2 In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord. My hand was stretched out in the night, and didn’t get tired. My soul refused to be comforted.
3 I remember God, and I groan. I complain, and my spirit is overwhelmed.
4 You hold my eyelids open. I am so troubled that I can’t speak.
KJVKing James Version
2 In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord: my sore ran in the night, and ceased not: my soul refused to be comforted.
3 I remembered God, and was troubled: I complained, and my spirit was overwhelmed. Selah.
4 Thou holdest mine eyes waking: I am so troubled that I cannot speak.
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JPSJPS Tanakh (1917)
2 (77-3) In the day of my trouble I seek the Lord; with my hand uplifted, mine eye streameth in the night without ceasing; my soul refuseth to be comforted.
3 (77-4) When I think thereon, O God, I must moan; when I muse thereon, my spirit fainteth. Selah
4 (77-5) Thou holdest fast the lids of mine eyes; I am troubled, and cannot speak.
Psalms 50:15(v2)Call on me in the day of trouble. I will deliver you, and you will honor me.”
Genesis 37:35(v2)All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. He said, “For I will go down to Sheol to my son,…
Isaiah 26:9(v2)With my soul I have desired you in the night. Yes, with my spirit within me I will seek you earnestly; for when your judgments are in the…
Isaiah 26:16(v2)Yahweh, in trouble they have visited you. They poured out a prayer when your chastening was on them.
Psalms 61:2(v3)From the end of the earth, I will call to you when my heart is overwhelmed. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
Show all 49 cross-references
Psalms 142:2-3(v3)I pour out my complaint before him. I tell him my troubles. When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, you knew my route. On the path in…
Hebrews 5:7(v2)He, in the days of his flesh, having offered up prayers and petitions with strong crying and tears to him who was able to save him from…
Esther 4:1-4(v2)Now when Mordecai found out all that was done, Mordecai tore his clothes, and put on sackcloth with ashes, and went out into the middle of…
Job 7:13-15(v4)When I say, ‘My bed will comfort me. My couch will ease my complaint;’ then you scare me with dreams, and terrify me through visions: so…
Job 31:23(v3)For calamity from God is a terror to me. Because of his majesty, I can do nothing.
Jonah 2:1-2(v2)Then Jonah prayed to Yahweh, his God, out of the fish’s belly. He said, “I called because of my affliction to Yahweh. He answered me. Out…
Job 6:4(v3)For the arrows of the Almighty are within me. My spirit drinks up their poison. The terrors of God set themselves in array against me.
Job 7:11(v3)“Therefore I will not keep silent. I will speak in the anguish of my spirit. I will complain in the bitterness of my soul.
Job 23:15-16(v3)Therefore I am terrified at his presence. When I consider, I am afraid of him. For God has made my heart faint. The Almighty has terrified…
Psalms 6:6(v4)I am weary with my groaning. Every night I flood my bed. I drench my couch with my tears.
Psalms 42:5(v3)Why are you in despair, my soul? Why are you disturbed within me? Hope in God! For I shall still praise him for the saving help of his…
Psalms 42:11(v3)Why are you in despair, my soul? Why are you disturbed within me? Hope in God! For I shall still praise him, the saving help of my…
Psalms 43:5(v3)Why are you in despair, my soul? Why are you disturbed within me? Hope in God! For I shall still praise him: my Savior, my helper, and my…
Psalms 55:4-5(v3)My heart is severely pained within me. The terrors of death have fallen on me. Fearfulness and trembling have come on me. Horror has…
Psalms 102:1-2(v2)Hear my prayer, Yahweh! Let my cry come to you. Don’t hide your face from me in the day of my distress. Turn your ear to me. Answer me…
Psalms 102:3-28(v3)For my days consume away like smoke. My bones are burned as a torch. My heart is blighted like grass, and withered, for I forget to eat my…
Psalms 143:4-5(v3)Therefore my spirit is overwhelmed within me. My heart within me is desolate. I remember the days of old. I meditate on all your doings. I…
Jeremiah 17:17(v3)Don’t be a terror to me. You are my refuge in the day of evil.
Jeremiah 31:15(v2)Yahweh says: “A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children. She refuses to be comforted for…
Lamentations 3:39(v3)Why does a living man complain, a man for the punishment of his sins?
Hosea 5:13(v2)“When Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah his wound, Then Ephraim went to Assyria, and sent to king Jareb: but he is not able to heal you,…
Genesis 32:7-12(v2)Then Jacob was greatly afraid and was distressed. He divided the people who were with him, and the flocks, and the herds, and the camels,…
Genesis 32:28(v2)He said, “Your name will no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have fought with God and with men, and have prevailed.”
2 Kings 19:3-4(v2)They said to him, “Hezekiah says, ‘Today is a day of trouble, of rebuke, and of rejection; for the children have come to the point of…
2 Kings 19:15-20(v2)Hezekiah prayed before Yahweh, and said, “Yahweh, the God of Israel, who are enthroned above the cherubim, you are the God, even you alone,…
2 Chronicles 6:28(v2)“If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence, if there is blight or mildew, locust or caterpillar; if their enemies besiege them…
Job 2:13(v4)So they sat down with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his grief was very…
Job 11:13(v2)“If you set your heart aright, stretch out your hands toward him.
Psalms 6:2-3(v2)Have mercy on me, Yahweh, for I am faint. Yahweh, heal me, for my bones are troubled. My soul is also in great anguish. But you, Yahweh—how…
Psalms 18:6(v2)In my distress I called on Yahweh, and cried to my God. He heard my voice out of his temple. My cry before him came into his ears.
Psalms 38:3-8(v2)There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation, neither is there any health in my bones because of my sin. For my iniquities…
Psalms 63:6(v2)when I remember you on my bed, and think about you in the night watches.
Psalms 86:7(v2)In the day of my trouble I will call on you, for you will answer me.
Psalms 88:1-3(v2)Yahweh, the God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before you. Let my prayer enter into your presence. Turn your ear to my cry.…
Psalms 88:3-18(v3)For my soul is full of troubles. My life draws near to Sheol. I am counted among those who go down into the pit. I am like a man who has no…
Psalms 130:1-2(v2)Out of the depths I have cried to you, Yahweh. Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my petitions.
Proverbs 18:14(v2)A man’s spirit will sustain him in sickness, but a crushed spirit, who can bear?
Isaiah 1:5-6(v2)Why should you be beaten more, that you revolt more and more? The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot…
Hosea 6:1(v2)“Come! Let’s return to Yahweh; for he has torn us to pieces, and he will heal us; he has injured us, and he will bind up our wounds.
John 11:31(v2)Then the Jews who were with her in the house and were consoling her, when they saw Mary, that she rose up quickly and went out, followed…
2 Corinthians 12:7-8(v2)By reason of the exceeding greatness of the revelations, that I should not be exalted excessively, a thorn in the flesh was given to me: a…
Esther 6:1(v4)On that night, the king couldn’t sleep. He commanded the book of records of the chronicles to be brought, and they were read to the king.
Job 6:3(v4)For now it would be heavier than the sand of the seas, therefore have my words been rash.
