Psalms 88:12

12 Are your marvelous wonders ever seen in the dark, your righteous ways noticed in the Land of No Memory?

Psalms 88:12 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 88:12

Shall thy wonders be known in the dark?
&c.] A description of the grave again; see ( Job 10:21 Job 10:22 ) , The sense may be, should he continue in the dark and silent grave, how would the wonders of the grace of God, of electing, redeeming, justifying, pardoning, and adopting grace, be made known; the wonders of Christ's person and offices, and the wondrous things, and doctrines of the Gospel, relating thereunto? as the glory of these would be eclipsed, there would be none to publish them:

and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
the grave, where the dead lie, who, having lost all sense of things, forget what were done in this world, and they themselves are quickly forgotten by the living; and had Christ continued in this state, and had not risen again to our justification, how would his justifying righteousness have been revealed, as it is from faith to faith in the Gospel, which is therefore called the word and ministration of righteousness?

Psalms 88:12 In-Context

10 Are the dead a live audience for your miracles? Do ghosts ever join the choirs that praise you?
11 Does your love make any difference in a graveyard? Is your faithful presence noticed in the corridors of hell?
12 Are your marvelous wonders ever seen in the dark, your righteous ways noticed in the Land of No Memory?
13 I'm standing my ground, God, shouting for help, at my prayers every morning, on my knees each daybreak.
14 Why, God, do you turn a deaf ear? Why do you make yourself scarce?
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.