Psalm 102:3 - Printer Friendly

ESV: For my days pass away like smoke, and my bones burn like a furnace.

NIV: For my days vanish like smoke; my bones burn like glowing embers.

NASB: For my days have ended in smoke, And my bones have been scorched like a hearth.

CSB: For my days vanish like smoke, and my bones burn like a furnace.

NLT: For my days disappear like smoke, and my bones burn like red-hot coals.

KJV: For my days are consumed like smoke, and my bones are burned as an hearth.

NKJV: For my days are consumed like smoke, And my bones are burned like a hearth.

Psalm 102:1–11 pleads with the Lord to see the psalmist's suffering. The writer compares his condition to lonely desert animals and charred ashes. He realizes this is according to God's will, but mourns that enemies seem to have achieved victory.

The psalmist uses dramatic images to depict his deep suffering. These emphasize ideas like loneliness, hopelessness, and despair. Even so, the psalmist knows that God is in control. He writes a message for future generations, telling them to see his own suffering as evidence that the Lord sees His people in their pain. The psalmist is sure that God will come to rescue His people, one day, and they will be safe forever.

This psalm's unusual subtitle appears to indicate when the song is appropriate, rather than the author or inspiration. Some suggest it refers to sadness as the people wait to be restored from Babylonian captivity. However, the song is very personal. Its themes resemble those of Psalms 22, 69, and 79, as well as parts of Isaiah. Despite pain, the psalmist praises and honors the Lord as God. A portion near the end of the psalm reappears in Hebrews 1:10–12.

The book of Psalms is composed of individual songs, hymns, or poems, each of which is a ''Psalm'' in and of itself. These works contain a wide variety of themes. Some Psalms focus on praising and worshipping God. Others cry out in anguish over the pain of life. Still other Psalms look forward to the coming of the Messiah. While some Psalms are related, each has its own historical and biblical context.

Accessed 11/22/2024 9:14:35 AM