Lamentations 3:17(v3)You have removed my soul far away from peace. I forgot prosperity.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (17 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
John Calvin1540 · Public DomainOn vv2–42. I sought the Lord in the day of…
2. I sought the Lord in the day of my trouble. In this verse he expresses more distinctly the grievous and hard oppression to which the Church was at that time subjected. There is, however, some ambiguity in the words. The Hebrew word יד, yad, which I have translated hand, is sometimes taken metaphorically for a wound; and, therefore, many interpreters elicit this sense, My wound ran in the night, and ceased not, that is to say, My wound was not so purified from ulcerous matter as that the running from it was made to stop. But; I rather take the word in its ordinary signification, which is hand, because the verb נגרה, niggera, which he uses, signifies not only to run as a sore does, but also to be stretched forth or extended. Now, when he affirms that he sought the Lord in the day of his trouble, and that his hands were stretched out to him in the night season, this denotes that prayer was his continual exercise, — that his heart was so earnestly and unweariedly engaged in that exercise, that he could not desist from it. In the concluding sentence of the verse the adversative particle although is to be supplied; and thus the meaning will be, that although the prophet found no solace and no alleviation of the bitterness of his grief, he still continued to stretch forth his hands to God. In this manner it becomes us to wrestle against despair, in order that our sorrow, although it may seem to be incurable, may not shut our mouths, and keep us from pouring out our prayers before God.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators1599 · Public DomainOn vv2–4Or, mine hand was stretched out.
Or, mine hand was stretched out.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp1656 · Public DomainOn vv2–4Psa 77:2 In the day of my trouble I…
Psa 77:2 In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord: my sore ran in the night, and ceased not: my soul refused to be comforted.
Ver. 2. In the day of my trouble] The time of affliction is the time of supplication, Psa 50:15.
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My sore ran in the night] Heb. My hand was poured out; that is, stretched out in prayer; or wet with continual weeping. Non fuit remissa, nec retracta in lectum.
And ceased not] Or, was not tired; in allusion, belike, to Moses’s hands held up against Amalek; though
My soul refused to be comforted] I prayed on, though I had little heart to do it (as Daniel afterwards did the king’s work, though he were sick), or though with much infirmity, while I rather wrangled with God, by cavilling objections, than wrestled with him, as I ought to have done; by important prayer.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole1685 · Public DomainOn vv2–4My sore ran: the hand in the Hebrew tongue,…
My sore ran: the hand in the Hebrew tongue, and Scripture use, is oft put for a blow or stroke given by the hand. Heb. My hand, or hands, (the singular number being frequently put for the plural,)
flowed or poured forth, i.e. spread abroad to God in prayer. This phrase he useth rather than were stretched out, which is frequent in like cases, to imply that his case was low and almost desperate, his spirits and strength quite gone, so that he was not able to stretch them out, as he had done.
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In the night; which to others was a time of rest and quietness, but to me of torment.
My soul refused to be comforted; I rejected all those consolations which either my friends or my own mind suggested to me.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill1763 · Public DomainOn vv2–4In the day of my trouble I sought the…
In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord,.... Not the creature, for help, and creature amusements to drive away trouble, but the Lord, in private, by prayer and supplication; a time of trouble is a time for prayer, Jam 5:13, all men have their trouble, but the people of God more especially; and there are some particular times in which they have more than usual, and then it may be said to be "a day of trouble" with them; which sometimes arises from themselves, the strength of their corruptions, the weakness of their graces, their backwardness to duties, or poor performance of them; sometimes from others, from the profaneness or persecutions of the men of the world, from the heretical notions or wicked lives of professors; sometimes from the temptations of Satan, and at other times from the Lord himself more immediately, by his withdrawing his presence from them, or by laying his afflicting hand upon them; but, let the trouble come from what quarter it may, it is always right to seek the Lord. Some think reference is had to the time of trouble mentioned in Dan 12:1,
my sore ran in the night; my "stroke", or "wound" (i); so Kimchi interprets it; the wound that was made in his soul, and the pain and anguish, grief and trouble, which flowed from it; see Jer 6:7 though the word may be literally rendered "my hand" (k); and the sense is, either that his hand flowed or was wet with wiping his eyes, or with the tears that flowed from his eyes, which ran down to his fingers' ends; so the Targum,
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"in the night my eye dropped with tears;''
or rather that his hand was stretched out, as waters, that are poured out and run, are spread, that is, in prayer; the stretching out of the hand being a prayer gesture:
and ceased not; was not remiss and feeble, or was not let down, as Moses's, Exo 17:11, it denotes the constancy of prayer, and his continuance in it; he prayed without ceasing:
my soul refused to be comforted: such was the greatness of his distress, like that of Jacob's and Rachel's, Gen 37:35, it is right to refuse comfort and peace, which men speak to themselves upon the false foundation of their own merit and works; or any but what comes from the God of all comfort, and through Christ, in whom is all solid consolation, and by his Spirit, who is the Comforter; but it is wrong to refuse any that comes from hence, and by means of the promises, the word and ordinances and ministries of the Gospel, or Christian friends; this shows the strength of unbelief.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley1765 · Public DomainOn vv2–4Night - Which to others was a time of…
Night - Which to others was a time of rest and quietness.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke1810 · Public DomainOn vv2–4Verse 2. My sore ran in the night, and…
Verse 2. My sore ran in the night, and ceased not] This is a most unaccountable translation; the literal meaning of ידי נגרה yadi niggerah, which we translate my sore ran, is, my hand was stretched out, i.e., in prayer. He continued during the whole night with his voice and hands lifted up to God, and ceased not, even in the midst of great discouragements.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson1811 · Public DomainOn vv2–4Psa 77:2. In the day of my trouble I…
Psa 77:2. In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord — Being afflicted, he prayed, Jas 5:13, and being in an agony he prayed the more fervently: he cried unto God. He did not apply to the diversion of business, or of any recreation, that he might by that means shake off his trouble; but he had recourse to God in prayer, and sought his favour and grace. In this he is an example for our imitation. When under any trouble, and especially trouble of mind for sin, we must apply to God and spread our case before him. We must not endeavour to get rid of our trouble some other way, but must entreat him to remove it by lifting up the light of his countenance upon us. This, and only this, will give us peace of mind, and put joy and gladness into our hearts. My sore ran — Hebrew, ידי נגרה, jadi niggerah, my hand flowed, or poured forth, that is, was spread abroad, or stretched out to God in prayer and ceased not. — So Hammond, Patrick, Waterland, and Houbigant. In the night — Which to others was a time of rest and refreshment, but to me of sorrow and distress. My soul refused to be comforted — Without a gracious answer from God, and an assurance that he had not cast me off, but was again reconciled to me, Psa 77:7-9. Till I should obtain this, I rejected all those consolations which either my friends or my own mind suggested.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes1834 · Public DomainOn vv2–4In the day of my trouble I sought the…
In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord - Compare the notes at Psa 50:15. This trouble may have been either mental or bodily; that is, it may have arisen from some form of disease, or it may have been that which sprang from difficulties in regard to the divine character, government, and dealings. That it “assumed” the latter form, even if it had its beginning in the former, is apparent from the following verses. Whether it was connected with any form of bodily disease must be determined by the proper interpretation of the next clause in this verse.
