You have removed my beloved and my friend; darkness is my closest companion. You have removedThe phrase "You have removed" suggests an active intervention by God in the psalmist's life. The Hebrew root for "removed" is "rachaq," which conveys a sense of distance or separation. This word choice emphasizes the psalmist's feeling of divine abandonment, a theme that resonates throughout Psalm 88. Historically, this reflects the ancient Near Eastern understanding of divine sovereignty, where God is seen as actively involved in the affairs of individuals, sometimes in ways that are difficult to understand. The psalmist's lament is a raw expression of faith, acknowledging God's power even in moments of profound loss. my beloved and my friend
The terms "my beloved and my friend" highlight the depth of personal relationships that have been lost. In Hebrew, "beloved" is "dod," often used to describe intimate, affectionate relationships, while "friend" is "rea," indicating companionship and loyalty. The loss of these relationships underscores the psalmist's isolation and despair. In the broader biblical context, these terms remind us of the importance of community and fellowship, which are central to the human experience and to the life of faith. The psalmist's lament can inspire believers to cherish and nurture their relationships, recognizing them as gifts from God. darkness
The word "darkness" is translated from the Hebrew "choshek," which can denote both physical darkness and metaphorical gloom or despair. In the ancient world, darkness was often associated with chaos, danger, and the unknown. Here, it symbolizes the psalmist's overwhelming sense of hopelessness and the absence of divine light or guidance. This imagery is powerful, as it contrasts with the biblical theme of God as light (e.g., Psalm 27:1). The psalmist's experience of darkness invites believers to seek God's presence even when He seems distant, trusting that His light can penetrate the deepest gloom. is my closest companion
The phrase "is my closest companion" conveys a sense of intimacy and inevitability. The Hebrew word for "companion" is "mow'ed," which can also mean an appointed time or place, suggesting that the psalmist feels trapped in a divinely ordained season of suffering. This expression of companionship with darkness is poignant, as it reflects the psalmist's resignation to his circumstances. In the broader scriptural narrative, this verse serves as a reminder that even in the darkest times, God is present and sovereign. It encourages believers to hold onto faith, knowing that God can transform seasons of darkness into opportunities for growth and deeper reliance on Him. Persons / Places / Events 1. The Psalmist (Heman the Ezrahite)The author of Psalm 88, traditionally identified as Heman the Ezrahite, a wise man and a musician in the time of King David. He is known for his deep lament and expression of despair in this psalm. 2. GodThe psalmist addresses God directly, expressing feelings of abandonment and isolation, attributing his circumstances to God's actions. 3. Beloved and FriendThese terms refer to the psalmist's close relationships, which he feels have been severed, leaving him in isolation. 4. DarknessSymbolic of the psalmist's emotional and spiritual state, representing despair, loneliness, and the absence of hope. 5. The Place of Darkness (Sheol)While not explicitly mentioned in this verse, the context of the psalm includes references to Sheol, the realm of the dead, highlighting the depth of the psalmist's despair. Teaching Points The Reality of SufferingSuffering is a real and profound part of the human experience, and the Bible does not shy away from expressing it honestly. The Importance of LamentLament is a valid and necessary form of prayer, allowing believers to bring their deepest pains and questions before God. God's Presence in DarknessEven when God feels distant, He is present in our darkest moments, and our cries do not go unheard. Community and IsolationThe loss of community and friendship can deepen our sense of isolation, reminding us of the importance of supporting one another in times of trial. Hope Beyond DespairWhile the psalm ends in darkness, the broader biblical account assures us of hope and redemption through Christ. Bible Study Questions 1. How does the psalmist's expression of isolation in Psalm 88:18 resonate with your own experiences of loneliness or abandonment? 2. In what ways can the practice of lament, as seen in this psalm, be incorporated into your personal prayer life? 3. How do other biblical figures, such as Job or Jeremiah, provide insight into dealing with feelings of despair and abandonment? 4. What role does community play in helping us navigate times of darkness, and how can you be a source of support for others? 5. How does the hope of redemption through Christ provide a counterbalance to the despair expressed in Psalm 88:18, and how can this hope be applied in your life today? Connections to Other Scriptures Job's Lament Similar to Job's expressions of suffering and feelings of abandonment by friends and God, highlighting the universal experience of human suffering and the struggle to understand God's purposes. Lamentations The themes of darkness and isolation resonate with the book of Lamentations, where the author mourns the destruction of Jerusalem and the perceived absence of God. Jesus' Cry on the Cross The feeling of abandonment expressed by the psalmist can be connected to Jesus' cry on the cross, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" illustrating the depth of human suffering and the ultimate identification of Christ with our pain. People Abaddon, Ethan, Heman, Korah, Mahalath, PsalmistPlaces JerusalemTopics Acquaintance, Acquaintances, Associate, Caused, Closest, Companion, Companions, Darkness, Dear, Ethan, Ezrahite, Familiar, Friend, Friends, Hast, Loved, Lover, Lovers, Maschil, Memory, Ones, Psalm, Removed, ShunDictionary of Bible Themes Psalm 88:18 5689 friendlessness
5901 loneliness Psalm 88:1-18 5831 depression
8613 prayer, persistence Psalm 88:3-18 5265 complaints Psalm 88:14-18 8672 striving with God Psalm 88:15-18 9614 hope, results of absence 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 88:18 NIVPsalm 88:18 NLTPsalm 88:18 ESVPsalm 88:18 NASBPsalm 88:18 KJV
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