Psalms 38

Ps 38 This psalm is a lament and prayer for healing. The psalmist’s suffering is associated with his unconfessed sin. He confesses his sin and entrusts his case to the Lord.38:title asking God to remember him: The meaning of this phrase is uncertain (also in 70:title).38:1-17 These verses form a prelude to the psalmist’s confession (38:18) and describe his woeful condition.38:1-4 The psalmist’s sins had triggered the Lord’s anger and rage, resulting in the arrows and blows of discipline and rebuke; as a result, his whole body is sick.

38:3 Sin can lead to sickness and even death (1 Cor 11:30). Whether the psalmist actually felt physically ill or his sickness was a metaphor for emotional turmoil, he knew that it came from God and threatened his life (see Pss 32:3; 39:10).

38:4 The psalmist’s burden results from sin (see 40:12; 41:4; cp. Gen 4:13).

38:5-8 The severity of God’s punishment brings anguish that affects every part of the psalmist’s being.

38:9-12 The psalmist longs for a restored relationship with God, but he feels alienated. He finds himself lost and alone as his friends disappear.

38:13 The psalmist suffers quietly before his opponents (see Isa 53:7).

38:15 The Lord alone will resolve the conflict (9:18; 27:14; 37:9, 34).

38:17-20 No longer able to endure his suffering and teetering on the verge of collapse (cp. 15:5), the psalmist confesses his sin (see 32:5).

38:19 That the psalmist’s enemies hate him without reason compounds his pain.

38:22 Asking the Lord to act quickly in times of great need is common in the Psalter (22:19; 31:2; 40:13; 69:17; 70:1; 71:12; 79:8; 102:2; 141:1; 143:7). However, wisdom and experience teach that God’s people must often wait for him to act (27:14; 37:7; Isa 8:17; 40:31).