Psalms 38:5

5 My wounds stink, they are corrupt, because of my foolishness.

Psalms 38:5 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 38:5

My wounds stink, [and] are corrupt
Meaning his sins, which had wounded him, and for which there is no healing but in a wounded Saviour, and by his stripes we are healed, ( Isaiah 53:5 ) ; where the same word is used as here; Christ's black and blue stripes and wounds, as the word signifies, are the healing of ours, both of sins, and of the effects of them; which, to a sensible sinner, are as nauseous and loathsome as an old wound that is festered and corrupt;

because of my foolishness:
as all sin arises from foolishness, which is bound in the hearts of men, and from whence it arises, ( Mark 7:22 ) ; perhaps the psalmist may have respect to his folly with Bathsheba, which had been the occasion of all the distress that is spoken of both before and afterwards.

Psalms 38:5 In-Context

3 There is no soundness in my flesh because of thine indignation; no peace in my bones, because of my sin.
4 For mine iniquities are gone over my head: as a heavy burden they are too heavy for me.
5 My wounds stink, they are corrupt, because of my foolishness.
6 I am depressed; I am bowed down beyond measure; I go mourning all the day.
7 For my loins are full of burning, and there is no soundness in my flesh.

Footnotes 1

The Darby Translation is in the public domain.