BOOK 19 OF 66 · WISDOM & POETRY · KING JAMES BIBLE

Psalms 38

Psalms book home•Chapter 38 of 150•22 verses

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Psalms 38 Overview

David describes God's chastening, overwhelming iniquity, bodily suffering, abandonment, and hostile watchers, yet confesses sin and waits for God.

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38Chapter

22Verses

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Before you read Psalms 38

Coming from

Psalm 37 centered on do not fret over temporary prosperity of evildoers. Psalms is an anthology rather than a continuous chronological story, so the connection here is canonical and thematic.

In this chapter

David describes God's chastening, overwhelming iniquity, bodily suffering, abandonment, and hostile watchers, yet confesses sin and waits for God.

Leads into

Psalm 39 turns to learning the brevity of life before god, continuing the Psalter’s arranged movement without requiring that the two psalms describe consecutive historical events.

Key understandingExplore deeper

Psalm 38 belongs to Book I of the Psalter (Psalms 1–41). The psalm does connect David's suffering with his sin, but it must not be turned into a rule that every illness proves a specific personal sin.

Major truths in this chapterExplore deeper

Central truth

A penitential lament under guilt, sickness, and enemies.

Penitential truth

In Psalm 38, the right response to recognized sin is honest confession and appeal to God’s mercy, not self-justification.

Lament truth

In Psalm 38, biblical faith brings grief, fear, confusion, and need directly to God rather than hiding them.

Connections to the rest of ScriptureExplore deeper

Penitential connection

2 Samuel 12 gives the historical setting for David’s confession after Nathan’s rebuke. This connection helps frame Psalm 38.

Lament connection

Hebrews 4:15-16 invites believers to come boldly for mercy and grace in need. This connection helps frame Psalm 38.

What is clear, and where care is neededExplore deeper

Keep penitential in context

Confession and repentance in Psalm 38 concern honest response to sin; do not turn them into works added to faith as conditions for receiving eternal life.

Keep lament in context

Do not mistake every anguished sentence in Psalm 38 for the psalmist’s settled theological conclusion; lament often voices how the crisis feels before faith answers it.

Read Psalms 38 watching for…

arrows and hand.

iniquities over head.

wounds and mourning.

friends afar.

confess and hope.

Chapter outline2 sections

1-11David describes suffering, guilt, weakness, and mourning under God’s chastening 12-22Enemies threaten, but David confesses sin and pleads for God not to forsake him

A Psalm of David, to bring to remembrance.O LORD, rebuke me not in thy wrath: neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure.

For thine arrows stick fast in me, and thy hand presseth me sore.

There is no soundness in my flesh because of thine anger; neither is there any rest in my bones because of my sin.

For mine iniquities are gone over mine head: as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me.

My wounds stink and are corrupt because of my foolishness.

I am troubled; I am bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day long.

For my loins are filled with a loathsome disease: and there is no soundness in my flesh.

I am feeble and sore broken: I have roared by reason of the disquietness of my heart.

Lord, all my desire is before thee; and my groaning is not hid from thee.

My heart panteth, my strength faileth me: as for the light of mine eyes, it also is gone from me.

My lovers and my friends stand aloof from my sore; and my kinsmen stand afar off.

They also that seek after my life lay snares for me: and they that seek my hurt speak mischievous things, and imagine deceits all the day long.

But I, as a deaf man, heard not; and I was as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth.

Thus I was as a man that heareth not, and in whose mouth are no reproofs.

For in thee, O LORD, do I hope: thou wilt hear, O Lord my God.

For I said, Hear me, lest otherwise they should rejoice over me: when my foot slippeth, they magnify themselves against me.

For I am ready to halt, and my sorrow is continually before me.

For I will declare mine iniquity; I will be sorry for my sin.

But mine enemies are lively, and they are strong: and they that hate me wrongfully are multiplied.

They also that render evil for good are mine adversaries; because I follow the thing that good is.

Forsake me not, O LORD: O my God, be not far from me.

Make haste to help me, O Lord my salvation.

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Psalms 38:14

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