Psalms 30:8-10

Context

30:8 To you, O Lord, I cried out;

I begged the Lord for mercy:¹

30:9 “What² profit is there in taking my life,³

in my descending into the Pit?⁴

Can the dust of the grave⁵ praise you?

Can it declare your loyalty?⁶

30:10 Hear, O Lord, and have mercy on me!

O Lord, deliver me!”⁷

[30:8] ¹tn The prefixed verbal forms in v. 8 are probably preterites; the psalmist recalls that he prayed in his time of crisis.

[30:9] ²sn The following two verses (vv. 9-10) contain the prayer (or an excerpt of the prayer) that the psalmist offered to the Lord during his crisis.

[30:9] ³tn Heb “What profit [is there] in my blood?” “Blood” here represents his life.

[30:9] ⁴tn The Hebrew term שָׁחַת (shakhat, “pit”) is often used as a title for Sheol (see Pss 16:10; 49:9; 55:24; 103:4).

[30:9] ⁵tn Heb “dust.” The words “of the grave” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[30:9] ⁶tn The rhetorical questions anticipate the answer, “Of course not!”

[30:10] ³tn Heb “be a helper to me.”