Psalms 38:5

5 The cuts in my flesh stink and grow maggots because I've lived so badly.

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 I've lost twenty pounds in two months because of your accusation. My bones are brittle as dry sticks because of my sin.
4 I'm swamped by my bad behavior, collapsed under gunnysacks of guilt.
5 The cuts in my flesh stink and grow maggots because I've lived so badly.
6 And now I'm flat on my face feeling sorry for myself morning to night.
7 All my insides are on fire, my body is a wreck.
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.