Psalms 38:9-12

Context

38:9 O Lord, you understand my heart’s desire;¹

my groaning is not hidden from you.

38:10 My heart beats quickly;

my strength leaves me;

I can hardly see.²

38:11 Because of my condition,³ even my friends and acquaintances keep their distance;⁴

my neighbors stand far away.⁵

38:12 Those who seek my life try to entrap me;⁶

those who want to harm me speak destructive words;

all day long they say deceitful things.

[38:9] ¹tn Heb “O Lord, before you [is] all my desire.”

[38:10] ²tn Heb “and the light of my eyes, even they, there is not with me.” The “light of the eyes” may refer to physical energy (see 1 Sam 14:27, 29), life itself (Ps 13:3), or the ability to see (Prov 29:23).

[38:11] ³tn Or “wound,” or “illness.”

[38:11] ⁴tn Heb “stand [aloof].”

[38:11] ⁵tn Heb “and the ones near me off at a distance stand.”

[38:12] ⁶tn Heb “lay snares.”