Psalms 88
1 A Song, a Psalm for the sons of Korah. To the chief Musician. Upon Mahalath Leannoth. An instruction. Of Heman the Ezrahite. Jehovah, God of my salvation, I have cried by day [and] in the night before thee.
A song. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. For the choirmaster. According to Mahalath Leannoth. A Maskil of Heman the Ezrahite. O LORD, the God of my salvation, day and night I cry out before You.
2 Let my prayer come before thee; incline thine ear unto my cry.
May my prayer come before You; incline Your ear to my cry.
For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to Sheol. (Sheol h7585)
4 I am reckoned with them that go down into the pit; I am as a man that hath no strength:
I am counted among those descending to the Pit. I am like a man without strength.
5 Prostrate among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave; whom thou rememberest no more, and who are cut off from thy hand.
I am forsaken among the dead, like the slain who lie in the grave, whom You remember no more, who are cut off from Your care.
6 Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in dark places, in the deeps.
You have laid me in the lowest Pit, in the darkest of the depths.
7 Thy fury lieth hard upon me, and thou hast afflicted [me] with all thy waves. (Selah)
Your wrath weighs heavily upon me; all Your waves have submerged me.
8 Thou hast put my familiar friends far from me; thou hast made me an abomination unto them: I am shut up, and I cannot come forth.
You have removed my friends from me; You have made me repulsive to them; I am confined and cannot escape.
9 Mine eye consumeth by reason of affliction. Upon thee, Jehovah, have I called every day; I have stretched out my hands unto thee.
My eyes grow dim with grief. I call to You daily, O LORD; I spread out my hands to You.
10 Wilt thou do wonders to the dead? shall the shades arise and praise thee? (Selah)
Do You work wonders for the dead? Do departed spirits rise up to praise You?
11 Shall thy loving-kindness be declared in the grave? thy faithfulness in Destruction?
Can Your loving devotion be proclaimed in the grave, Your faithfulness in Abaddon?
12 Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
Will Your wonders be known in the darkness, or Your righteousness in the land of oblivion?
13 But as for me, Jehovah, I cry unto thee, and in the morning my prayer cometh before thee.
But to You, O LORD, I cry for help; in the morning my prayer comes before You.
14 Why, O Jehovah, castest thou off my soul? [why] hidest thou thy face from me?
Why, O LORD, do You reject me? Why do You hide Your face from me?
15 I am afflicted and expiring from my youth up; I suffer thy terrors, [and] I am distracted.
From my youth I was afflicted and near death. I have borne Your terrors; I am in despair.
16 Thy fierce anger hath gone over me; thy terrors have brought me to nought:
Your wrath has swept over me; Your terrors have destroyed me.
17 They have surrounded me all the day like water; they have compassed me about together.
All day long they engulf me like water; they enclose me on every side.
18 Lover and associate hast thou put far from me: my familiar friends are darkness.
You have removed my beloved and my friend; darkness is my closest companion.
