Psalm 13 1

Psalm 13:1 kjv

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

Psalm 13:1 nkjv

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. How long, O LORD? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me?

Psalm 13:1 niv

For the director of music. A psalm of David. How long, LORD? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?

Psalm 13:1 esv

How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?

Psalm 13:1 nlt

O LORD, how long will you forget me? Forever?
How long will you look the other way?

Psalm 13 verses

Psalm 13 1 Meaning

Psalm 13:1 is a poignant individual lament, opening with an intense and repetitive cry expressing profound distress and a feeling of abandonment by God. The psalmist, presumed to be David, voices deep anguish, asking how long the divine neglect and perceived hiddenness of God's presence will persist. It captures the raw human experience of suffering, desperation, and the longing for God's visible intervention and comforting presence in times of severe trials.

Psalm 13 1 Context

Psalm 13:1 is the opening verse of one of the classic individual lament psalms. It follows a general structure common to such psalms: an initial outcry of complaint (verses 1-2), a plea for help (verses 3-4), and a concluding expression of trust, praise, or vow of thanksgiving (verses 5-6). This particular psalm stands out for its deep personal anguish and desperate direct address to God, encapsulating the raw emotions of a person feeling forsaken.

The historical context for many individual laments, often attributed to King David, frequently involves periods of intense personal affliction, sickness, betrayal by friends, pursuit by enemies (like Saul or Absalom), or profound spiritual distress where God's presence seemed withdrawn. These psalms were not merely personal diaries but were intended for communal worship and provided a script for others experiencing similar anguish, demonstrating that bringing honest complaints before God is a legitimate act of faith. The psalmists felt free to express the full range of human emotions, even frustration and impatience with God's perceived slowness or silence, precisely because they believed God was mighty enough to hear and respond.

Psalm 13 1 Word analysis

• How long ('Adh Anah, עַד־אָנָה): This repeated phrase, translating to "until when?" or "for how much longer?", is a quintessential expression of urgency, exasperation, and intense impatience. It conveys a sense of stretched-out, unbearable suffering that the psalmist feels has gone on for too long. It is not a question of God's inability, but of His timing and continued absence or non-intervention. Its repetition underscores the deep distress and the longing for immediate relief, highlighting the seemingly endless nature of the affliction from the human perspective.
• O Lord (YHWH, יְהוָה): The use of God's covenant name, Yahweh, is highly significant. It implies a personal relationship and a confident appeal to God's covenant faithfulness and character. The psalmist is not crying out to an unknown deity but to the God who has made Himself known through His steadfast love, promises, and past deliverance. Even in despair, this invocation grounds the lament in the context of an ongoing, committed relationship.
• Will you forget me (Tišəḵaḥēni, תִּשְׁכָּחֵנִי): The verb "to forget" (שָׁכַח, shakhach) implies more than mere absentmindedness; it suggests an active disregard or neglect, a conscious withdrawal of attention and care. The psalmist feels like an object that God has ceased to remember or care for, signifying profound isolation and a terrifying sense of divine abandonment. This is a hyperbolic expression of deep pain, not a theological statement questioning God's actual memory or omnipotence.
• Forever (LaNeṣaḥ, לָנֶצַח): This adverb emphasizes the extreme depth of the psalmist's despair. "Forever" (neṣaḥ) denotes perpetuity or ultimate continuance. In this context, it is a cry of hyperbole, indicating the perceived interminable nature of his suffering and God's perceived silence. It's an expression of present hopelessness, a feeling that the current distress will never end, even if rationally the psalmist knows God does not literally forget His people forever.
• How long will you hide your face (Tas'tir Paneka, תַּסְתִּיר פָּנֶיךָ): "Hiding the face" is a powerful anthropomorphic metaphor. It signifies divine displeasure, withdrawal of favor, refusal to communicate, or a lack of comforting presence and help. Conversely, God "shining His face" indicates blessing, favor, and presence. To feel God hiding His face is to feel exposed, vulnerable, and cut off from the very source of life and strength, indicating perceived judgment or divine indifference in the face of suffering.

Words-group by words-group analysis data:

• "How long, O Lord?": This emphatic, repeated phrase establishes the core emotion of the psalm: intense lament born of extended distress. It directly addresses the Covenant Lord, reflecting a desperate appeal from one who still believes in God's power and relationship, despite feeling abandoned. The repetition is not redundant but emphasizes the relentless agony and the psalmist's longing for its end, showcasing a bold, yet desperate faith that feels comfortable questioning God within the bounds of a covenant relationship.
• "Will you forget me forever?": This is a profound expression of the psalmist's fear and perceived reality of complete and perpetual divine abandonment. The question isn't whether God can forget, but whether He chooses to forget, reflecting a feeling of being overlooked and dismissed by the One who should be closest. "Forever" intensifies this fear, indicating that the current suffering feels interminable and without divine intercession in sight. It challenges the common understanding of God's unwavering faithfulness by presenting the human perception of His absence.
• "How long will you hide your face from me?": This echoes the first plea and deepens it, shifting from active forgetting to passive withdrawal. "Hiding one's face" is a powerful ancient Near Eastern metaphor for withholding favor, showing disapproval, or ceasing communication. For the believer, God's hidden face means a terrifying lack of guidance, protection, and comforting presence, plunging them into darkness and despair. The repeated "how long" emphasizes the unbearable duration of this spiritual darkness, highlighting a spiritual battle as much as a physical one.

Psalm 13 1 Bonus section

The structure of lament psalms, exemplified by Psalm 13, is significant. They typically begin with an address to God, followed by the lament or complaint, a confession of sin or statement of innocence (less prominent here), a plea for deliverance, an expression of confidence, and a vow of praise. This structured journey from despair to hope offers a biblical paradigm for engaging with suffering. Psalm 13:1 perfectly sets up this journey, starting with the deepest complaint, indicating that honest expressions of struggle are the prelude to faith's reassertion. The bold and challenging nature of the questions directed to God also speaks to the profound intimacy and trust inherent in the covenant relationship: the psalmist feels free to express such pain only because he trusts God's enduring character. This openness highlights that faith does not negate struggle but enables one to wrestle with it directly before the Lord.

Psalm 13 1 Commentary

Psalm 13:1 provides a universal articulation of spiritual and emotional distress. It opens the psalmist’s raw and honest dialogue with God, exposing deep anguish and perceived divine absence. The repetition of "How long, O Lord?" encapsulates the human struggle with enduring suffering, reflecting a legitimate impatience not with God's being, but with His perceived delay or silence in response to a desperate plight. This verse establishes that lament, even questioning God's attention and care ("forget me forever?") or presence ("hide your face from me?"), is a valid and divinely approved form of prayer. It shows that true faith allows for expressing the depths of despair without losing trust in God's ultimate nature, understanding that even a hidden God is still God. The lament transitions from questioning to petition and then to trust, demonstrating that crying out is often the first step back to hope.

For example, when enduring a prolonged illness or a season of intense personal trials, one might honestly pray, "How long, O Lord, will this pain continue? Have You forgotten my suffering? How long will I feel isolated?" This verse legitimizes such raw cries.