Read
Psalm 77:2
In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord. My hand was stretched out in the night, and didn’t get tired. My soul refused to be comforted.
1For the Chief Musician. To Jeduthun. A Psalm by Asaph. My cry goes to God! Indeed, I cry to God for help, and for him to listen to me.
2In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord. My hand was stretched out in the night, and didn’t get tired. My soul refused to be comforted.
3I remember God, and I groan. I complain, and my spirit is overwhelmed. Selah.
4You hold my eyelids open. I am so troubled that I can’t speak.
Notice
A hand stays stretched out through the night while the soul refuses comfort, showing how seeking the Lord can coexist with distress that has not eased.
Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.
What trouble has followed you from the day into the night?
Write on thisHow does the psalmist’s outstretched hand compare with your own attempts to seek God when comfort feels out of reach?
Write on thisConnect
Where else Scripture says this
12 passages readers most often link with this verse, and the thread each one shares with it.
This verse's connections, by chapterThe Bible's strongest chapter linksHover or tap a book to trace it
Psalm 50:15Call on me in the day of trouble. I will deliver you, and you will honor me.”Both passages turn toward God in the day of trouble; Psalm 50 includes a promise of deliverance.
Jeremiah 31:15The LORD says: “A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping, Rachel weeping for her children. She refuses to be comforted for her children, …Both describe a refusal to be comforted, though Jeremiah names Rachel’s grief for her children while the psalm leaves the trouble unnamed.
Psalm 59:16But I will sing of your strength. Yes, I will sing aloud of your loving kindness in the morning. For you have been my high tower, a refuge in the day of my …Both speak of turning toward God in distress, with Psalm 59 praising him as a refuge in morning song.
Isaiah 26:9With my soul I have desired you in the night. Yes, with my spirit within me I will seek you earnestly; for when your judgments are on the earth, the …Both describe seeking God in the night, expressing a longing that reaches beyond the daylight hours.
Genesis 37:35All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. He said, “For I will go down to Sheol to my son, mourning.” His …The psalmist and Jacob both refuse to be comforted; Genesis names mourning for a son as the cause.
Psalm 27:5For in the day of trouble, he will keep me secretly in his pavilion. In the secret place of his tabernacle, he will hide me. He will lift me up on a rock.Both concern the day of trouble, with Psalm 77 describing the search for God and Psalm 27 expressing confidence in his shelter.
Isaiah 26:16LORD, in trouble they have visited you. They poured out a prayer when your chastening was on them.Both describe people seeking the Lord in trouble; Isaiah identifies chastening as the setting for their prayer.
Psalm 118:5Out of my distress, I called on the LORD. The LORD answered me with freedom.Both describe calling toward God from distress, though Psalm 118 recounts an answer while Psalm 77:2 remains uncomforted.
Hebrews 5:7He, in the days of his flesh, having offered up prayers and petitions with strong crying and tears to him who was able to save him from death, and having been …Both portray prayer amid anguish, expressed through an outstretched hand in the psalm and crying and tears in Hebrews.
Acts 16:25But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.Both describe prayer to God during the night; Acts also records singing and other people listening.
Esther 4:4Esther’s maidens and her eunuchs came and told her this, and the queen was exceedingly grieved. She sent clothing to Mordecai, to replace his sackcloth, but he …Both passages describe distress that resists relief: the psalmist refuses comfort, and Mordecai declines the clothing Esther sends.
Esther 4:1–4Now when Mordecai found out all that was done, Mordecai tore his clothes and put on sackcloth with ashes, and went out into the middle of the city, and wailed …Both passages show distress expressed through the body: the psalmist stretches out a hand, while Mordecai tears his clothes and wails.
Where this verse fits
Grief. feeling distant from God. anxiety or panic.
One step
Something small to carry out of this verse
Encouragement
Seeking God does not always bring a felt change before the night ends. Here, Scripture records persistent prayer and an uncomforted soul in the same breath.
Now put it in your words.
Start an entry on Psalm 77:2. Write what it stirs. Psalmlog sets your words beside Scripture and gives you one next step. Your first entry is free, no account needed.
Keep goingPsalm 77 · the whole chapter with its connection mapPsalms · every chapterBuild a reading plan through Psalms
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).