My sore ran in the night - Margin, “My hand.” It is evident that our translators sup. posed that there was some bodily disease - some running sore - which was the cause of his trouble. Hence, they so rendered the Hebrew word. But it is now generally agreed that this is without authority. The Hebrew word is “hand” - יד yâd - a word which is never used in the sense of sore or wound. The Septuagint renders it, “my hands are before him.” The Vulgate renders it in the same manner. Luther, “My hand is stretched out at night.” DeWette, “My hand is stretched out at night unwearied.” The word which is rendered in our version “ran” - נגר nâgar - means to “flow;” and, in Niphil, to be poured out, and then, “to be stretched out;” which is evidently its meaning here. The idea is, that his hand was stretched out in earnest supplication, and that this continued in the night when these troubles came most upon him. See Psa 77:4, Psa 77:6. In his painful meditations in the night. watches - in thinking on God and his ways, as he lay upon his bed, he stretched out his hand in fervent prayer to God.
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And ceased not - The word used here - פוג pûg - means properly to be cold; then, to be torpid, sluggish, slack. Here it means that the hand did not become weary; it did not fall from exhaustion; or, in other words, that he did not give over praying through weariness or exhaustion.
My soul refused to be comforted - I resisted all the suggestions that came to my own mind, that might have comforted me. My heart was so melancholy and downcast; my spirits were so crushed; my mind was so dark; I had become so morbid, that I loved to cherish these thoughts. I chose to dwell on them. They had obtained possession of me, and I could not let them go. There was nothing that my own mind could suggest, there was nothing that occurred to me, that would relieve the difficulty or restore peace to my soul. These sad and gloomy thoughts filled all my soul, and left no room for thoughts of consolation and peace. A truly pious man may, therefore, get into a state of mind - a sad, dispirited, melancholy, morbid state - in which nothing that can be said to him, nothing that will occur to himself, will give him comfort and peace. Compare Jer 31:15.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Daniel D. Whedon1874 · Public DomainOn vv2–42. In the day of my trouble I sought…
2. In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord—Not only the depth of the psalmist’s sufferings is here indicated, such as God only could relieve, but his true piety. His troubles brought him nearer to God. Psa_50:15.
My sore ran in the night—Hebrew, My hand was stretched out all night; that is, in the posture of earnest supplication. Psa_44:20; Psa_88:9.
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Ceased not—Rested not. Compare the painfulness of the attitude with Exo_17:11-12
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges1878 · Public DomainOn vv2–42. (Thus) in the day of my distress I…
2. (Thus) in the day of my distress I sought the Lord:
My hand was stretched out in the night, and slacked not;
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My soul refused to be comforted.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers1878 · Public DomainOn vv2–4(2) My sore ran . . .—The text of…
(2) My sore ran . . .—The text of this verse is evidently faulty. As it stands it is unintelligible. My hand was poured out and grew not dull (like a corpse).
The LXX. and Vulg. have, “with my hands against Him, and I was not deceived,” pointing to a different reading. Symmachus has, however, “my hand was stretched out,” which may be a possible meaning of the Hebrew, though a comparison with Lam_3:49 (comp. Lam_2:18) suggests that eye was written instead of hand. The Authorised Version’s sore comes from the Rabbins, who thought of the hand beating the breast, and rendered, “my blows were poured out.” Though the probable text may be beyond recovery, the feeling of the verse is quite palpable. It expresses the anguish of the poet’s soul—
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“His vows in the night, so fierce and unavailing,
Stings of his shame and passion of his tears.”
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary1880 · Public DomainOn vv2–4In the day of my trouble I sought the…
In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord. (comp. Gen_35:3 Hab_3:16) My sore ran in the night; rather, my band was stretched out in the night (Cook, Cheyne, Revised Version); comp. Psa_28:2. And ceased not. He continued in prayer all through the night. My soul refused to be comforted. (comp. Gen_37:35 Jer_31:15) He was like Jacob when he lost Joseph, or like Rachel weeping for her children.
The mission of mental depressions.
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"My hand in the night season was stretched out, and ceased not." The figure is of the hand stretched out in prayer till it was unnerved by weariness, and yet refused to rest. The cause of lying awake at night is usually mental anxiety and distress; burdens on the mind rather than pains in the body. We begin to think worryfully, and so banish sleep. The text, therefore, presents a season of mental depression; and the occasion of it is found in the anxious condition of the nation. Illust. by the times of Hezekiah. Times of mental depression are not necessarily wrong. They are the natural response of the mind to physical conditions and outward circumstances. They mean "sensitiveness," "quickness to respond;" and these differ in different individuals. Some are easily made despondent; they can always see, or think they see, black clouds gathering in the sky. Some are unduly hopeful, and fail to respond when circumstances do call for anxiety. We make the mistake of failing to recognize Divine working through the anxieties of the mind, as well as through the pains of the body, and the distress of the circumstances. We deceive ourselves by thinking these mental trials are in no sense sent; we make them ourselves, and so we fail to associate God with them, and lose what would be our best comfort and relief. The truth is, that God is even more freely working through our mental depressions, because they are immaterial they belong to the innermost of us, to the sphere in which God"s grace is most unhindered.
I MENTAL DEPRESSIONS KEEP US CONVINCED OF THE SPIRITUAL. Suppose we took all things easily; never troubled over them; never brooded; how easily the "material" would gain the mastery! We know there is another world than the world of sense; there is a world of thought and feeling. How intense and real this world is we are made to know when depression prevents sleep, and even breaks down health. And so we come to apprehend the reality of the "spiritual.
II MENTAL DEPRESSIONS CONVINCE OF THE SERIOUSNESS OF OUR MORAL CONFLICT. Conceive that the struggle for character only concerned circumstances and relations, and then what an unimportant struggle it would seem to be! "But we wrestle, not with flesh and blood only, but with the rulers of spiritual darkness." Add mental conflict, and virtue becomes a sublime achievement, a transcendent victory, won at an awful cost.
III MENTAL DEPRESSIONS MAY BE OVERRULED SO AS TO GIVE NOBLER VIEWS OF GOD. Illustrate by the psalm (vers. 10-20). The law of rebound applies. Compare such a case as that of the poet Cowper, whose songs of trust were the cries of one who was often in despair. The question is Do we yield to mental depressions, or do we resist them, and so let God work his work of grace through them? R.T.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Charles H. Spurgeon1885 · Public DomainOn vv2–4Ver. 2. In the day of my trouble I…
Ver. 2. In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord. All day long his distress drove him to his God, so that when night came he continued still in the same search. God had hidden his face from his servant, therefore the first care of the troubled saint was to seek his Lord again. This was going to the root of the matter and removing the main impediment first. Diseases and tribulations are easily enough endured when God is found of us, but without him they crush us to the earth.
My sore ran in the night, and ceased not. As by day so by night his trouble was on him and his prayer continued. Some of us know what it is, both physically and spiritually, to be compelled to use these words: no respite has been afforded us by the silence of the night, our bed has been a rack to us, our body has been in torment, and our spirit in anguish. It appears that this sentence is wrongly translated, and should be, "my hand was stretched out all night, "this shows that his prayer ceased not, but with uplifted hand he continued to seek succour of his God.
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My soul refused to be comforted. He refused some comforts as too weak for his case, others as untrue, others as unhallowed; but chiefly because of distraction, he declined even those grounds of consolation which ought to have been effectual with him. As a sick man turns away even from the most nourishing food, so did he. It is impossible to comfort those who refuse to be comforted. You may bring them to the waters of the promise, but who shall make them drink if they will not do so? Many a daughter of despondency has pushed aside the cup of gladness, and many a son of sorrow has hugged his chains. There are times when we are suspicious of good news, and are not to be persuaded into peace, though the happy truth should be as plain before us as the King's highway.
