Psalm 88 (NKJV)

A Prayer for Help in Despondency

A Song. A Psalm of the Sons of Korah. To the Chief Musician. Set to “Mahalath Leannoth.” a Contemplation of Heman the Ezrahite.

1 O LORD, God of my salvation,
I have cried out day and night before You.
2 Let my prayer come before You;
Incline Your ear to my cry.

3 For my soul is full of troubles,
And my life draws near to the grave.
4 I am counted with those who go down to the pit;
I am like a man who has no strength,
5 Adrift among the dead,
Like the slain who lie in the grave,
Whom You remember no more,
And who are cut off from Your hand.

6 You have laid me in the lowest pit,
In darkness, in the depths.
7 Your wrath lies heavy upon me,
And You have afflicted me with all Your waves.

Selah

• Lord, desperation overwhelms me. I feel alone and unheard. I know that You hear me, but You are silent thus far.
• Trouble surrounds me. I feel death tracking me.
• I am weak and floating down a river of raging trouble.
• Deep darkness is all around me. I feel Your wrath. My sins are being visited back upon me. I am thinking about my plight day and night. I have no remedy but You.
• You are my hope and the only thought on my mind.

8 You have put away my acquaintances far from me;
You have made me an abomination to them;
I am shut up, and I cannot get out;
9 My eye wastes away because of affliction.

LORD, I have called daily upon You;
I have stretched out my hands to You.
10 Will You work wonders for the dead?
Shall the dead arise and praise You?

Selah

• Alienation is my portion among my brethren. No one seek me out. I am alone.
• Sickness has taken away my vitality. I am weak and without remedy.
• I am in need and You are my only source.
• Death knocks at my door. I feel like life is ebbing away from me.
• I cannot survive without You.
• I sit and dream and meditate on Your rescue of my soul. Your goodness is my only hope.

11 Shall Your lovingkindness be declared in the grave?
Or Your faithfulness in the place of destruction?
12 Shall Your wonders be known in the dark?
And Your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?

13 But to You I have cried out, O LORD,
And in the morning my prayer comes before You.
14 LORD, why do You cast off my soul?
Why do You hide Your face from me?
15 I have been afflicted and ready to die from my youth;
I suffer Your terrors;
I am distraught.
16 Your fierce wrath has gone over me;
Your terrors have cut me off.
17 They came around me all day long like water;
They engulfed me altogether.
18 Loved one and friend You have put far from me,
And my acquaintances into darkness.

• Death is a destination with no return. I cannot praise You in the grave.
• Destruction looms over me like judgment over a criminal, a sinner.
• Darkness makes my path hard to walk.
• Forgotten souls are of no use to You, O LORD.
• I raise my petition to the Savior of my soul.
• Loneliness takes my energy, but with what I have left I will praise You and call upon You for my rescue.
• Affliction is my reward, but You are the God of my restoration.
• Wrath beats me to within an inch of my life, but You are my life.
• Terror seeks to paralyze me, but I will lift my hands, my eyes, my heart unto You, O God.
• Even if I stand alone, I will stand in my faith in Your ability to restore, save, and heal me from my afflictions. You are God, my God, the only God!