Psalm 6:6 - Printer Friendly

ESV: I am weary with my moaning; every night I flood my bed with tears; I drench my couch with my weeping.

NIV: I am worn out from my groaning. All night long I flood my bed with weeping and drench my couch with tears.

NASB: I am weary with my sighing; Every night I make my bed swim, I flood my couch with my tears.

CSB: I am weary from my groaning; with my tears I dampen my bed and drench my couch every night.

NLT: I am worn out from sobbing. All night I flood my bed with weeping, drenching it with my tears.

KJV: I am weary with my groaning; all the night make I my bed to swim; I water my couch with my tears.

NKJV: I am weary with my groaning; All night I make my bed swim; I drench my couch with my tears.

The cause for David's misery is not given in this psalm. It might have been anguish over his own personal sin, or the effects of a disease, or both. He might have been suffering from a dire threat from enemies. In his misery, David wept profusely. His tears drenched his bed and couch.

In another of the "penitential Psalms," David says he was feeble and crushed and he groaned (Psalm 38:8). David states: "O Lord, all my longing is before you; my sighing is not hidden from you" (Psalm 38:9). Adding to his misery, his friends and relatives have forsaken him and his enemies plot to destroy him (Psalm 38:11–12). David had known peaceful sleep in the past. In Psalm 4:8 he writes: "In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety."

Somehow David's confidence in the Lord, which had allowed him to sleep securely, had vanished. Now he cannot sleep at all. Loss of confidence in the Lord as our protector can cause us, too, to weep and lose sleep.

Psalm 6:6–7 continues to depict David's intense struggle with anguish and a fear of death. He describes sleeplessness and intense grief. He writes that he filled his bed and couch with tears. His sleeplessness and grief even affected his eyesight.

David begins Psalm 6 by asking the Lord to withhold discipline from him. He describes the anguish he is experiencing. His bones are in pain and his soul is troubled. It's not clear whether David is literally experiencing some illness, sorrow for his sin, danger from enemies, or some combination of all these concerns. Whatever the situation, David's health is failing and so is his confidence. And yet, he is ultimately assured that God will intervene. The psalm begins in repentance and ends in confidence.

This psalm is ascribed to David. No exact incident in David's life is identified in this passage. There seems to be a connection to a disease or other health issue. He may have written it during his old age, when his son Absalom rebelled against him (2 Samuel 15:12–14). Another possible inspiration is David's sorrow over his sin with Bathsheba (Psalm 51; 2 Samuel 12:9). Psalm 6 is one of seven penitential psalms: songs expressing confession and repentance. The other six are Psalms 32, 38, 51, 102, 130, and 143.

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 5/4/2024 8:22:49 AM