◄ Psalm 77:4 ►
You have kept my eyes from closing; I am too troubled to speak.
Study Bible
You have kept
The phrase "You have kept" suggests an active involvement by God in the psalmist's life. The Hebrew root for "kept" is "שָׁמַר" (shamar), which means to guard, watch over, or preserve. This indicates that God is not passive but is actively engaged in the psalmist's circumstances. Historically, this reflects the belief in God's sovereignty and His intimate involvement in the lives of His people, a theme prevalent throughout the Psalms.

my eyes from closing
The imagery of "my eyes from closing" conveys a state of sleeplessness or restlessness. In the Hebrew context, sleep is often associated with peace and divine blessing (Psalm 127:2). The inability to sleep suggests a deep spiritual or emotional turmoil. This phrase can be seen as a metaphor for the psalmist's ongoing distress and vigilance, unable to find rest due to the weight of his troubles.

I am too troubled
The phrase "I am too troubled" reflects an intense emotional state. The Hebrew word for "troubled" is "נִפְעַם" (nif'am), which can mean disturbed or agitated. This word choice indicates a profound inner turmoil, a common experience for believers facing trials. It underscores the human condition of grappling with anxiety and distress, yet it also points to the psalmist's awareness of his need for divine intervention.

to speak
The inability "to speak" signifies a depth of anguish that leaves the psalmist speechless. In biblical times, speech was a primary means of expressing one's heart and mind. The Hebrew culture placed great importance on verbal expression, whether in prayer, lament, or praise. The psalmist's silence here is not just a lack of words but a profound expression of his overwhelmed spirit, highlighting the severity of his plight and his reliance on God to understand his unspoken pain.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Asaph
The author of Psalm 77, Asaph was a prominent Levite singer and seer in David's court, known for his deep and reflective psalms.

2. Israel
The nation often represented in the Psalms, experiencing various trials and tribulations, which are reflected in the psalmist's laments and prayers.

3. God
The central figure in the psalm, who is both the source of the psalmist's distress and the ultimate hope for deliverance.
Teaching Points
The Reality of Sleepless Nights
Many believers experience sleepless nights due to anxiety or distress. This is a common human experience, even among the faithful.

The Power of Lament
Lamenting before God is a biblical practice. It is an honest expression of our struggles and a way to seek God's presence and comfort.

God's Sovereignty in Our Distress
Even when we are too troubled to speak, God is aware of our situation. Trusting in His sovereignty can bring peace amidst turmoil.

Prayer as a Response to Distress
When words fail us, prayer can be a powerful response. The Holy Spirit intercedes for us, even when we cannot articulate our needs.

Community Support
Sharing our burdens with fellow believers can provide comfort and support. The church community is a vital resource in times of distress.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the experience of sleeplessness in Psalm 77:4 relate to your own life, and how can you find comfort in God's presence during such times?

2. In what ways can the practice of lament, as seen in Psalm 77, deepen your relationship with God?

3. How does understanding God's sovereignty help you cope with situations where you feel too troubled to speak?

4. Reflect on a time when prayer brought you peace during a difficult situation. How can you incorporate prayer more consistently in your life?

5. How can you support others in your community who may be experiencing similar distress, and what role does the church play in providing that support?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Psalm 6:6
This verse also speaks of sleeplessness and distress, showing a common theme of seeking God in times of trouble.

Lamentations 2:18-19
These verses describe crying out to God in the night, similar to the psalmist's experience of being too troubled to speak.

Job 7:4
Job's expression of sleeplessness and turmoil parallels the psalmist's experience, highlighting the universal nature of human suffering and the search for divine intervention.
Sermons
Occupations for Sleepless NightsR. Tuck Psalm 77:4
Refuge in God's UnchangeablenessC. Short Psalm 77:1-15
From Darkness to DawnS. Conway Psalm 77:1-20
God's Ear Open to the Cry of the NeedyJ. C. Ryle.Psalm 77:1-20
The Faculty of Human ThoughtHomilistPsalm 77:1-20
People
Aaron, Asaph, Jacob, Jeduthun, Joseph, Psalmist
Places
Jerusalem
Topics
Can't, Closing, Disquiet, Eyelids, Fast, Full, Hast, Held, Hold, Holdest, Lids, Moved, Open, Sleep, Speak, Troubled, Waking, Watches, Watching
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Psalm 77:4

     5057   rest, physical

Psalm 77:1-9

     5567   suffering, emotional

Library
June the Eleventh the Path Across the Sea
"Thy way is in the sea." --PSALM lxxvii. 11-20. And the sea appears to be the most trackless of worlds! The sea is the very symbol of mystery, the grim dwelling-house of innumerable things that have been lost. But God's way moves here and there across this trackless wild. God is never lost among our mysteries. He knows his way about. When we are bewildered He sees the road, and He sees the end even from the beginning. Even the sea, in every part of it, is the Lord's highway. When His way is in …
John Henry Jowett—My Daily Meditation for the Circling Year

A Question for a Questioner
The question which makes our text is meant to end other questions. You may carry truth as far as ever you like, and it will always be truth. Truth is like those crystals which, when split up into the smallest possible fragments, still retain their natural form. You may break truth in pieces, you may do what you like with it, and it is truth throughout; but error is diverse within itself, and evermore bears its own death within itself. You can see its falsehood even in its own light. Bring it forward, …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 31: 1885

