1 O lord God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee:
2 Let my prayer come before thee: incline thine ear unto my cry;
3 For my soul is full of troubles: and my life draweth nigh unto the grave.
4 I am counted with them that go down into the pit: I am as a man that hath no strength:
5 Free among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, whom thou rememberest no more: and they are cut off from thy hand.
6 Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, in the deeps.
7 Thy wrath lieth hard upon me, and thou hast afflicted me with all thy waves. Selah.
8 Thou hast put away mine acquaintance far from me; thou hast made me an abomination unto them: I am shut up, and I cannot come forth.
9 Mine eye mourneth by reason of affliction: LORD, I have called daily upon thee, I have stretched out my hands unto thee.
10 Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead? shall the dead arise and praise thee? Selah.
11 Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? or thy faithfulness in destruction?
12 Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
13 But unto thee have I cried, O LORD; and in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee.
14 LORD, why castest thou off my soul? why hidest thou thy face from me?
15 I am afflicted and ready to die from my youth up: while I suffer thy terrors I am distracted.
16 Thy fierce wrath goeth over me; thy terrors have cut me off.
17 They came round about me daily like water; they compassed me about together.
18 Lover and friend hast thou put far from me, and mine acquaintance into darkness.
1 [[A Song H7892 or Psalm H4210 for the sons H1121 of Korah, H7141 to the chief Musician H5329 upon Mahalath H4257 Leannoth, H6031 Maschil H4905 of Heman H1968 the Ezrahite.]] H250 O LORD H3068 God H430 of my salvation, H3444 I have cried H6817 day H3117 and night H3915 before thee:
2 Let my prayer H8605 come H935 before H6440 thee: incline H5186 thine ear H241 unto my cry; H7440
3 For my soul H5315 is full H7646 of troubles: H7451 and my life H2416 draweth nigh H5060 unto the grave. H7585
4 I am counted H2803 with them that go down H3381 into the pit: H953 I am as a man H1397 that hath no strength: H353
5 Free H2670 among the dead, H4191 like the slain H2491 that lie H7901 in the grave, H6913 whom thou rememberest H2142 no more: and they are cut off H1504 from thy hand. H3027
6 Thou hast laid H7896 me in the lowest H8482 pit, H953 in darkness, H4285 in the deeps. H4688
7 Thy wrath H2534 lieth hard H5564 upon me, and thou hast afflicted H6031 me with all thy waves. H4867 Selah. H5542
8 Thou hast put away H7368 mine acquaintance H3045 far H7368 from me; thou hast made H7896 me an abomination H8441 unto them: I am shut up, H3607 and I cannot come forth. H3318
9 Mine eye H5869 mourneth H1669 by reason of affliction: H6040 LORD, H3068 I have called H7121 daily H3117 upon thee, I have stretched out H7849 my hands H3709 unto thee.
10 Wilt thou shew H6213 wonders H6382 to the dead? H4191 shall the dead H7496 arise H6965 and praise H3034 thee? Selah. H5542
11 Shall thy lovingkindness H2617 be declared H5608 in the grave? H6913 or thy faithfulness H530 in destruction? H11
12 Shall thy wonders H6382 be known H3045 in the dark? H2822 and thy righteousness H6666 in the land H776 of forgetfulness? H5388
13 But unto thee have I cried, H7768 O LORD; H3068 and in the morning H1242 shall my prayer H8605 prevent H6923 thee.
14 LORD, H3068 why castest thou off H2186 my soul? H5315 why hidest H5641 thou thy face H6440 from me?
15 I am afflicted H6041 and ready to die H1478 from my youth H5290 up: while I suffer H5375 thy terrors H367 I am distracted. H6323
16 Thy fierce wrath H2740 goeth over H5674 me; thy terrors H1161 have cut me off. H6789
17 They came round about H5437 me daily H3117 like water; H4325 they compassed H5362 me about together. H3162
18 Lover H157 and friend H7453 hast thou put far H7368 from me, and mine acquaintance H3045 into darkness. H4285
1 O Jehovah, the God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee.
2 Let my prayer enter into thy presence; Incline thine ear unto my cry.
3 For my soul is full of troubles, And my life draweth nigh unto Sheol.
4 I am reckoned with them that go down into the pit; I am as a man that hath no help,
5 Cast off among the dead, Like the slain that lie in the grave, Whom thou rememberest no more, And they are cut off from thy hand.
6 Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, In dark places, in the deeps.
