Psalm 38

Old Saxony L.M. (Cyriacus Spangenberg, Christliches Gesangbüchlein, 1568)

1 In wrath do not rebuke me, LORD,
or in your anger chasten me.
2 Your arrows deeply pierce my soul;
your hand lies on me heavily.

3 Because your anger rests on me,
my body has no health within;
There is no soundness in my bones,
because you judge me for my sin.

4 My guilt has overwhelmed my soul;
its burden is a crushing weight.
5 My wounds are foul and festering,
because my foolishness is great.

6 I am bowed down, I am brought low,
and I go mourning all the day.
7 My back is filled with searing pain,
and my whole body wastes away.

8 I’m feeble and completely crushed;
in anguish of my heart I groan.
9 Lord, my desires before you lie;
to you my sighing is well known.

10 My heart beats wildly, strength has failed,
the light has faded from my eye.
11 My friends and neighbors keep away;
they see my wounds and then pass by.

12 My enemies who seek my life
with cunning set their snares for me;
My foes conspire to do me harm,
and all day long plot treachery.

13 I’m like the deaf, who cannot hear,
and like the mute, who cannot cry.
14 I’m like a man who hears no sound,
whose mouth can offer no reply.

15 I wait for you, O Lord my God;
and you, O LORD, will answer me.
16 I prayed to you, “If my foot slips,
let them not gloat exultantly.”

17 Indeed I am about to fall;
my pain is ever deep within.
18 I must confess iniquity,
and I am troubled by my sin.

19 My foes are vigorous and strong;
and many hate me wrongfully.
20 My good with evil they repay;
when I seek good, they slander me.

21 O LORD, do not abandon me;
do not be far from me, my God.
22 Come quickly to deliver me
because you are my Savior, Lord.

Sing Psalms