ — a small fraction of life’s essence. The poet realizes that, despite attempts to cultivate holiness, his internal state largely lacks spiritual substance. The final lines shift to a plea for restoration. The poet calls on God to ‘restore thine image’, asking for renewal and transformation. This restoration request implies a yearning to reflect God’s nature more fully, as humanity is believed to be made in God’s image. The poet acknowledges that his heart ‘scarce… can grone’ to God, reflecting the difficulty he feels in truly connecting with or petitioning the divine. The poem ends with reference to the biblical account of the Ten Commandments, when God ‘didst write in stone’. This allusion serves as both a reminder of God’s past willingness to communicate directly and a plea for a similar intervention to etch divine law into the poet’s heart. The poem examines themes of introspection, human fallibility, and a longing for divine transformation. The poet’s self-examination reveals struggle to balance earthly concerns with spiritual commitments, culminating in a plea for God’s direct action to restore spiritual integrity.
