O LORD, the God of my salvation, day and night I cry out before You. O LORDThe term "LORD" in this context is derived from the Hebrew "YHWH," the sacred and personal name of God revealed to Moses in the burning bush ( Exodus 3:14). This name signifies God's eternal existence and His covenantal faithfulness to His people. In the context of Psalm 88, the psalmist is invoking the personal and covenant-keeping nature of God, emphasizing a deep, personal relationship and trust in God's character, even amidst profound distress. the God of my salvation
The Hebrew word for "salvation" is "yeshuah," which denotes deliverance, rescue, or safety. This phrase acknowledges God as the ultimate source of deliverance, both physically and spiritually. Historically, this reflects the Israelites' understanding of God as their deliverer from Egypt and their protector throughout their history. For Christians, this phrase also foreshadows the ultimate salvation through Jesus Christ, who is seen as the fulfillment of God's promise of salvation. day and night
This phrase indicates the psalmist's continual and persistent prayer. In the Hebrew culture, "day and night" signifies an unceasing action, reflecting the psalmist's desperation and earnestness in seeking God's intervention. It underscores the depth of the psalmist's anguish and the relentless nature of his supplication, serving as a model for believers to persist in prayer, regardless of circumstances. I cry out
The Hebrew root for "cry out" is "za'aq," which conveys a loud call for help or a plea for attention. This word captures the intensity and urgency of the psalmist's prayer. It is not a mere whisper but a heartfelt, desperate plea, reflecting the psalmist's deep sense of need and dependence on God. This expression of raw emotion is a reminder that God welcomes honest and fervent prayers, even when they are filled with pain and confusion. before You
The phrase "before You" signifies coming into the presence of God. In the ancient Near Eastern context, being "before" a deity implied a direct appeal to their power and mercy. For the psalmist, it reflects an intimate and personal approach to God, trusting that He is attentive and responsive to the cries of His people. This phrase encourages believers to approach God with confidence, knowing that He is near and attentive to their prayers. Persons / Places / Events 1. The Sons of KorahThis psalm is attributed to the Sons of Korah, a group of Levitical singers in the temple. They are known for their deep and often poignant psalms. 2. Heman the EzrahiteThe psalm is specifically attributed to Heman, a wise man and musician, who is believed to have been one of the leaders of the temple music during King David's reign. 3. The TempleWhile not directly mentioned in this verse, the context of the psalm suggests a setting of worship and lamentation, likely connected to the temple where the Sons of Korah served. Teaching Points Persistent PrayerThe psalmist's cry "day and night" emphasizes the importance of persistent prayer. In times of distress, we are encouraged to continually bring our concerns before God, trusting in His timing and wisdom. God as SaviorReferring to God as "the God of my salvation" reminds us of His role as our deliverer. Even in the darkest times, we can hold onto the truth that God is our ultimate source of salvation and hope. Authentic LamentThis psalm teaches us that it is okay to express our deepest sorrows and struggles to God. Authentic lament is a form of worship that acknowledges our dependence on Him. Community in WorshipThe involvement of the Sons of Korah suggests the importance of community in worship and lament. Sharing our burdens with fellow believers can provide support and encouragement. Bible Study Questions 1. How does the psalmist's approach to prayer in Psalm 88:1 challenge or encourage your own prayer life? 2. In what ways can recognizing God as "the God of my salvation" impact your perspective during difficult times? 3. How can the practice of lament, as seen in Psalm 88:1, be incorporated into your personal or communal worship? 4. What are some practical ways you can persist in prayer, even when you feel like God is silent? 5. How can you support others in your faith community who are experiencing a season of lament, drawing from the example of the Sons of Korah? Connections to Other Scriptures Psalm 42Also attributed to the Sons of Korah, this psalm shares themes of deep longing and crying out to God, reflecting a similar emotional and spiritual struggle. 1 Samuel 2:1-10Hannah's prayer, where she cries out to God in her distress, parallels the earnest plea found in Psalm 88:1, highlighting the practice of seeking God in times of deep need. Lamentations 3:41This verse encourages lifting up our hearts and hands to God in heaven, resonating with the psalmist's cry day and night. People Abaddon, Ethan, Heman, Korah, Mahalath, PsalmistPlaces JerusalemTopics Affliction, 88, Chief, Choirmaster, Contemplation, Cried, Cry, Crying, Daily, Director, Ezrahite, Gt, Heman, Instruction, Korah, Leader, Leannoth, Lt, Mahalath, Maschil, Maskil, Music, Musician, Music-maker, Nightly, O, Overseer, Psalm, Salvation, Saves, Sickness, Song, Sons, Suffering, TuneDictionary of Bible Themes Psalm 88:1 4957 night
8620 prayer, practicalities
8653 importunity, to God Psalm 88: 5420 music
7963 song Psalm 88:1-3 5436 pain Psalm 88:1-9 5970 unhappiness Psalm 88:1-18 5831 depression
8613 prayer, persistence Library Out of the Deep of Doubt, Darkness, and Hell.
O Lord God of my salvation, I have cried day and night unto Thee. Oh! let my prayer enter into Thy presence. For my soul is full of trouble and my life draweth nigh unto Hell. Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in a place of darkness, and in the deep.--Ps. lxxxviii. 1, 2. If I go down to Hell, Thou art there also. Yea, the darkness is no darkness with Thee; but the night is as clear as the day.--Ps. cxxxix. 7, 11. I waited patiently for the Lord; and He inclined unto me, and heard my calling. …
Charles Kingsley—Out of the DeepHow to Make Use of Christ as the Truth, that we May Get Our Case and Condition Cleared up to Us.
