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Dhammapada · narration sample

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The Bible · 491 of 1189

Psalms 13

1.How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me?

2.How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?

3.Consider and hear me, O LORD my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death;

4.Lest mine enemy say, I have prevailed against him; and those that trouble me rejoice when I am moved.

5.But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation.

6.I will sing unto the LORD, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.

Asked of Guide

Why does the psalm move from despair to trust so quickly?

The psalm opens with raw complaint — ‘‘How long wilt thou forget me…hide thy face from me?’’ — and stays in that anguish through verses 1–4, naming sleepless sorrow and fear of enemies. Verse 5 makes a decisive turn: ‘‘But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation,’’ which reorients the speaker from asking for reasons to asserting faith as the right posture.

This shift shows how lament and trust coexist in Hebrew prayer: saying the pain aloud clears the way for a vow of praise. The movement resembles the pattern in other psalms like Psalm 42, where honest sorrow becomes a basis for hope and the choice to ‘‘put my hope in God.’’

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