Whole Psalm. See Psalms on "Ps 77:1" for further information.
Ver. 2. In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord. Days of trouble must be days of prayer; in days of inward trouble, especially when God seems to have withdrawn from us, we must seek him, and seek till we find him. In the day of his trouble he did not seek for the diversions of business or recreation, to shake off his trouble that way, but he sought God, and his favour and grace. Those that are under trouble of mind, must not think to drink it away, or laugh it away, but pray it away. Matthew Henry.
Ver. 2. My sore ran in the night. Hebrew: My hand was poured out; that is, stretched out in prayer; or wet with continual weeping. Non fuit remissa, nec retracta in lectum. John Trapp.
Ver. 2. My sore ran in the night, and ceased not, etc. There is no healing of this wound, no easing of this sore, no cleansing of the conscience, no quieting of a man's spirit: till God whom the soul seeketh show himself as the Physician, the evil continueth still and groweth. David Dickson.
Ver. 2. My soul refused to be comforted. God has provided suitable and sufficient comfort for his people. He sends them comforters just as their circumstances require. But they at times refuse to hear the voice of the charmer. The Lord has perhaps taken away an idol--or he withholds his sensible presence, that they may learn to live by faith--or he has blighted their worldly prospects --or he has written vanity and emptiness upon all their gourds, cisterns, and delights. They give way to passion, as did Jonah--or they sink into sullen gloom--or allow unhumbled pride to rule the spirit--or yield to extreme sorrow, as Rachel did--or fall under the power of temptation--or imbibe the notion that they have no right to comfort. This is wrong, all wrong, decidedly wrong. Look at what is left you, at what the gospel presents to you, at what heaven will be to you. But the psalmist was recovered from this state. He was convinced that it was wrong. He was sorry for his sin. He was reformed in his spirit and conduct. He wrote this Psalm to instruct, caution, and warn us. Observe, they who are entitled to all comfort, often through their own folly, enjoy the least. The Lord's people are often their own tormentors, they put away the cup of comfort from them, and say they are unworthy of it
O Thou source of every blessing,
Chase my sorrows, cheer my heart,
Till in heaven, thy smiles possessing,
Life, and joy, and peace impart. James Smith.
Ver. 2. My soul refused to be comforted. Poor I, that am but of yesterday, have known some that have been so deeply plunged in the gulf of despair, that they would throw all the spiritual cordials that have been tendered to them against the walls. They were strong in reasoning against their own souls, and resolved against everything that might be a comfort and support unto them. They have been much set against all ordinances and religious services; they have cast off holy duties themselves, and peremptorily refused to join with others in them; yea, they have, out of a sense of sin and wrath, which hath laid hard upon them, refused the necessary comforts of this life, even to the overthrow of natural life, and yet out of this horrible pit, this hell upon earth, hath God delivered their souls, and given them such manifestations of his grace and favour, that they would not exchange them for a thousand worlds. O despairing souls, you see that others, whose conditions have been as bad if not worse than yours, have obtained mercy. God hath turned their hell into a heaven; he hath remembered them in their low estate; he hath pacified their raging consciences, and quieted their distracted souls; he hath wiped all tears from their eyes; and he hath been a well spring of life unto their hearts. Therefore be not discouraged, O despairing souls, but look up to the mercyseat. Thomas Brooks.
Ver. 2. See "Spurgeon's Sermons, "No. 853. "A Sermon for the Most Miserable of Men."
Ver. 2.
I. Special prayer: In the days, etc.
II. Persevering prayer: hands lifted up to God by night
as well as by day.
III. Agonizing prayer: my soul refused to be
comforted, until the answer came. "Being in an
agony, he prayed, "etc.
Ver. 2. (last clause). When this is wise, and when it is censurable.
Psalms 77:3*
Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
The Biblical Illustrator1887 · Public DomainOn vv2–3My soul refused to be comforted.
Psa_77:2
My soul refused to be comforted.
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Refusing to be comforted
I. When a mans soul refuses to be comforted, possibly he may be right. He may have a great spiritual sorrow, and some one, who does not at all understand his grief, may proffer to him a consolation which is far too slight. Not knowing how deep the wound is, this foolish physician may think that it can be healed with any common ointments. So, too, it is equally right to refuse to be comforted, when the comfort is untrue. When a man is under a sense of sin, I have known his friends say to him, You should not fret; you have not been so very bad. You have been, indeed, a very good sort of fellow. You have not committed any very terrible sin; God help the world if you are a great sinner! I do not know what will become of the rest Of us. Another says, You have only to pray, and go to a place of worship; perhaps be a little more regular in your attention to religion, and it will all come right again; you are not so bad as you think you are. Such talk as that is a lie, and the man whom God has really awakened to feel his state by nature will refuse to be comforted by such falsehoods as those. We have known others who have tried to comfort poor, mourning, repentant sinners in an unhallowed way. They have said, You want to raise your spirits, I can recommend you some fine old wine; it will do you a world of good. Another will say, You should really mix a little more in society, and shake yourself up; you should get with some gay, lively people, they would soon take this melancholy out of you. I am sure that a person who is really troubled in spirit will increase his sorrow if he attempts to cure it in that way. It is only putting more fuel on the flame. In danger every moment of death, and certain that, if death came, I should be lost, can I enjoy mirth? It cannot be! Refuse every comfort short of being born again, and made a new creature in Jesus.
II. But now, I want to show when this refusal is wrong. Probably he is wrong who says, My soul refused to be comforted. It is quite wrong if it be a temporal matter that causes your sorrow. Refuse not to be comforted, I pray you; you are only driving the dagger deeper into your wounds. Instead of doing that, think of the mercies that you still have, think of how God can bless your troubles. But now I will suppose that yours is a spiritual trouble. Do not refuse to be comforted, for if you do, you will be spiritually a suicide. The man who will not eat, and so dies of starvation, is as much a suicide as he that puts the pistol to his head, and blows out his brains.
III. But now, haply you will have to repent of refusing to be comforted. Possibly you will have to repent it in a very terrible way. Suppose, now, that you should refuse to be comforted, and so should wilfully go into a yet darker and deeper dungeon of despair. Suppose that your Christian friends should grow weary of you. Where would you be then? And suppose that, because you shut your eyes to the light, God should take it away? I do hope that many here present, who have refused to be comforted, will yet regret it when they shall be enjoying the fulness of comfort. What a fool am I, thus to lie in a stinking dungeon, when I may as well walk at liberty I I have a key in my bosom, called Promise, that will, I am persuaded, open any lock in Doubting Castle. So he pulled it out of his bosom, put it in the lock, opened the door of the dungeon, and they soon passed out. Now, finally, when you and I get to heaven, we shall regret that we ever refused to be comforted. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
A sermon for the most miserable of men
My main bent, this morning, is to deal with mourners who are seeking Christ, but up till now have sought Him in vain.