7 Thy wrath lieth hard upon me, And thou hast afflicted me with all thy waves. Selah
8 Thou hast put mine acquaintance far from me; Thou hast made me an abomination unto them: I am shut up, and I cannot come forth.
9 Mine eye wasteth away by reason of affliction: I have called daily upon thee, O Jehovah; I have spread forth my hands unto thee.
10 Wilt thou show wonders to the dead? Shall they that are decreased arise and praise thee? Selah
11 Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? Or thy faithfulness in Destruction?
12 Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? And thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
13 But unto thee, O Jehovah, have I cried; And in the morning shall my prayer come before thee.
14 Jehovah, why castest thou off my soul? Why hidest thou thy face from me?
15 I am afflicted and ready to die from my youth up: While I suffer thy terrors I am distracted.
16 Thy fierce wrath is gone over me; Thy terrors have cut me off.
17 They came round about me like water all the day long; They compassed me about together.
18 Lover and friend hast thou put far from me, And mine acquaintance into darkness. Psalm 89 Maschil of Ethan the Ezrahite.
1 A Song, a Psalm, by sons of Korah, to the Overseer, `Concerning the Sickness of Afflictions.' -- An instruction, by Heman the Ezrahite. O Jehovah, God of my salvation, Daily I have cried, nightly before Thee,
2 My prayer cometh in before Thee, Incline Thine ear to my loud cry,
3 For my soul hath been full of evils, And my life hath come to Sheol.
4 I have been reckoned with those going down `to' the pit, I have been as a man without strength.
5 Among the dead -- free, As pierced ones lying in the grave, Whom Thou hast not remembered any more, Yea, they by Thy hand have been cut off.
6 Thou hast put me in the lowest pit, In dark places, in depths.
7 Upon me hath Thy fury lain, And `with' all Thy breakers Thou hast afflicted. Selah.
8 Thou hast put mine acquaintance far from me, Thou hast made me an abomination to them, Shut up -- I go not forth.
9 Mine eye hath grieved because of affliction, I called Thee, O Jehovah, all the day, I have spread out unto Thee my hands.
10 To the dead dost Thou do wonders? Do Rephaim rise? do they thank Thee? Selah.
11 Is Thy kindness recounted in the grave? Thy faithfulness in destruction?
12 Are Thy wonders known in the darkness? And Thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
13 And I, unto Thee, O Jehovah, I have cried, And in the morning doth my prayer come before Thee.
14 Why, O Jehovah, castest Thou off my soul? Thou hidest Thy face from me.
15 I `am' afflicted, and expiring from youth, I have borne Thy terrors -- I pine away.
16 Over me hath Thy wrath passed, Thy terrors have cut me off,
17 They have surrounded me as waters all the day, They have gone round against me together,
18 Thou hast put far from me lover and friend, Mine acquaintance `is' the place of darkness!
1 {A Song, a Psalm for the sons of Korah. To the chief Musician. Upon Mahalath Leannoth. An instruction. Of Heman the Ezrahite.} Jehovah, God of my salvation, I have cried by day [and] in the night before thee.
2 Let my prayer come before thee; incline thine ear unto my cry.
3 For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draweth nigh to Sheol.
4 I am reckoned with them that go down into the pit; I am as a man that hath no strength:
5 Prostrate among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave; whom thou rememberest no more, and who are cut off from thy hand.
6 Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in dark places, in the deeps.
7 Thy fury lieth hard upon me, and thou hast afflicted [me] with all thy waves. Selah.
8 Thou hast put my familiar friends far from me; thou hast made me an abomination unto them: I am shut up, and I cannot come forth.
9 Mine eye consumeth by reason of affliction. Upon thee, Jehovah, have I called every day; I have stretched out my hands unto thee.
10 Wilt thou do wonders to the dead? shall the shades arise and praise thee? Selah.
11 Shall thy loving-kindness be declared in the grave? thy faithfulness in Destruction?
12 Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
13 But as for me, Jehovah, I cry unto thee, and in the morning my prayer cometh before thee.
14 Why, O Jehovah, castest thou off my soul? [why] hidest thou thy face from me?
15 I am afflicted and expiring from my youth up; I suffer thy terrors, [and] I am distracted.
16 Thy fierce anger hath gone over me; thy terrors have brought me to nought:
17 They have surrounded me all the day like water; they have compassed me about together.
18 Lover and associate hast thou put far from me: my familiar friends are darkness.
1 > Yahweh, the God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before you.
