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Psalm 6

Psalm 6 moves from anguish and fear of God’s anger to confidence that YHWH has heard the sufferer’s prayer.

David pleads with YHWH for mercy while his body is faint and his soul is in anguish. The title names David and assigns the psalm to the chief musician, though the circumstances behind the prayer are unknown. He fears God’s anger, weeps through the night, and faces adversaries. He asks God to spare his life for the sake of God’s loving kindness. The closing verses declare that YHWH has heard his prayer.

griefillness or diagnosisfeeling distant from God
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1For the Chief Musician; on stringed instruments, upon the eight-stringed lyre. A Psalm by David. LORD, don’t rebuke me in your anger, neither discipline me in your wrath.
2Have mercy on me, LORD, for I am faint. LORD, heal me, for my bones are troubled.
3My soul is also in great anguish. But you, LORD—how long?
4Return, LORD. Deliver my soul, and save me for your loving kindness’ sake.
5For in death there is no memory of you. In Sheol, who shall give you thanks?
6I am weary with my groaning. Every night I flood my bed. I drench my couch with my tears.
7My eye wastes away because of grief. It grows old because of all my adversaries.
8Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity, for the LORD has heard the voice of my weeping.
9The LORD has heard my supplication. The LORD accepts my prayer.
10May all my enemies be ashamed and dismayed. They shall turn back, they shall be disgraced suddenly.
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Key verses
Psalm 6:5The prospect of death sharpens David’s plea for life, where he can remember God and give thanks.
Psalm 6:2David brings his weakness and troubled bones before YHWH, asking for mercy and healing.
Psalm 6:6The image of a bed flooded with tears shows how grief fills David’s nights and drains his strength.
Where this chapter reaches

Isaiah shares the appeal that those who descend to the grave cannot give thanks as the living do, while Job shares language of exhaustion and distress before God. Matthew echoes the command for workers of evil to depart, a phrase David addresses to his adversaries here.

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After reading the whole chapter

What stands out to you about David grounding his plea in God’s loving kindness?

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How does the closing confidence that God has heard affect your reading of David’s tears?

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Questions people ask about Psalm 6

What does Sheol mean in Psalm 6:5?

Sheol is a Hebrew term for the realm of the dead. David’s question treats death as the loss of life in which he remembers God and offers thanks. The verse belongs to an urgent plea to be spared; it does not give a full account of life after death.

Was David sick when he wrote Psalm 6?

David asks for healing and describes faintness, troubled bones, and eyes weakened by grief. These details suggest physical suffering alongside anguish and threats from enemies. The psalm names no illness or historical event, so the nature of his condition and the circumstances behind it remain uncertain.

Why does the mood change at the end of Psalm 6?

In verses 8–10, David turns from pleading with God to addressing his enemies and declaring that YHWH has heard him. The text records no intervening event or explanation for this change. It presents confidence that his prayer is accepted, while the enemies’ disgrace is still anticipated.

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What the Bible says about grief →What the Bible says about doubt →

Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).