Ere Another Step I Take
"I commune with mine own heart." -- Psalm 77:6. Ere another step I take In my wilful wandering way, Still I have a choice to make -- Shall I alter while I may? Patient love is waiting still In my Savior's heart for me; Love to bend my froward will, Love to make me really free. Far from Him, what can I gain? Want and shame, and bondage vile -- Better far to bear the pain Of His yoke a little while. Soon I might its comfort find; Soon my thankful heart might cry, "In Thy meek obedient mind, As …
Miss A. L. Waring—Hymns and Meditations

Despondency Self-Corrected. --Ps. Lxxvii.
Despondency Self-Corrected.--Ps. lxxvii. In time of tribulation, Hear, Lord, my feeble cries, With humble supplication To Thee my spirit flies: My heart with grief is breaking, Scarce can my voice complain; Mine eyes, with tears kept waking, Still watch and weep in vain. The days of old, in vision, Bring vanish'd bliss to view; The years of lost fruition Their joys in pangs renew; Remember'd songs of gladness, Through night's lone silence brought, Strike notes of deeper sadness, And stir desponding …
James Montgomery—Sacred Poems and Hymns

A Path in the Sea
'And the angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face, and stood behind them: 20. And it came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel; and it was a cloud and darkness to them, but it gave light by night to these: so that the one came not near the other all the night. 21. And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

How the Whole and the Sick are to be Admonished.
(Admonition 13.) Differently to be admonished are the whole and the sick. For the whole are to be admonished that they employ the health of the body to the health of the soul: lest, if they turn the grace of granted soundness to the use of iniquity, they be made worse by the gift, and afterwards merit the severer punishments, in that they fear not now to use amiss the more bountiful gifts of God. The whole are to be admonished that they despise not the opportunity of winning health for ever. …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great

Letter iii (A. D. 1131) to Bruno, Archbishop Elect of Cologne
To Bruno, [8] Archbishop Elect of Cologne Bernard having been consulted by Bruno as to whether he ought to accept the See of Cologne, so replies as to hold him in suspense, and render him in awe of the burden of so great a charge. He advises him to seek counsel of God in prayer. 1. You seek counsel from me, most illustrious Bruno, as to whether you ought to accept the Episcopate, to which it is desired to advance you. What mortal can presume to decide this for you? If God calls you, who can dare …
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux—Some Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux

Letter Xlii to the Illustrious Youth, Geoffrey De Perrone, and his Comrades.
To the Illustrious Youth, Geoffrey de Perrone, and His Comrades. He pronounces the youths noble because they purpose to lead the religious life, and exhorts them to perseverance. To his beloved sons, Geoffrey and his companions, Bernard, called Abbot of Clairvaux, wishes the spirit of counsel and strength. 1. The news of your conversion that has got abroad is edifying many, nay, is making glad the whole Church of God, so that The heavens rejoice and the earth is glad (Ps. xcvi. 11), and every tongue …
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux—Some Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux

Joy
'The fruit of the Spirit is joy.' Gal 5:52. The third fruit of justification, adoption, and sanctification, is joy in the Holy Ghost. Joy is setting the soul upon the top of a pinnacle - it is the cream of the sincere milk of the word. Spiritual joy is a sweet and delightful passion, arising from the apprehension and feeling of some good, whereby the soul is supported under present troubles, and fenced against future fear. I. It is a delightful passion. It is contrary to sorrow, which is a perturbation …
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

Prayer
But I give myself unto prayer.' Psa 109: 4. I shall not here expatiate upon prayer, as it will be considered more fully in the Lord's prayer. It is one thing to pray, and another thing to be given to prayer: he who prays frequently, is said to be given to prayer; as he who often distributes alms, is said to be given to charity. Prayer is a glorious ordinance, it is the soul's trading with heaven. God comes down to us by his Spirit, and we go up to him by prayer. What is prayer? It is an offering …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments

Covenant Duties.
It is here proposed to show, that every incumbent duty ought, in suitable circumstances, to be engaged to in the exercise of Covenanting. The law and covenant of God are co-extensive; and what is enjoined in the one is confirmed in the other. The proposals of that Covenant include its promises and its duties. The former are made and fulfilled by its glorious Originator; the latter are enjoined and obligatory on man. The duties of that Covenant are God's law; and the demands of the law are all made …
John Cunningham—The Ordinance of Covenanting

The Early Life of Malachy. Having Been Admitted to Holy Orders He Associates with Malchus
[Sidenote: 1095.] 1. Our Malachy, born in Ireland,[134] of a barbarous people, was brought up there, and there received his education. But from the barbarism of his birth he contracted no taint, any more than the fishes of the sea from their native salt. But how delightful to reflect, that uncultured barbarism should have produced for us so worthy[135] a fellow-citizen with the saints and member of the household of God.[136] He who brings honey out of the rock and oil out of the flinty rock[137] …
H. J. Lawlor—St. Bernard of Clairvaux's Life of St. Malachy of Armagh

Of Faith. The Definition of It. Its Peculiar Properties.
1. A brief recapitulation of the leading points of the whole discussion. The scope of this chapter. The necessity of the doctrine of faith. This doctrine obscured by the Schoolmen, who make God the object of faith, without referring to Christ. The Schoolmen refuted by various passages. 2. The dogma of implicit faith refuted. It destroys faith, which consists in a knowledge of the divine will. What this will is, and how necessary the knowledge of it. 3. Many things are and will continue to be implicitly …
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion

Psalms
The piety of the Old Testament Church is reflected with more clearness and variety in the Psalter than in any other book of the Old Testament. It constitutes the response of the Church to the divine demands of prophecy, and, in a less degree, of law; or, rather, it expresses those emotions and aspirations of the universal heart which lie deeper than any formal demand. It is the speech of the soul face to face with God. Its words are as simple and unaffected as human words can be, for it is the genius …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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