Book of Psalms · Chapter 88 of 150
18 verses · 4 video commentaries from 3 courses · Berean Standard Bible
1A song. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. For the choirmaster. According to Mahalath Leannoth. A Maskil of Heman the Ezrahite. O LORD, the God of my salvation, day and night I cry out before You.
2May my prayer come before You; incline Your ear to my cry.
3For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to Sheol.
4I am counted among those descending to the Pit. I am like a man without strength.
5I am forsaken among the dead, like the slain who lie in the grave, whom You remember no more, who are cut off from Your care.
6You have laid me in the lowest Pit, in the darkest of the depths.
7Your wrath weighs heavily upon me; all Your waves have submerged me. Selah
8You have removed my friends from me; You have made me repulsive to them; I am confined and cannot escape.
9My eyes grow dim with grief. I call to You daily, O LORD; I spread out my hands to You.
10Do You work wonders for the dead? Do departed spirits rise up to praise You? Selah
11Can Your loving devotion be proclaimed in the grave, Your faithfulness in Abaddon?
12Will Your wonders be known in the darkness, or Your righteousness in the land of oblivion?
13But to You, O LORD, I cry for help; in the morning my prayer comes before You.
14Why, O LORD, do You reject me? Why do You hide Your face from me?
15From my youth I was afflicted and near death. I have borne Your terrors; I am in despair.
16Your wrath has swept over me; Your terrors have destroyed me.
17All day long they engulf me like water; they enclose me on every side.
18You have removed my beloved and my friend; darkness is my closest companion.
Ps 88:3
The Hebrew Bible refers to Sheol, which is debated among scholars as either a literal afterlife location or a poetic reference to the grave. Passages suggest it is located in the earth, a general place for all the dead, and not specifically a place of punishment for the wicked, though it is generally depicted as an undesirable experience.
Summarized by AI · Demons and Ghosts in the Bible · Lecture 11: The Abode of Satan · watch the clip
The Hebrew Bible describes Sheol as a place one descends into and does not return from. While some passages, like Job 7:9, suggest a definitive, irreversible journey, it remains ambiguous whether Sheol is a literal underworld like Hades or merely a metaphorical representation of the grave.
Summarized by AI · Demons and Ghosts in the Bible · Lecture 23: Ghosts, Sheol, and "Teraphim" in the Hebrew Bible · watch the clip
Individual laments, such as Psalm 6, use generic language to describe distress, avoiding specific details about the speaker's troubles or enemies. This generality, like 'my whole being is stricken with terror' or 'surrounded by enemies,' makes the psalms more universally applicable for readers facing various forms of anguish, allowing them to identify with the text regardless of their specific circumstances.
Summarized by AI · The Hebrew Bible: Exploring the Literature of Ancient Israel · Lecture 21: Psalms | The Poetry of the People (?) · watch the clip
Ps 88:10
Sheol, a term found about 60 times in the Hebrew Bible, is often mistranslated as 'hell' in English Bibles, leading to misunderstanding. Through poetic parallelism, where a second line rephrases the first, Sheol is consistently equated with 'grave,' 'tomb,' or 'death.' It is not a place where souls gather for punishment or reward, but simply where one is buried, devoid of life or God's presence.
Summarized by AI · Bart D. Ehrman · YouTube · Did Jesus Actually Believe in Hell? · watch the clip