Psalms 34:18

18 The Lord is near to those who are discouraged; he saves those who have lost all hope.

Psalms 34:18 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 34:18

The Lord [is] nigh unto them that are of a broken heart
Who are pressed and bore down with afflictions, by the sorrow of heart under which their spirits are broken, ( Proverbs 15:13 ) ; or with a sense of sin, and sorrow for it, for which their hearts smite them, and they are wounded by it, and broken with it: to these the Lord is "nigh"; not in a general way only, as he is to all men, being God omnipresent, but in a special manner; he comes and manifests himself to them in a gracious way, pours in the oil and wine of his love, and binds up their broken hearts; yea, comes and dwells with them: he does not pass by them and neglect them, much less make the breach worse; he does not break the bruised reeds, but he heals their breaches;

and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit;
not in a legal, but in an evangelical way; who are humbled under a sense of sin, and melted down in true repentance, under a view of the love and grace of God; and are poor and mean in their own eyes: to these the Lord has respect; the sacrifices of a broken and contrite spirit are not despised by him, but accepted through faith in Christ; and such he saves with an everlasting salvation in him.

Psalms 34:18 In-Context

16 but he opposes those who do evil, so that when they die, they are soon forgotten.

17 The righteous call to the Lord, and he listens; he rescues them from all their troubles.

18 The Lord is near to those who are discouraged; he saves those who have lost all hope.

19 Good people suffer many troubles, but the Lord saves them from them all;

20 the Lord preserves them completely; not one of their bones is broken.