I. Concerning so deplorable a state of heart, alas I still so common, we will remark in the first place that it is very wonderful. It is a most surprising thing that there should be in this world persons who have the richest consolation near to hand, and persistently refuse to partake of it. Doth the ox refuse its fodder? Will the lion turn from his meat? Or the eagle loathe its nest? The refusal of consolation is the more singular because the most admirable comfort is within reach. Sin can be forgiven; sin has been forgiven; Christ has made an atonement for it. It is said that some years ago, a vessel sailing on the northern coast of the South American continent, was observed to make signals of distress. When hailed by another vessel, they reported themselves as Dying for water! Dip it up, then, was the response, you are in the mouth of the Amazon river. There was fresh water all around them, they had nothing to do but to dip it up, and yet they were dying of thirst, because they thought themselves to be surrounded by the salt sea. How often are men ignorant of their mercies! How sad that they should perish for lack of knowledge! But suppose after the sailors had received the joyful information, they had still refused to draw up the water which was in boundless plenty all around them, would it not have been a marvel?
II. Secondly, this wonderful madness has a method in it, and may be variously accounted for. In many, their refusal to be comforted arises from bodily and mental disease. It is in vain to ply with scriptural arguments those who are in more urgent need of healing medicine, or generous diet, or a change of air. In some the monstrous refusal is suggested by a proud dislike to the plan of salvation. They would be comforted, aye, that they would, but may they not do something to earn eternal life? May they not at least contribute a feeling or emotion? May they not prepare themselves for Christ? In others it is not pride, but an unholy resolve to retain some favourite sin. In some cases we have found out that the sorrowing person indulged still in a secret vice, or kept the society of the ungodly. I fear, in a great many, there is another reason for this refusing to be comforted, namely, a dishonouring unbelief in the love, and goodness, and truthfulness of God. They do not believe God to be gracious; they think Him so stern that a sinner had need plead full many a day before the stern heart of God will be touched. Oh, but you do not know my God! What is He? He is love. Some, however, have refused comfort so long, that they have grown into the habit of despair. Beware of nursing despondency. Does it creep upon you to-day through unbelief? Oh, shake it off if possible!
III. This remarkable piece of folly assumes divers forms. One is a persistent misrepresentation of the Gospel, as though it claimed some hard thing of us. Another shape of this malady is this: many continually and persistently underestimate the power of the precious blood of Jesus. There are some who will then say, But I have sinned such and such a sin. What, and cannot the blood of Jesus wash that away? All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men.
IV. This refusal to be comforted involves much of wrong. When you hear the Gospel and refuse to be comforted by it, there is a wrong done to the minister of God. He sympathizes with you, he desires to comfort you, and it troubles him when he puts before you the cup of salvation, and you refuse to take it. But worse than that, you wrong Gods Gospel. You put it away as though it were a thing of nought. You wrong this precious Bible. It is full of consoling promises, and you read it, and you seem to say, It is all chaff. Oh, but the Bible does not deserve to have such a slur cast upon it. You do wrong to the dear friends who try to comfort you. Above all, you do wrong to your God, to Jesus, and to His Holy Spirit. The crucifixion of Christ is repeated by your rejection of Christ.
V. Such a refusal should not be persisted in. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0On vv2, 4I stretched my hands out
I stretched my hands out
"I prayed with my arms extended"
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My soul refused to be comforted
The "soul" represents the person. This can be stated in active form. AT: "I would not allow anyone to try to comfort me" (See: Synecdoche and Active or Passive)
I thought of God as I groaned; I thought about him as I grew faint
These two phrases share similar meanings and are combined for emphasis. (See: Parallelism)
as I grew faint
"as my spirit grew faint" or "as my spirit was overwhelmed"
Selah
This may be a musical term that tells people how to sing or play their instruments here. Some translations write the Hebrew word, and some translations do not include it. See how you translated this in Psalms 3:2. (See: Copy or Borrow Words)
Tyndale Open Study Notes2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0On vv3–477:3 I think of God: God’s people inevitably face…
77:3 I think of God: God’s people inevitably face difficult times, but recalling his mighty acts at the beginning of their relationship assures them of God’s commitment. • Feeling overwhelmed, the psalmist is unable to deal with the crisis (142:3; 143:4).
GEBible — Godless Engineer's Bible App
John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv2–4 2. I sought the Lord in the day of…
2. I sought the Lord in the day of my trouble. In this verse he expresses more distinctly the grievous and hard oppression to which the Church was at that time subjected. There is, however, some ambiguity in the words. The Hebrew word יד, yad, which I have translated hand, is sometimes taken metaphorically for a wound; and, therefore, many interpreters elicit this sense, My wound ran in the night, and ceased not, that is to say, My wound was not so purified from ulcerous matter as that the running from it was made to stop. But; I rather take the word in its ordinary signification, which is hand, because the verb נגרה, niggera, which he uses, signifies not only to run as a sore does, but also to be stretched forth or extended. Now, when he affirms that he sought the Lord in the day of his trouble, and that his hands were stretched out to him in the night season, this denotes that prayer was his continual exercise, — that his heart was so earnestly and unweariedly engaged in that exercise, that he could not desist from it. In the concluding sentence of the verse the adversative particle although is to be supplied; and thus the meaning will be, that although the prophet found no solace and no alleviation of the bitterness of his grief, he still continued to stretch forth his hands to God. In this manner it becomes us to wrestle against despair, in order that our sorrow, although it may seem to be incurable, may not shut our mouths, and keep us from pouring out our prayers before God.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv2–4 Or, mine hand was stretched out.
Or, mine hand was stretched out.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv2–4 Psa 77:2 In the day of my trouble I…
Psa 77:2 In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord: my sore ran in the night, and ceased not: my soul refused to be comforted.
Ver. 2. In the day of my trouble] The time of affliction is the time of supplication, Psa 50:15.
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My sore ran in the night] Heb. My hand was poured out; that is, stretched out in prayer; or wet with continual weeping. Non fuit remissa, nec retracta in lectum.
And ceased not] Or, was not tired; in allusion, belike, to Moses’s hands held up against Amalek; though
My soul refused to be comforted] I prayed on, though I had little heart to do it (as Daniel afterwards did the king’s work, though he were sick), or though with much infirmity, while I rather wrangled with God, by cavilling objections, than wrestled with him, as I ought to have done; by important prayer.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv2–4 My sore ran: the hand in the Hebrew tongue,…
My sore ran: the hand in the Hebrew tongue, and Scripture use, is oft put for a blow or stroke given by the hand. Heb. My hand, or hands, (the singular number being frequently put for the plural,)
flowed or poured forth, i.e. spread abroad to God in prayer. This phrase he useth rather than were stretched out, which is frequent in like cases, to imply that his case was low and almost desperate, his spirits and strength quite gone, so that he was not able to stretch them out, as he had done.
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In the night; which to others was a time of rest and quietness, but to me of torment.
