Psalms 142:1-6

A Prayer for Deliverance from Pursuers

1

A maskil of David. When he was in the cave. A prayer.

1 I cry out with my voice to Yahweh; I implore favor with my voice to Yahweh.

2 I pour out my complaint before him; I declare my trouble before him.

3 When my spirit faints within me, you know my way. On the path where I walk, they have hidden a trap for me;

4 look to [my] right and see. There is no one looking out for me; there is no escape for me; no one cares for my soul.

5 I cry out to you, O Yahweh. I say, "You [are] my refuge, my portion in the land of the living."

6 Attend to my cry, for I am brought very low. Deliver me from my pursuers, for they are stronger than I.

Psalms 142:1-6 Meaning and Commentary

Maschil of David; A Prayer when he was in the cave. Of the word "maschil," See Gill on "Ps 32:1," title. This psalm is called a prayer, as some others are, the ninetieth and hundred second psalms: and was composed by David when either in the cave of Adullam, 1 Samuel 22:1; or rather in the cave at Engedi, where he cut off Saul's skirt, 1 Samuel 24:3; as Jarchi and Kimchi think. The psalm represents the troubles of David, and of the Messiah his antitype, and is applicable to the church of God, or to any particular soul when in distress.

Footnotes

• [a]. The Hebrew Bible counts the superscription as the first verse of the psalm; the English verse number is reduced by one
• [b]. Hebrew "a refuge has perished from me"
• [c]. Or "life"