2 Let my prayer enter into your presence. Turn your ear to my cry.
3 For my soul is full of troubles. My life draws near to Sheol.
4 I am counted among those who go down into the pit. I am like a man who has no help,
5 Set apart among the dead, Like the slain who lie in the grave, Whom you remember no more. They are cut off from your hand.
6 You have laid me in the lowest pit, In the darkest depths.
7 Your wrath lies heavily on me. You have afflicted me with all your waves. Selah.
8 You have taken my friends from me. You have made me an abomination to them. I am confined, and I can't escape.
9 My eyes are dim from grief. I have called on you daily, Yahweh. I have spread out my hands to you.
10 Do you show wonders to the dead? Do the dead rise up and praise you? Selah.
11 Is your loving kindness declared in the grave? Or your faithfulness in Destruction?
12 Are your wonders made known in the dark? Or your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
13 But to you, Yahweh, I have cried. In the morning, my prayer comes before you.
14 Yahweh, why do you reject my soul? Why do you hide your face from me?
15 I am afflicted and ready to die from my youth up. While I suffer your terrors, I am distracted.
16 Your fierce wrath has gone over me. Your terrors have cut me off.
17 They came around me like water all day long. They completely engulfed me.
18 You have put lover and friend far from me, And my friends into darkness.
1 <A Song. A Psalm. Of the sons of Korah. To the chief music-maker; put to Mahalath Leannoth. Maschil. Of Heman the Ezrahite.> O Lord, God of my salvation, I have been crying to you for help by day and by night:
2 Let my prayer come before you; give ear to my cry:
3 For my soul is full of evils, and my life has come near to the underworld.
4 I am numbered among those who go down into the earth; I have become like a man for whom there is no help:
5 My soul is among the dead, like those in the underworld, to whom you give no more thought; for they are cut off from your care.
6 You have put me in the lowest deep, even in dark places.
7 The weight of your wrath is crushing me, all your waves have overcome me. (Selah.)
8 You have sent my friends far away from me; you have made me a disgusting thing in their eyes: I am shut up, and not able to come out.
9 My eyes are wasting away because of my trouble: Lord, my cry has gone up to you every day, my hands are stretched out to you.
10 Will you do works of wonder for the dead? will the shades come back to give you praise? (Selah.)
11 Will the story of your mercy be given in the house of the dead? will news of your faith come to the place of destruction?
12 May there be knowledge of your wonders in the dark? or of your righteousness where memory is dead?
13 But to you did I send up my cry, O Lord; in the morning my prayer came before you.
14 Lord, why have you sent away my soul? why is your face covered from me?
15 I have been troubled and in fear of death from the time when I was young; your wrath is hard on me, and I have no strength.
16 The heat of your wrath has gone over me; I am broken by your cruel punishments.
17 They are round me all the day like water; they have made a circle about me.
18 You have sent my friends and lovers far from me; I am gone from the memory of those who are dear to me.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Keil & Delitzsch Commentary » Commentary on Psalms 88
Commentary on Psalms 88 Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
Plaintive Prayer of a Patient Sufferer Like Job
Psalms 88 is as gloomy as Psalms 87:1-7 is cheerful; they stand near one another as contrasts. Not Ps 77, as the old expositors answer to the question quaenam ode omnium tristissima , but this Psalms 88 is the darkest, gloomiest, of all the plaintive Psalms; for it is true the name “God of my salvation,” with which the praying one calls upon God, and his praying itself, show that the spark of faith within him is not utterly extinguished; but as to the rest, it is all one pouring forth of deep lament in the midst of the severest conflict of temptation in the presence of death, the gloom of melancholy does not brighten up to become a hope, the Psalm dies away in Job-like lamentation. Herein we discern echoes of the Korahitic Psalms 42:1-11 and of Davidic Psalms: compare Psalms 88:3 with Psalms 18:7; Psalms 88:5 with Psalms 28:1; Psalms 88:6 with Psalms 31:23; Psalms 88:18 with Psalms 22:17.; v. 19 (although differently applied) with Psalms 31:12; and more particularly the questions in Psalms 88:11-13 with Psalms 6:6, of which they are as it were only the amplification. But these Psalm-echoes are outweighed by the still more striking points of contact with the Book of Job, both as regards linguistic usage ( דּאב , Psalms 88:10, Job 14:14; רפאים , Psalms 88:11, Job 26:5; אבדּון , Psalms 88:12, Job 26:6; Job 28:22; נער , Psalms 88:16 , Job 33:25; Job 36:14; אמים , Psalms 88:16 , Job 20:25; בּעוּתים , Psalms 88:17, Job 6:4) and single thoughts (cf. Psalms 88:5 with Job 14:10; Psalms 88:9 with Job 30:10; v. 19 with Job 17:9; Job 19:14), and also the suffering condition of the poet and the whole manner in which this finds expression. For the poet finds himself in the midst of the same temptation as Job not merely so far as his mind and spirit are concerned; but his outward affliction is, according to the tenor of his complaints, the same, viz., the leprosy (Psalms 88:9), which, the disposition to which being born with him, has been his inheritance from his youth up (Psalms 88:16). Now, since the Book of Job is a Chokma-work of the Salomonic age, and the two Ezrahites belonged to the wise men of the first rank at the court of Solomon (1 Kings 4:31), it is natural to suppose that the Book of Job has sprung out of this very Chokma-company, and that perhaps this very Heman the Ezrahite who is the author of Psalms 88 has made a passage of his own life, suffering, and conflict of soul, a subject of dramatic treatment.
