Psalms 25:17

17 My heart and kidneys are fighting each other; Call a truce to this civil war.

Psalms 25:17 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 25:17

The troubles of my heart are enlarged
His enemies being increased, which troubled him; the floods of ungodly men made him afraid; the waters of affliction were come into his soul, and spread themselves, and threatened to overwhelm him: or it may be rendered, as by some, "troubles have enlarged my heart" F8; made him wiser, increased his knowledge and experience; see ( Psalms 119:67 Psalms 119:71 ) ; but the former seems better to agree with what follows;

[O] bring thou me out of my distresses;
or "straits" F9; for the enlargement of his troubles was the straitening of his heart; and therefore he applies to the Lord to bring him out of his afflicted circumstances, in which he was penned up, as in a strait place, on every side, and which were such that he could not free himself from; but he knew that God could deliver him.


FOOTNOTES:

F8 (wbyxrh) "dilataverunt cor meum", Vatablus; "reddiderunt cor meum latius", Gussetius, p. 786.
F9 (ytwqwumm) "ab angustiis meis", Pagninus, Junius & Tremellius; so Musculus, Piscator, Michaelis.

Psalms 25:17 In-Context

15 If I keep my eyes on God, I won't trip over my own feet.
16 Look at me and help me! I'm all alone and in big trouble.
17 My heart and kidneys are fighting each other; Call a truce to this civil war.
18 Take a hard look at my life of hard labor, Then lift this ton of sin.
19 Do you see how many people Have it in for me? How viciously they hate me?
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.