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Psalms 88:15
87:6 The Lord writes in the census book
of the nations,
“This one was born there.” (Selah)
87:7As for the singers, as well as the pipers –
all of them sing within your walls.
Psalm 88
A song, a psalm written by the Korahites; for the
music director; according to the machalath-
leannoth style; a well-written song by Heman
the Ezrachite.
88:1 O Lord God who delivers me!
By day I cry out
and at night I pray before you.
88:2 Listen to my prayer!
Pay attention10 to my cry for help!
88:3 For my life11 is filled with troubles
and I am ready to enter Sheol.12
88:4 They treat me like13 those who de-
scend into the grave.14
I am like a helpless man,15
 tn Heb “the Lord records in the writing of the nations.”
 tn As noted in v. 4, the translation assumes a contrast be-
tween “there” (the various foreign lands) and “in her” (Zion).
In contrast to foreigners, the citizens of Zion have special sta-
tus because of their birthplace (v. 5). In this case vv. 4 and 6
form a structural frame around v. 5.
 tc Heb “and singers, like pipers, all my springs [are] in
you.” The participial form ‫( ח ְֹל ִלים‬kholÿlim) appears to be
from a denominative verb meaning “play the pipe,” though
some derive the form from ‫( חוּל‬khul, “dance”). In this case
the duplicated lamed (‫ )ל‬requires an emendation to ‫ְמח ְֹל ִלים‬
(mÿkholÿlim, “a Polel form). The words are addressed to
Zion. As it stands, the Hebrew text makes little, if any, sense.
“Springs” are often taken here as a symbol of divine blessing
and life”), but this reading does not relate to the preceding
line in any apparent way. The present translation assumes an
emendation of ‫ל־מ ְע ָינַי‬ ַ ‫( ּ ָכ‬kol-ma’yanay, “all my springs”) to ‫ּ ֻכ ּ ָלם‬
ּ‫( עָ נו‬kullam ’anu, “all of them sing,” with the form ּ‫ עָ נו‬being de-
rived from ‫עָ נָה‬, ’anah, “sing”).
 sn Psalm 88. The psalmist cries out in pain to the Lord,
begging him for relief from his intense and constant suffer-
ing. The psalmist regards God as the ultimate cause of his
distress, but nevertheless clings to God in hope.
 tn The Hebrew phrase ‫( ָמחֲ לַ ת ְלעַ נּ וֹת‬makhalat lÿ’annot) may
mean “illness to afflict.” Perhaps it refers to a particular style
of music, a tune title, or a musical instrument. The term ‫ָמחֲ לַ ת‬
also appears in the superscription of Ps 53.
 tn The meaning of the Hebrew term ‫ש ִּכיל‬
uncertain. The word is derived from a verb meaning “to be
prudent; to be wise.” Various options are: “a contemplative
song,” “a song imparting moral wisdom,” or “a skillful [i.e.,
well-written] song.” The term occurs in the superscriptions of
Pss 32, 42, 44, 45, 52-55, 74, 78, 88, 89, and 142, as well
as in Ps 47:7.
 tn Heb “O Lord God of my deliverance.” In light of the con-
tent of the psalm, this reference to God as the one who deliv-
ers seems overly positive. For this reason some emend the
text to ‫’( ַאלֹהַ י ׁ ִש ּו ְַע ִּתי‬alohay shivva’tiy, “[O Lord] my God, I cry
out”). See v. 13.
 tn Heb “[by] day I cry out, in the night before you.”
 tn Heb “may my prayer come before you.” The prefixed
verbal form is understood as a jussive, indicating the psalm-
ist’s desire or prayer.
10 tn Heb “turn your ear.”
11 tn Or “my soul.”
12 tn Heb “and my life approaches Sheol.”
13 tn Heb “I am considered with.”
14 tn Heb “the pit.” The noun ‫( ּבוֹר‬bor, “pit,” “cistern”) is
sometimes used of the grave and/or the realm of the dead.
15 tn Heb “I am like a man [for whom] there is no help.”
88:5 adrift among the dead,
16
like corpses lying in the grave,
whom you remember no more,
and who are cut off from your power.17
88:6 You place me in the lowest regions
of the Pit,18
in the dark places, in the watery depths.
88:7 Your anger bears down on me,
and you overwhelm me with all your
waves. (Selah)
88:8 You cause those who know me to
keep their distance;
you make me an appalling sight to them.
I am trapped and cannot get free.19
88:9 My eyes grow weak because of op-
pression.
I call out to you, O Lord, all day long;
I spread out my hands in prayer to you.20
88:10 Do you accomplish amazing things
for the dead?
Do the departed spirits21 rise up and give
you thanks? (Selah)
88:11 Is your loyal love proclaimed in the
grave,
or your faithfulness in the place of the
dead?22
88:12 Are your amazing deeds experi-
enced23 in the dark region,24
or your deliverance in the land of obliv-
ion?25
88:13 As for me, I cry out to you, O Lord;
in the morning my prayer confronts you.
88:14 O Lord, why do you reject me,
and pay no attention to me?26
88:15 I am oppressed and have been on
the verge of death since my youth.27
I have been subjected to your horrors and
am numb with pain.28
16 tn Heb “set free.”
17 tn Heb “from your hand.”
18 tn The noun ‫( ּבוֹר‬bor, “pit,” “cistern”) is sometimes used
of the grave and/or the realm of the dead. See v. 4.
ׂ ְ ‫( ַמ‬maskil) is 19 tn Heb “[I am] confined and I cannot go out.”
20 tn Heb “I spread out my hands to you.” Spreading out the
hands toward God was a prayer gesture (see Exod 9:29, 33;
1 Kgs 8:22, 38; 2 Chr 6:12-13, 29; Ezra 9:15; Job 11:13; Isa
1:15). The words “in prayer” have been supplied in the trans-
lation to clarify this.
21 tn Heb “Rephaim,” a term that refers to those who oc-
cupy the land of the dead (see Isa 14:9; 26:14, 19).
22 tn Heb “in Abaddon,” a name for Sheol. The noun is de-
rived from a verbal root meaning “to perish,” “to die.”
23 tn Heb “known.”
24 tn Heb “darkness,” here a title for Sheol.
25 tn Heb “forgetfulness.” The noun, which occurs only here
in the OT, is derived from a verbal root meaning “to forget.”
sn The rhetorical questions in vv. 10-12 expect the answer,
“Of course not!”
26 tn Heb “[why] do you hide your face from me?”
27 tn Heb “and am dying from youth.”
28 tn Heb “I carry your horrors [?].” The meaning of the He-
brew form ‫’( ָאפוּ נָה‬afunah), which occurs only here in the OT, is
unclear. It may be an adverb meaning “very much” (BDB 67
s.v.), though some prefer to emend the text to ‫’( ָאפוּ גָה‬afugah,
“I am numb”) from the verb ‫( פוּג‬pug; see Pss 38:8; 77:2).