The inscription of the Psalm runs: A Psalm-song by the Korahites; to the Precentor, to be recited (lit., to be pressed down , not after Isaiah 27:2 : to be sung , which expresses nothing, nor: to be sung alternatingly , which is contrary to the character of the Psalm) after a sad manner (cf. Psalms 53:1) with muffled voice, a meditation by Heman the Ezrahite . This is a double inscription, the two halves of which are contradictory. The bare להימן side by side with לבני־קרח would be perfectly in order, since the precentor Heman is a Korahite according to 1 Chronicles 6:33-38; but חימן האזרחי is the name of one of the four great Israelitish sages in 1 Kings 4:31, who, according to 1 Chronicles 2:6, is a direct descendant of Zerah, and therefore is not of the tribe of Levi, but of Judah. The suppositions that Heman the Korahite had been adopted into the family of Zerah, or that Heman the Ezrahite had been admitted among the Levites, are miserable attempts to get over the difficulty. At the head of the Psalm there stand two different statements respecting its origin side by side, which are irreconcilable. The assumption that the title of the Psalm originally was either merely שׁיר מזמור לבני־קרח , or merely למנצח וגו , is warranted by the fact that only in this one Psalm למנצח does not occupy the first place in the inscriptions. But which of the two statements is the more reliable one? Most assuredly the latter; for שׁיר מזמור לבני־קרח is only a recurrent repetition of the inscription of Psalms 87:1-7. The second statement, on the other hand, by its precise designation of the melody, and by the designation of the author, which corresponds to the Psalm that follows, gives evidence of its antiquity and its historical character.
The poet finds himself in the midst of circumstances gloomy in the extreme, but he does not despair; he still turns towards Jahve with his complaints, and calls Him the God of his salvation. This actus directus of fleeing in prayer to the God of salvation, which urges its way through all that is dark and gloomy, is the fundamental characteristic of all true faith. Psalms 88:2 is not to be rendered, as a clause of itself: “by day I cry unto Thee, in the night before Thee” (lxx and Targum), which ought to have been יומם , but (as it is also pointed, especially in Baer's text): by day, i.e., in the time (Psalms 56:4; Psalms 78:42, cf. Psalms 18:1), when I cry before Thee in the night, let my prayer come... (Hitzig). In Psalms 88:3 he calls his piercing lamentation, his wailing supplication, רנּתי , as in Psalms 17:1; Psalms 61:2. הטּה as in Psalms 86:1, for which we find הט in Psalms 17:6. The Beth of בּרעות , as in Psalms 65:5; Lamentations 3:15, Lamentations 3:30, denotes that of which his soul has already had abundantly sufficient. On Psalms 88:4 , cf. as to the syntax Psalms 31:11. איל ( ἅπαξ λεγομ . like אילוּת , Psalms 22:20) signifies succinctness, compactness, vigorousness ( ἁδρότης ): he is like a man from whom all vital freshness and vigour is gone, therefore now only like the shadow of a man, in fact like one already dead. חפשׁי , in Psalms 88:6 , the lxx renders ἐν νεκροῖς ἐλεύθερος (Symmachus, ἀφεὶς ἐλεύθερος ); and in like manner the Targum, and the Talmud which follows it in formulating the proposition that a deceased person is חפשׁי מן חמצוות , free from the fulfilling of the precepts of the Law (cf. Romans 6:7). Hitzig, Ewald, Köster, and Böttcher, on the contrary, explain it according to Ezekiel 27:20 (where חפשׁ signifies stragulum ): among the dead is my couch ( חפשׁי = יצועי , Job 17:13). But in respect of Job 3:19 the adjectival rendering is the more probable; “one set free among the dead” (lxx) is equivalent to one released from the bond of life (Job 39:5), somewhat as in Latin a dead person is called defunctus . God does not remember the dead, i.e., practically, inasmuch as, devoid of any progressive history, their condition remains always the same; they are in fact cut away ( נגזר as in Psalms 31:23; Lamentations 3:54; Isaiah 53:8) from the hand, viz., from the guiding and helping hand, of God. Their dwelling-place