The believer is oft complaining of darkness concerning his case and condition, so as he cannot tell what to say of himself, or what judgment to pass on himself, and he knoweth not how to win to a distinct and clear discovery of his state and condition. Now, it is truth alone, and the Truth, that can satisfy them as to this. The question then is, how they shall make use of, and apply themselves to this truth, to the end they may get the truth of their condition discovered to them. But first let us …
John Brown (of Wamphray)—Christ The Way, The Truth, and The Life How a Desolate Man Ought to Commit Himself into the Hands of God
O Lord, Holy Father, be Thou blessed now and evermore; because as Thou wilt so it is done, and what Thou doest is good. Let Thy servant rejoice in Thee, not in himself, nor in any other; because Thou alone art the true joy, Thou art my hope and my crown, Thou art my joy and my honour, O Lord. What hath Thy servant, which he received not from Thee, even without merit of his own? Thine are all things which Thou hast given, and which Thou hast made. I am poor and in misery even from my youth up,(1) …
Thomas A Kempis—Imitation of Christ Our Status.
"And he believed in the Lord: and he counted it to him for righteousness." --Gen. xv. 6. The right touches a man's status. So long as the law has not proven him guilty, has not convicted and sentenced him, his legal status is that of a free and law-abiding citizen. But as soon as his guilt is proven in court and the jury has convicted him, he passes from that into the status of the bound and law-breaking citizen. The same applies to our relation to God. Our status before God is that either of the …
Abraham Kuyper—The Work of the Holy Spirit His Past Work.
His past work was accomplished by Him when he became incarnate. It was finished when He died on Calvary's cross. We have therefore to consider first of all these fundamentals of our faith. I. The Work of the Son of God is foreshadowed and predicted in the Old Testament Scriptures. II. The incarnation of the Son of God. III. His Work on the cross and what has been accomplished by it. I. Through the Old Testament Scriptures, God announced beforehand the work of His Son. This is a great theme and one …
A. C. Gaebelein—The Work Of Christ How is Christ, as the Life, to be Applied by a Soul that Misseth God's Favour and Countenance.
The sixth case, that we shall speak a little to, is a deadness, occasioned by the Lord's hiding of himself, who is their life, and "the fountain of life," Ps. xxxvi. 9, and "whose loving-kindness is better than life," Ps. lxiii. 3, and "in whose favour is their life," Ps. xxx. 5. A case, which the frequent complaints of the saints manifest to be rife enough, concerning which we shall, 1. Shew some of the consequences of the Lord's hiding his face, whereby the soul's case will appear. 2. Shew the …
John Brown (of Wamphray)—Christ The Way, The Truth, and The Life Letter xvi to Rainald, Abbot of Foigny
To Rainald, Abbot of Foigny Bernard declares to him how little he loves praise; that the yoke of Christ is light; that he declines the name of father, and is content with that of brother. 1. In the first place, do not wonder if titles of honour affright me, when I feel myself so unworthy of the honours themselves; and if it is fitting that you should give them to me, it is not expedient for me to accept them. For if you think that you ought to observe that saying, In honour preferring one another …
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux—Some Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux Letter xxiv (Circa A. D. 1126) to Oger, Regular Canon
To Oger, Regular Canon [34] Bernard blames him for his resignation of his pastoral charge, although made from the love of a calm and pious life. None the less, he instructs him how, after becoming a private person, he ought to live in community. To Brother Oger, the Canon, Brother Bernard, monk but sinner, wishes that he may walk worthily of God even to the end, and embraces him with the fullest affection. 1. If I seem to have been too slow in replying to your letter, ascribe it to my not having …
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux—Some Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux The Wrath of God
What does every sin deserve? God's wrath and curse, both in this life, and in that which is to come. Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire.' Matt 25: 41. Man having sinned, is like a favourite turned out of the king's favour, and deserves the wrath and curse of God. He deserves God's curse. Gal 3: 10. As when Christ cursed the fig-tree, it withered; so, when God curses any, he withers in his soul. Matt 21: 19. God's curse blasts wherever it comes. He deserves also God's wrath, which is …
Thomas Watson—The Ten Commandments Period ii. The Church from the Permanent Division of the Empire Until the Collapse of the Western Empire and the First Schism Between the East and the West, or Until About A. D. 500
In the second period of the history of the Church under the Christian Empire, the Church, although existing in two divisions of the Empire and experiencing very different political fortunes, may still be regarded as forming a whole. The theological controversies distracting the Church, although different in the two halves of the Graeco-Roman world, were felt to some extent in both divisions of the Empire and not merely in the one in which they were principally fought out; and in the condemnation …
Joseph Cullen Ayer Jr., Ph.D.—A Source Book for Ancient Church History Sense in Which, and End for which all Things were Delivered to the Incarnate Son.
For whereas man sinned, and is fallen, and by his fall all things are in confusion: death prevailed from Adam to Moses (cf. Rom. v. 14), the earth was cursed, Hades was opened, Paradise shut, Heaven offended, man, lastly, corrupted and brutalised (cf. Ps. xlix. 12), while the devil was exulting against us;--then God, in His loving-kindness, not willing man made in His own image to perish, said, Whom shall I send, and who will go?' (Isa. vi. 8). But while all held their peace, the Son [441] said, …
Athanasius—Select Works and Letters or Athanasius 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 Links Psalm 88:1 NIVPsalm 88:1 NLTPsalm 88:1 ESVPsalm 88:1 NASBPsalm 88:1 KJV
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