My soul refused to be comforted; I rejected all those consolations which either my friends or my own mind suggested to me.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv2–4 In the day of my trouble I sought the…
In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord,.... Not the creature, for help, and creature amusements to drive away trouble, but the Lord, in private, by prayer and supplication; a time of trouble is a time for prayer, Jam 5:13, all men have their trouble, but the people of God more especially; and there are some particular times in which they have more than usual, and then it may be said to be "a day of trouble" with them; which sometimes arises from themselves, the strength of their corruptions, the weakness of their graces, their backwardness to duties, or poor performance of them; sometimes from others, from the profaneness or persecutions of the men of the world, from the heretical notions or wicked lives of professors; sometimes from the temptations of Satan, and at other times from the Lord himself more immediately, by his withdrawing his presence from them, or by laying his afflicting hand upon them; but, let the trouble come from what quarter it may, it is always right to seek the Lord. Some think reference is had to the time of trouble mentioned in Dan 12:1,
my sore ran in the night; my "stroke", or "wound" (i); so Kimchi interprets it; the wound that was made in his soul, and the pain and anguish, grief and trouble, which flowed from it; see Jer 6:7 though the word may be literally rendered "my hand" (k); and the sense is, either that his hand flowed or was wet with wiping his eyes, or with the tears that flowed from his eyes, which ran down to his fingers' ends; so the Targum,
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"in the night my eye dropped with tears;''
or rather that his hand was stretched out, as waters, that are poured out and run, are spread, that is, in prayer; the stretching out of the hand being a prayer gesture:
and ceased not; was not remiss and feeble, or was not let down, as Moses's, Exo 17:11, it denotes the constancy of prayer, and his continuance in it; he prayed without ceasing:
my soul refused to be comforted: such was the greatness of his distress, like that of Jacob's and Rachel's, Gen 37:35, it is right to refuse comfort and peace, which men speak to themselves upon the false foundation of their own merit and works; or any but what comes from the God of all comfort, and through Christ, in whom is all solid consolation, and by his Spirit, who is the Comforter; but it is wrong to refuse any that comes from hence, and by means of the promises, the word and ordinances and ministries of the Gospel, or Christian friends; this shows the strength of unbelief.
(i) "plaga mea", Pagninus, Muis. (k) "Manus mea", Montanus, Piscator, Gejerus, &c.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv2–4 Night - Which to others was a time of…
Night - Which to others was a time of rest and quietness.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv2–4 Verse 2. My sore ran in the night, and…
Verse 2. My sore ran in the night, and ceased not] This is a most unaccountable translation; the literal meaning of ידי נגרה yadi niggerah, which we translate my sore ran, is, my hand was stretched out, i.e., in prayer. He continued during the whole night with his voice and hands lifted up to God, and ceased not, even in the midst of great discouragements.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv2–4 Psa 77:2. In the day of my trouble I…
Psa 77:2. In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord — Being afflicted, he prayed, Jas 5:13, and being in an agony he prayed the more fervently: he cried unto God. He did not apply to the diversion of business, or of any recreation, that he might by that means shake off his trouble; but he had recourse to God in prayer, and sought his favour and grace. In this he is an example for our imitation. When under any trouble, and especially trouble of mind for sin, we must apply to God and spread our case before him. We must not endeavour to get rid of our trouble some other way, but must entreat him to remove it by lifting up the light of his countenance upon us. This, and only this, will give us peace of mind, and put joy and gladness into our hearts. My sore ran — Hebrew, ידי נגרה, jadi niggerah, my hand flowed, or poured forth, that is, was spread abroad, or stretched out to God in prayer and ceased not. — So Hammond, Patrick, Waterland, and Houbigant. In the night — Which to others was a time of rest and refreshment, but to me of sorrow and distress. My soul refused to be comforted — Without a gracious answer from God, and an assurance that he had not cast me off, but was again reconciled to me, Psa 77:7-9. Till I should obtain this, I rejected all those consolations which either my friends or my own mind suggested.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv2–4 In the day of my trouble I sought the…
In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord - Compare the notes at Psa 50:15. This trouble may have been either mental or bodily; that is, it may have arisen from some form of disease, or it may have been that which sprang from difficulties in regard to the divine character, government, and dealings. That it “assumed” the latter form, even if it had its beginning in the former, is apparent from the following verses. Whether it was connected with any form of bodily disease must be determined by the proper interpretation of the next clause in this verse.
My sore ran in the night - Margin, “My hand.” It is evident that our translators sup. posed that there was some bodily disease - some running sore - which was the cause of his trouble. Hence, they so rendered the Hebrew word. But it is now generally agreed that this is without authority. The Hebrew word is “hand” - יד yâd - a word which is never used in the sense of sore or wound. The Septuagint renders it, “my hands are before him.” The Vulgate renders it in the same manner. Luther, “My hand is stretched out at night.” DeWette, “My hand is stretched out at night unwearied.” The word which is rendered in our version “ran” - נגר nâgar - means to “flow;” and, in Niphil, to be poured out, and then, “to be stretched out;” which is evidently its meaning here. The idea is, that his hand was stretched out in earnest supplication, and that this continued in the night when these troubles came most upon him. See Psa 77:4, Psa 77:6. In his painful meditations in the night. watches - in thinking on God and his ways, as he lay upon his bed, he stretched out his hand in fervent prayer to God.
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And ceased not - The word used here - פוג pûg - means properly to be cold; then, to be torpid, sluggish, slack. Here it means that the hand did not become weary; it did not fall from exhaustion; or, in other words, that he did not give over praying through weariness or exhaustion.
My soul refused to be comforted - I resisted all the suggestions that came to my own mind, that might have comforted me. My heart was so melancholy and downcast; my spirits were so crushed; my mind was so dark; I had become so morbid, that I loved to cherish these thoughts. I chose to dwell on them. They had obtained possession of me, and I could not let them go. There was nothing that my own mind could suggest, there was nothing that occurred to me, that would relieve the difficulty or restore peace to my soul. These sad and gloomy thoughts filled all my soul, and left no room for thoughts of consolation and peace. A truly pious man may, therefore, get into a state of mind - a sad, dispirited, melancholy, morbid state - in which nothing that can be said to him, nothing that will occur to himself, will give him comfort and peace. Compare Jer 31:15.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv2–4 2. In the day of my trouble I sought…
2. In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord—Not only the depth of the psalmist’s sufferings is here indicated, such as God only could relieve, but his true piety. His troubles brought him nearer to God. Psa_50:15.
My sore ran in the night—Hebrew, My hand was stretched out all night; that is, in the posture of earnest supplication. Psa_44:20; Psa_88:9.
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Ceased not—Rested not. Compare the painfulness of the attitude with Exo_17:11-12
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv2–4 2. (Thus) in the day of my distress I…
2. (Thus) in the day of my distress I sought the Lord:
My hand was stretched out in the night, and slacked not;
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My soul refused to be comforted.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv2–4 (2) My sore ran . . .—The text of…
(2) My sore ran . . .—The text of this verse is evidently faulty. As it stands it is unintelligible. My hand was poured out and grew not dull (like a corpse).
The LXX. and Vulg. have, “with my hands against Him, and I was not deceived,” pointing to a different reading. Symmachus has, however, “my hand was stretched out,” which may be a possible meaning of the Hebrew, though a comparison with Lam_3:49 (comp. Lam_2:18) suggests that eye was written instead of hand. The Authorised Version’s sore comes from the Rabbins, who thought of the hand beating the breast, and rendered, “my blows were poured out.” Though the probable text may be beyond recovery, the feeling of the verse is quite palpable. It expresses the anguish of the poet’s soul—
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“His vows in the night, so fierce and unavailing,
Stings of his shame and passion of his tears.”
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv2–4 In the day of my trouble I sought the…
In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord. (comp. Gen_35:3 Hab_3:16) My sore ran in the night; rather, my band was stretched out in the night (Cook, Cheyne, Revised Version); comp. Psa_28:2. And ceased not. He continued in prayer all through the night. My soul refused to be comforted. (comp. Gen_37:35 Jer_31:15) He was like Jacob when he lost Joseph, or like Rachel weeping for her children.
The mission of mental depressions.