is the pit of the places lying deep beneath (cf. on תּחתּיּות , Psalms 63:10; Psalms 86:13; Ezekiel 26:20, and more particularly Lamentations 3:55), the dark regions ( מחשׁכּים as in Psalms 143:3, Lamentations 3:6), the submarine depths ( בּמצלות ; lxx, Symmachus, the Syriac, etc.: ἐν σκιᾷ θανάτου = בצלמות , according to Job 10:21 and frequently, but contrary to Lamentations 3:54), whose open abyss is the grave for each one. On Psalms 88:8 cf. Psalms 42:8. The Mugrash by כל־משׁבריך stamps it as an adverbial accusative (Targum), or more correctly, since the expression is not עניתני , as the object placed in advance. Only those who are not conversant with the subject (as Hupfeld in this instance) imagine that the accentuation marks ענּית as a relative clause (cf. on the contrary Psalms 8:7 , Psalms 21:3 , etc.). ענּה , to bow down, press down; here used of the turning or directing downwards (lxx ἐπήγαγες ) of the waves, which burst like a cataract over the afflicted one.
The octastichs are now followed by hexastichs which belong together in pairs. The complaint concerning the alienation of his nearest relations sounds like Job 19:13., but the same strain is also frequently heard in the earlier Psalms written in times of suffering, e.g., Psalms 31:9. He is forsaken by all his familiar friends (not: acquaintances, for מידּע signifies more than that), he is alone in the dungeon of wretchedness, where no one comes near him, and whence he cannot make his escape. This sounds, according to Lev. 13, very much like the complaint of a leper. The Book of Leviticus there passes over from the uncleanness attending the beginning of human life to the uncleanness of the most terrible disease. Disease is the middle stage between birth and death, and, according to the Eastern notion, leprosy is the worst of all diseases, it is death itself clinging to the still living man (Numbers 12:12), and more than all other evils a stroke of the chastening hand of God ( נגע ), a scourge of God ( צרעת ). The man suspected of having leprosy was to be subjected to a seven days' quarantine until the determination of the priest's diagnosis; and if the leprosy was confirmed, he was to dwell apart outside the camp (Leviticus 13:46), where, though not imprisoned, he was nevertheless separated from his dwelling and his family (cf. Job , at Job 19:19), and if a man of position, would feel himself condemned to a state of involuntary retirement. It is natural to refer the כּלא , which is closely connected with שׁתּני , to this separation. עיני , Psalms 88:10, instead of עיני , as in Psalms 6:8; Psalms 31:10 : his eye has languished, vanished away ( דּאב of the same root as tābescere , cognate with the root of דּונג , Psalms 68:3), in consequence of (his) affliction. He calls and calls upon Jahve, stretches out ( שׁטּח , expandere , according to the Arabic, more especially after the manner of a roof) his hands ( palmas ) towards Him, in order to shield himself from His wrath and to lead Him compassionately to give ear to him. In Psalms 88:11-13 he bases his cry for help upon a twofold wish, viz., to become an object of the miraculous help of God, and to be able to praise Him for it. Neither of these wishes would be realized if he were to die; for that which lies beyond this life is uniform darkness, devoid of any progressive history. With מתים alternates רפאים (sing. רפא ), the relaxed ones, i.e., shades ( σκιαὶ ) of the nether world. With reference to יודוּ instead of להודות , vid., Ewald, §337, b. Beside חשׁך (Job 10:21.) stands ארץ נשׁיּה , the land of forgetfulness ( λήθη ), where there is an end of all thinking, feeling, and acting (Ecclesiastes 9:5-6, Ecclesiastes 9:10), and where the monotony of death, devoid of thought and recollection, reigns. Such is the representation given in the Old Testament of the state beyond the present, even in Ecclesiastes, and in the Apocrypha (Sir. 17:27f. after Isaiah 38:18.; Baruch 2:17f.); and it was obliged to be thus represented, for in the New Testament not merely the conception of the state after death, but this state itself, is become a different one.
