💾 Archived View for scholasticdiversity.us.to › scriptures › jewish › t › Steinsaltz%20on%20Psalms%2… captured on 2024-05-10 at 13:44:13. Gemini links have been rewritten to link to archived content
-=-=-=-=-=-=-
38 [1] **A psalm by David, to remind. **This psalm was apparently meant to remind God, as it were, of how the psalmist suffered. It seems to have been written when the psalmist was gravely ill and in great physical pain. At the time, his enemies were convinced that his death was imminent, and they were hopeful that they would soon be able to celebrate his downfall.
[2] The psalmist begins by pleading to God for relief from his pain:* ***Lord, do not rebuke me with Your fury and chastise me with Your burning anger. **
[3] **Your arrows have pierced me,** a metaphorical description of God punishing him with pain and illness,** **and **Your hand has come down upon me** with a severe blow.
[4] **There is nothing whole in my body,** no part of my body is well,** because of Your anger; **and there is **no tranquility in **any of **my bones, because of my sin. **This** **is not a complaint but a plea for mercy. The psalmist admits that he is suffering justly because of his sins, but he nevertheless prays for healing.
[5] **My iniquities **are so numerous, it is as if they have piled up and **have risen above my head; like an onerous burden, they are too heavy for me. **
[6] **My wounds stink and fester because of my folly. **All this is punishment for my sins.
[7] **I am greatly bent over and bowed; I walk about in gloom the entire day **because of my pain.
[8] **My loins **can barely support me. I feel as if they **are filled with refuse;** **there is nothing whole **and healthy **in **all **my flesh. **
[9] **I am depleted and utterly crushed; I roar from my heart’s agitation. **
[10] Yet the psalmist immediately realizes that there is no reason for him to cry out in pain: **My Lord, all my desires are **known **before You, and **even **my **muffled **sighs are not hidden from You. **
[11] **My heart races, **my heartbeat is irregular,** **and **my strength fails me; **in my sickness and weakness it seems that **even the light of my eyes has left me.**
[12] I suffer not only physically but also from lack of support: **My friends and companions stand aloof from my affliction, and those who are close to me keep their distance. **They do not come forward to help.** **
[13] Moreover, **those who seek my life lay snares for me. **As they assume that my situation is hopeless, they feel free to plot against me.** Those who wish me ill speak of devastation **against me,** uttering deceit **about me **all day long. **
[14] **And I, **out of weakness, **like one who is deaf, do not hear. I am like a mute who does not open his mouth. **
[15] **Indeed, I am like a man who does not hear, a man with no power to rebuke **in** **response to their affronts.** **
[16] My silence is not only a result of my weakness; it also stems from my faith,** for in You, Lord, I place my hope; Lord my God, **in my stead **You will answer **those who taunt me, since I am unable to do so.
[17] **For I said: Lest they rejoice and become exalted over me when my leg falters. **
[18] **For I am poised to stumble; my pain is always before me. **
[19] **I will tell of my iniquity **and openly admit it;** I am anxious because of my sin. **For this reason, I*** ***do not complain that my punishment and suffering are unjustified.
[20] **My enemies grow mighty; many are those who hate me without cause. **
[21] **Those rendering evil for good, **who repay the good I did for them with hostility, **despise me because I pursue goodness. **The** **word *yistenuni* encompasses both hatred and accusation. It is** **not uncommon behavior for beneficiaries of aid to turn against their benefactors rather than show gratitude.
[22] **Do not forsake me, Lord. My God, do not distance Yourself from me. **
[23] **Make haste to help me, Lord, my salvation. **
Version: The Steinsaltz Tanakh - English
Source: https://korenpub.com/collections/the-steinsaltz-tanakh/products/steinsaltz-tanakh
License: Copyright: Steinsaltz Center