Psalms 88:11

11 Is thy steadfast love declared in the grave, or thy faithfulness in Abaddon?

Psalms 88:11 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 88:11

Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave?
&c.] Where he saw himself now going, and where should he be detained, and not raised out of it, the lovingkindness of God to him, as his Son, and as man and Mediator, and to his people in the gift and mission of him to be their Saviour and Redeemer, how would that be declared and made known? now it is, Christ being raised, and his ministers having a commission from him to preach the Gospel, in which the lovingkindness of God is abundantly manifested:

or thy faithfulness in destruction?
the grave, so called from dead bodies being cast into it, and wasted, consumed, and destroyed in it: the meaning may be, that should he be laid in the grave, and there putrefy and rot, and not be raised again, where would be the faithfulness of God to his purposes, to his covenant and promises, to him his Son, and to his people?

Psalms 88:11 In-Context

9 my eye grows dim through sorrow. Every day I call upon thee, O LORD; I spread out my hands to thee.
10 Dost thou work wonders for the dead? Do the shades rise up to praise thee? [Selah]
11 Is thy steadfast love declared in the grave, or thy faithfulness in Abaddon?
12 Are thy wonders known in the darkness, or thy saving help in the land of forgetfulness?
13 But I, O LORD, cry to thee; in the morning my prayer comes before thee.
Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952 [2nd edition, 1971] by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.