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"My hand in the night season was stretched out, and ceased not." The figure is of the hand stretched out in prayer till it was unnerved by weariness, and yet refused to rest. The cause of lying awake at night is usually mental anxiety and distress; burdens on the mind rather than pains in the body. We begin to think worryfully, and so banish sleep. The text, therefore, presents a season of mental depression; and the occasion of it is found in the anxious condition of the nation. Illust. by the times of Hezekiah. Times of mental depression are not necessarily wrong. They are the natural response of the mind to physical conditions and outward circumstances. They mean "sensitiveness," "quickness to respond;" and these differ in different individuals. Some are easily made despondent; they can always see, or think they see, black clouds gathering in the sky. Some are unduly hopeful, and fail to respond when circumstances do call for anxiety. We make the mistake of failing to recognize Divine working through the anxieties of the mind, as well as through the pains of the body, and the distress of the circumstances. We deceive ourselves by thinking these mental trials are in no sense sent; we make them ourselves, and so we fail to associate God with them, and lose what would be our best comfort and relief. The truth is, that God is even more freely working through our mental depressions, because they are immaterial they belong to the innermost of us, to the sphere in which God"s grace is most unhindered.
I MENTAL DEPRESSIONS KEEP US CONVINCED OF THE SPIRITUAL. Suppose we took all things easily; never troubled over them; never brooded; how easily the "material" would gain the mastery! We know there is another world than the world of sense; there is a world of thought and feeling. How intense and real this world is we are made to know when depression prevents sleep, and even breaks down health. And so we come to apprehend the reality of the "spiritual.
II MENTAL DEPRESSIONS CONVINCE OF THE SERIOUSNESS OF OUR MORAL CONFLICT. Conceive that the struggle for character only concerned circumstances and relations, and then what an unimportant struggle it would seem to be! "But we wrestle, not with flesh and blood only, but with the rulers of spiritual darkness." Add mental conflict, and virtue becomes a sublime achievement, a transcendent victory, won at an awful cost.
III MENTAL DEPRESSIONS MAY BE OVERRULED SO AS TO GIVE NOBLER VIEWS OF GOD. Illustrate by the psalm (vers. 10-20). The law of rebound applies. Compare such a case as that of the poet Cowper, whose songs of trust were the cries of one who was often in despair. The question is Do we yield to mental depressions, or do we resist them, and so let God work his work of grace through them? R.T.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Charles H. Spurgeon 1885 · Public Domain On vv2–4 Ver. 2. In the day of my trouble I…
Ver. 2. In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord. All day long his distress drove him to his God, so that when night came he continued still in the same search. God had hidden his face from his servant, therefore the first care of the troubled saint was to seek his Lord again. This was going to the root of the matter and removing the main impediment first. Diseases and tribulations are easily enough endured when God is found of us, but without him they crush us to the earth.
My sore ran in the night, and ceased not. As by day so by night his trouble was on him and his prayer continued. Some of us know what it is, both physically and spiritually, to be compelled to use these words: no respite has been afforded us by the silence of the night, our bed has been a rack to us, our body has been in torment, and our spirit in anguish. It appears that this sentence is wrongly translated, and should be, "my hand was stretched out all night, "this shows that his prayer ceased not, but with uplifted hand he continued to seek succour of his God.
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My soul refused to be comforted. He refused some comforts as too weak for his case, others as untrue, others as unhallowed; but chiefly because of distraction, he declined even those grounds of consolation which ought to have been effectual with him. As a sick man turns away even from the most nourishing food, so did he. It is impossible to comfort those who refuse to be comforted. You may bring them to the waters of the promise, but who shall make them drink if they will not do so? Many a daughter of despondency has pushed aside the cup of gladness, and many a son of sorrow has hugged his chains. There are times when we are suspicious of good news, and are not to be persuaded into peace, though the happy truth should be as plain before us as the King's highway.
Whole Psalm. See Psalms on "Ps 77:1" for further information.
Ver. 2. In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord. Days of trouble must be days of prayer; in days of inward trouble, especially when God seems to have withdrawn from us, we must seek him, and seek till we find him. In the day of his trouble he did not seek for the diversions of business or recreation, to shake off his trouble that way, but he sought God, and his favour and grace. Those that are under trouble of mind, must not think to drink it away, or laugh it away, but pray it away. Matthew Henry.
Ver. 2. My sore ran in the night. Hebrew: My hand was poured out; that is, stretched out in prayer; or wet with continual weeping. Non fuit remissa, nec retracta in lectum. John Trapp.
Ver. 2. My sore ran in the night, and ceased not, etc. There is no healing of this wound, no easing of this sore, no cleansing of the conscience, no quieting of a man's spirit: till God whom the soul seeketh show himself as the Physician, the evil continueth still and groweth. David Dickson.
Ver. 2. My soul refused to be comforted. God has provided suitable and sufficient comfort for his people. He sends them comforters just as their circumstances require. But they at times refuse to hear the voice of the charmer. The Lord has perhaps taken away an idol--or he withholds his sensible presence, that they may learn to live by faith--or he has blighted their worldly prospects --or he has written vanity and emptiness upon all their gourds, cisterns, and delights. They give way to passion, as did Jonah--or they sink into sullen gloom--or allow unhumbled pride to rule the spirit--or yield to extreme sorrow, as Rachel did--or fall under the power of temptation--or imbibe the notion that they have no right to comfort. This is wrong, all wrong, decidedly wrong. Look at what is left you, at what the gospel presents to you, at what heaven will be to you. But the psalmist was recovered from this state. He was convinced that it was wrong. He was sorry for his sin. He was reformed in his spirit and conduct. He wrote this Psalm to instruct, caution, and warn us. Observe, they who are entitled to all comfort, often through their own folly, enjoy the least. The Lord's people are often their own tormentors, they put away the cup of comfort from them, and say they are unworthy of it
O Thou source of every blessing,
Chase my sorrows, cheer my heart,
Till in heaven, thy smiles possessing,
Life, and joy, and peace impart. James Smith.
Ver. 2. My soul refused to be comforted. Poor I, that am but of yesterday, have known some that have been so deeply plunged in the gulf of despair, that they would throw all the spiritual cordials that have been tendered to them against the walls. They were strong in reasoning against their own souls, and resolved against everything that might be a comfort and support unto them. They have been much set against all ordinances and religious services; they have cast off holy duties themselves, and peremptorily refused to join with others in them; yea, they have, out of a sense of sin and wrath, which hath laid hard upon them, refused the necessary comforts of this life, even to the overthrow of natural life, and yet out of this horrible pit, this hell upon earth, hath God delivered their souls, and given them such manifestations of his grace and favour, that they would not exchange them for a thousand worlds. O despairing souls, you see that others, whose conditions have been as bad if not worse than yours, have obtained mercy. God hath turned their hell into a heaven; he hath remembered them in their low estate; he hath pacified their raging consciences, and quieted their distracted souls; he hath wiped all tears from their eyes; and he hath been a well spring of life unto their hearts. Therefore be not discouraged, O despairing souls, but look up to the mercyseat. Thomas Brooks.
Ver. 2. See "Spurgeon's Sermons, "No. 853. "A Sermon for the Most Miserable of Men."
Ver. 2.
I. Special prayer: In the days, etc.
II. Persevering prayer: hands lifted up to God by night
as well as by day.
III. Agonizing prayer: my soul refused to be
comforted, until the answer came. "Being in an
agony, he prayed, "etc.