He who complains thus without knowing any comfort, and yet without despairing, gathers himself up afresh for prayer. With ואני he contrasts himself with the dead who are separated from God's manifestation of love. Being still in life, although under wrath that apparently has no end, he strains every nerve to struggle through in prayer until he shall reach God's love. His complaints are petitions, for they are complaints that are poured forth before God. The destiny under which for a long time he has been more like one dying than living, reaches back even into his youth. מנּער (since נער is everywhere undeclined) is equivalent to מנּערי . The ἐξηπορήθην of the lxx is the right indicator for the understanding of the ἅπαξ λ.ε.γ . אפוּנה . Aben-Ezra and Kimchi derive it from פּן , like עלה from על ,
(Note: The derivation is not contrary to the genius of the language; the supplementing productive force of the language displayed in the liturgical poetry of the synagogue, also changes particles into verbs: vid., Zunz, Die synagogaie Poesie des Mittelalters , S. 421.)
and assign to it the signification of dubitare . But it may be more safely explained after the Arabic words Arab. afana , afina , ma'fûn (root 'f , to urge forwards, push), in which the fundamental notion of driving back, narrowing and exhausting, is transferred to a weakening or weakness of the intellect. We might also compare פּנה , Arab. faniya , “to disappear, vanish, pass away;” but the ἐξηπορήθην of the lxx favours the kinship with that Arab. afina , infirma mente et consilii inops fuit ,
(Note: Abulwalîd also explains אפוּנה after the Arabic, but in a way that cannot be accepted, viz., “for a long time onwards,” from the Arabic iffân ( ibbân , iff , afaf , ifâf , taiffah ) , time, period - time conceived of in the onward rush, the constant succession of its moments.)
which has been already compared by Castell. The aorist of the lxx, however, is just as erroneous in this instance as in Psalms 42:5; Psalms 55:3; Psalms 57:5. In all these instances the cohortative denotes the inward result following from an outward compulsion, as they say in Hebrew: I lay hold of trembling (Isaiah 13:8; Job 18:20; Job 21:6) or joy (Isaiah 35:10; Isaiah 51:11), when the force of circumstances drive one into such states of mind. Labouring under the burden of divine dispensations of a terrifying character, he finds himself in a state of mental weakness and exhaustion, or of insensible (senseless) fright; over him as their destined goal before many others go God's burnings of wrath ( plur . only in this instance), His terrible decrees (vid., concerning בעת on Psalms 18:5) have almost annihilated him. צמּתתוּני is not an impossible form (Olshausen, §251, a ), but an intensive form of צמּתוּ , the last part of the already inflected verb being repeated, as in עהבוּ הבוּ , Hosea 4:18 (cf. in the department of the noun, פּיפיּות , edge-edges = many edges, Psalms 149:6), perhaps under the influence of the derivative.
(Note: Heidenheim interprets: Thy terrors are become to me as צמתת (Leviticus 25:23), i.e., inalienably my own.)
The corrections צמתּתני (from צמתת ) or צמּתתני (from צמּת ) are simple enough; but it is more prudent to let tradition judge of that which is possible in the usage of the language. In Psalms 88:18 the burnings become floods; the wrath of God can be compared to every destroying and overthrowing element. The billows threaten to swallow him up, without any helping hand being stretched out to him on the part of any of his lovers and friends. In v. 19 a to be now explained according to Job 16:14, viz., My familiar friends are gloomy darkness; i.e., instead of those who were hitherto my familiars (Job 19:14), darkness is become my familiar friend? One would have thought that it ought then to have been מידּעי (Schnurrer), or, according to Proverbs 7:4, מודעי , and that, in connection with this sense of the noun, מחשׁך ought as subject to have the precedence, that consequently מידּעי is subject and מחשׁך predicate: my familiar friends have lost themselves in darkness, are become absolutely invisible (Hitzig at last). But the regular position of the words is kept to if it is interpreted: my familiar friends are reduced to gloomy darkness as my familiar friend, and the plural is justified by Job 19:14 : Mother and sister (do I call) the worm . With this complaint the harp falls from the poet's hands. He is silent, and waits on God, that He may solve this riddle of affliction. From the Book of Job we might infer that He also actually appeared to him. He is more faithful than men. No soul that in the midst of wrath lays hold upon His love, whether with a firm or with a trembling hand, is suffered to be lost.