For the leader; with stringed instruments, “upon the eighth.” A psalm of David.
I
Do not reprove me in your anger, Lord,
nor punish me in your wrath.
Have pity on me, Lord, for I am weak;
heal me, Lord, for my bones are shuddering.
My soul too is shuddering greatly –
and you, Lord, how long…?
Turn back, Lord, rescue my soul;
save me because of your mercy.
For in death there is no remembrance of you.
Who praises you in Sheol?
II
I am wearied with sighing;
all night long I drench my bed with tears;
I soak my couch with weeping.
My eyes are dimmed with sorrow,
worn out because of all my foes.
III
Away from me, all who do evil!
The Lord has heard the sound of my weeping.
The Lord has heard my plea;
the Lord will receive my prayer.
My foes will all be disgraced and will shudder greatly;
they will turn back in sudden disgrace.
Psalms 6:1-11
Well, it seems like this time the psalmist is acknowledging his own sinfulness. This psalm seems to be a plea for forgiveness. Of course, we could all use a bit of that!
There is a somber tone this time. Certainly there are references throughout the Bible to God’s anger and wrath, but that is not my go-to image of God. I prefer to focus on God’s patience and mercy and infinite love for us. But I suppose it’s not a bad idea to occasionally ponder the negative consequences of our sin.
As a side note, there were several things in this psalm that I had to research a bit. First, in the opening line there is a phrase, “upon the eighth,” that I didn’t understand. The bad news is, neither does anyone else, apparently. Every source I found just mentioned that it is obviously some kind of musical notation, which no one can explain anymore. A couple sources assume, as I did, that it has something to do with an octave, but no one was sure.
Next, in verse 4, about halfway through section I, it says, “and you, Lord, how long…?” The footnote in the Bible that I am reading says this is “elliptical for ‘How long will it be before you answer my prayer? ‘” I’m not really sure why that whole line isn’t just included in the text of the psalm, but there it is. in case you were wondering about it.
Finally, at the end of section I, the psalmist refers to a place called, Sheol. From context clues, I assumed that was probably some kind of reference to hell. The footnotes seem to agree, comparing it to Hades, the underworld that was referenced frequently in Greek and Latin literature.
Having clarified those points, we can get back to this psalm of repentance. In section II, the psalmist really drives home the idea of being sorrowful because of sin, complete with sighing and weeping. I suppose that is a healthy response to the realization of sin. To receive God’s forgiveness, He does expect us to be sorry for our sins.
Thankfully, in section III we exclaim that, “the Lord has heard my plea;” and there is forgiveness. We are reminded to separate ourselves from “all who do evil,” and we are reminded that the Lord hears our cries. Today, let’s remember this psalm and ask God to forgive our sins. It is a comfort to remember that, “the Lord will receive my prayer.”