Ver. 2. (last clause). When this is wise, and when it is censurable.
Psalms 77:3*
Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv2–3 My soul refused to be comforted.
Psa_77:2
My soul refused to be comforted.
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Refusing to be comforted
I. When a mans soul refuses to be comforted, possibly he may be right. He may have a great spiritual sorrow, and some one, who does not at all understand his grief, may proffer to him a consolation which is far too slight. Not knowing how deep the wound is, this foolish physician may think that it can be healed with any common ointments. So, too, it is equally right to refuse to be comforted, when the comfort is untrue. When a man is under a sense of sin, I have known his friends say to him, You should not fret; you have not been so very bad. You have been, indeed, a very good sort of fellow. You have not committed any very terrible sin; God help the world if you are a great sinner! I do not know what will become of the rest Of us. Another says, You have only to pray, and go to a place of worship; perhaps be a little more regular in your attention to religion, and it will all come right again; you are not so bad as you think you are. Such talk as that is a lie, and the man whom God has really awakened to feel his state by nature will refuse to be comforted by such falsehoods as those. We have known others who have tried to comfort poor, mourning, repentant sinners in an unhallowed way. They have said, You want to raise your spirits, I can recommend you some fine old wine; it will do you a world of good. Another will say, You should really mix a little more in society, and shake yourself up; you should get with some gay, lively people, they would soon take this melancholy out of you. I am sure that a person who is really troubled in spirit will increase his sorrow if he attempts to cure it in that way. It is only putting more fuel on the flame. In danger every moment of death, and certain that, if death came, I should be lost, can I enjoy mirth? It cannot be! Refuse every comfort short of being born again, and made a new creature in Jesus.
II. But now, I want to show when this refusal is wrong. Probably he is wrong who says, My soul refused to be comforted. It is quite wrong if it be a temporal matter that causes your sorrow. Refuse not to be comforted, I pray you; you are only driving the dagger deeper into your wounds. Instead of doing that, think of the mercies that you still have, think of how God can bless your troubles. But now I will suppose that yours is a spiritual trouble. Do not refuse to be comforted, for if you do, you will be spiritually a suicide. The man who will not eat, and so dies of starvation, is as much a suicide as he that puts the pistol to his head, and blows out his brains.
III. But now, haply you will have to repent of refusing to be comforted. Possibly you will have to repent it in a very terrible way. Suppose, now, that you should refuse to be comforted, and so should wilfully go into a yet darker and deeper dungeon of despair. Suppose that your Christian friends should grow weary of you. Where would you be then? And suppose that, because you shut your eyes to the light, God should take it away? I do hope that many here present, who have refused to be comforted, will yet regret it when they shall be enjoying the fulness of comfort. What a fool am I, thus to lie in a stinking dungeon, when I may as well walk at liberty I I have a key in my bosom, called Promise, that will, I am persuaded, open any lock in Doubting Castle. So he pulled it out of his bosom, put it in the lock, opened the door of the dungeon, and they soon passed out. Now, finally, when you and I get to heaven, we shall regret that we ever refused to be comforted. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
A sermon for the most miserable of men
My main bent, this morning, is to deal with mourners who are seeking Christ, but up till now have sought Him in vain.
I. Concerning so deplorable a state of heart, alas I still so common, we will remark in the first place that it is very wonderful. It is a most surprising thing that there should be in this world persons who have the richest consolation near to hand, and persistently refuse to partake of it. Doth the ox refuse its fodder? Will the lion turn from his meat? Or the eagle loathe its nest? The refusal of consolation is the more singular because the most admirable comfort is within reach. Sin can be forgiven; sin has been forgiven; Christ has made an atonement for it. It is said that some years ago, a vessel sailing on the northern coast of the South American continent, was observed to make signals of distress. When hailed by another vessel, they reported themselves as Dying for water! Dip it up, then, was the response, you are in the mouth of the Amazon river. There was fresh water all around them, they had nothing to do but to dip it up, and yet they were dying of thirst, because they thought themselves to be surrounded by the salt sea. How often are men ignorant of their mercies! How sad that they should perish for lack of knowledge! But suppose after the sailors had received the joyful information, they had still refused to draw up the water which was in boundless plenty all around them, would it not have been a marvel?
II. Secondly, this wonderful madness has a method in it, and may be variously accounted for. In many, their refusal to be comforted arises from bodily and mental disease. It is in vain to ply with scriptural arguments those who are in more urgent need of healing medicine, or generous diet, or a change of air. In some the monstrous refusal is suggested by a proud dislike to the plan of salvation. They would be comforted, aye, that they would, but may they not do something to earn eternal life? May they not at least contribute a feeling or emotion? May they not prepare themselves for Christ? In others it is not pride, but an unholy resolve to retain some favourite sin. In some cases we have found out that the sorrowing person indulged still in a secret vice, or kept the society of the ungodly. I fear, in a great many, there is another reason for this refusing to be comforted, namely, a dishonouring unbelief in the love, and goodness, and truthfulness of God. They do not believe God to be gracious; they think Him so stern that a sinner had need plead full many a day before the stern heart of God will be touched. Oh, but you do not know my God! What is He? He is love. Some, however, have refused comfort so long, that they have grown into the habit of despair. Beware of nursing despondency. Does it creep upon you to-day through unbelief? Oh, shake it off if possible!
III. This remarkable piece of folly assumes divers forms. One is a persistent misrepresentation of the Gospel, as though it claimed some hard thing of us. Another shape of this malady is this: many continually and persistently underestimate the power of the precious blood of Jesus. There are some who will then say, But I have sinned such and such a sin. What, and cannot the blood of Jesus wash that away? All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men.
IV. This refusal to be comforted involves much of wrong. When you hear the Gospel and refuse to be comforted by it, there is a wrong done to the minister of God. He sympathizes with you, he desires to comfort you, and it troubles him when he puts before you the cup of salvation, and you refuse to take it. But worse than that, you wrong Gods Gospel. You put it away as though it were a thing of nought. You wrong this precious Bible. It is full of consoling promises, and you read it, and you seem to say, It is all chaff. Oh, but the Bible does not deserve to have such a slur cast upon it. You do wrong to the dear friends who try to comfort you. Above all, you do wrong to your God, to Jesus, and to His Holy Spirit. The crucifixion of Christ is repeated by your rejection of Christ.
V. Such a refusal should not be persisted in. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv2, 4 I stretched my hands out
I stretched my hands out
"I prayed with my arms extended"
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My soul refused to be comforted
The "soul" represents the person. This can be stated in active form. AT: "I would not allow anyone to try to comfort me" (See: Synecdoche and Active or Passive)
I thought of God as I groaned; I thought about him as I grew faint
These two phrases share similar meanings and are combined for emphasis. (See: Parallelism)
as I grew faint
"as my spirit grew faint" or "as my spirit was overwhelmed"
Selah
This may be a musical term that tells people how to sing or play their instruments here. Some translations write the Hebrew word, and some translations do not include it. See how you translated this in Psalms 3:2. (See: Copy or Borrow Words)
translationWords
trouble
lord
comfort
God
selah
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv3–4 77:3 I think of God: God’s people inevitably face…
77:3 I think of God: God’s people inevitably face difficult times, but recalling his mighty acts at the beginning of their relationship assures them of God’s commitment. • Feeling overwhelmed, the psalmist is unable to deal with the crisis (142:3; 143:4).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.