The big picture
Psalms 88 opens in verse 1 with “O LORD God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee:”, reaches its middle movement near verse 9 with “Mine eye mourneth by reason of affliction: LORD , I have called daily upon thee, I have…”, and closes in verse 18 with “Lover and friend hast thou put far from me, and mine acquaintance into darkness.” Repeated or prominent terms include LORD, dead, grave, acquaintance, afflicted. Together, those details trace this chapter’s own movement from its opening to its conclusion.
Scripture beside the summary
Psalms · King James Version · 18Psalms 88:1-6
1–6: O LORD God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee:
Psalms 88:1–6 opens with “O LORD God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee:” and reaches “Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, in the deeps.” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on Psalms 88 develops its own movement around LORD, dead, grave, acquaintance, afflicted, with particular weight carried by grave, counted, cried.
Context that brings the passage to life
“O LORD God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee:” The verse names God rather than leaving the action without a source. Watch whether the next line continues, answers, or contrasts that action.
Psalms 88:1-6
King James Version1O LORD God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee:
2Let my prayer come before thee: incline thine ear unto my cry;
3For my soul is full of troubles: and my life draweth nigh unto the grave.
4I am counted with them that go down into the pit: I am as a man that hath no strength:
5Free among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, whom thou rememberest no more: and they are cut off from thy hand.
6Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, in the deeps.
Psalms 88:7-12
7–12: Thy wrath lieth hard upon me, and thou hast afflicted me with all thy…
Psalms 88:7–12 opens with “Thy wrath lieth hard upon me, and thou hast afflicted me with all thy waves. Selah.” and reaches “Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on Psalms 88 develops its own movement around LORD, dead, grave, acquaintance, afflicted, with particular weight carried by dead, Selah, wonders.
Context that brings the passage to life
This block contains 3 explicit questions. They are more than punctuation: they reveal where a voice is searching, challenging, afraid, or trying to understand.
Psalms 88:7-12
King James Version7Thy wrath lieth hard upon me, and thou hast afflicted me with all thy waves. Selah.
8Thou hast put away mine acquaintance far from me; thou hast made me an abomination unto them: I am shut up, and I cannot come forth.
9Mine eye mourneth by reason of affliction: LORD , I have called daily upon thee, I have stretched out my hands unto thee.
10Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead? shall the dead arise and praise thee? Selah.
11Shall thy lovingkindness be declared in the grave? or thy faithfulness in destruction?
12Shall thy wonders be known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
Psalms 88:13-18
13–18: Unto thee have I cried, O LORD ; and in the morning shall my prayer…
Psalms 88:13–18 opens with “But unto thee have I cried, O LORD ; and in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee.” and reaches “Lover and friend hast thou put far from me, and mine acquaintance into darkness.” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on Psalms 88 develops its own movement around LORD, dead, grave, acquaintance, afflicted, with particular weight carried by LORD, terrors, acquaintance.
Context that brings the passage to life
This block contains 1 explicit questions. They are more than punctuation: they reveal where a voice is searching, challenging, afraid, or trying to understand.
Psalms 88:13-18
King James Version13But unto thee have I cried, O LORD ; and in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee.
14LORD , why castest thou off my soul? why hidest thou thy face from me?
15I am afflicted and ready to die from my youth up: while I suffer thy terrors I am distracted.
16Thy fierce wrath goeth over me; thy terrors have cut me off.
17They came round about me daily like water; they compassed me about together.
18Lover and friend hast thou put far from me, and mine acquaintance into darkness.
Details worth noticing
The opening image
Psalms 88:1 begins with “O LORD God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee:”
Where the chapter turns
Psalms 88:10 forms a natural hinge: “Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead? shall the dead arise and praise thee? Selah.”
The final note
Psalms 88:18 leaves the reader with “Lover and friend hast thou put far from me, and mine acquaintance into darkness.”
A word trail through the chapter
The words LORD, dead, grave, acquaintance, afflicted, cried help reveal the chapter’s repeated concerns.
KJV words made clear
- unto
- to
- thee
- you
- thou
- you
- thy
- your
- hath
- has
Text first
Where readers differ
The chapter summary begins with what the passage says and how its parts fit together. It does not assume one denomination has already settled every question. Where a conclusion depends on a tradition, literary theory, or historical reconstruction, that dependence is named openly.
The KJV text is presented first. Interpretive conclusions are labeled, and differences are introduced only when they help a reader understand why serious communities do not always reach the same answer.
Comparative interpretive notes for this chapter are in preparation. Until reviewed notes are ready, this page separates the KJV text from summary and application without claiming that serious readers agree on every question.