Psalm 141 7

Psalm 141:7 kjv

Our bones are scattered at the grave's mouth, as when one cutteth and cleaveth wood upon the earth.

Psalm 141:7 nkjv

Our bones are scattered at the mouth of the grave, As when one plows and breaks up the earth.

Psalm 141:7 niv

They will say, "As one plows and breaks up the earth, so our bones have been scattered at the mouth of the grave."

Psalm 141:7 esv

As when one plows and breaks up the earth, so shall our bones be scattered at the mouth of Sheol.

Psalm 141:7 nlt

Like rocks brought up by a plow,
the bones of the wicked will lie scattered without burial.

Psalm 141 verses

Psalm 141 7 Meaning

Psalm 141:7 vividly portrays a scene of utter desolation and death. It uses a grim agricultural simile to express the extreme state of destruction suffered by the psalmist and his people. "As when one plows and breaks up the earth, so our bones have been scattered at the mouth of the grave." This signifies a total defeat and humiliation, where bodies are left unburied and fragmented, resembling earth torn apart by a plow, leading not to planting and life, but to death and dissolution. The imagery conveys a sense of ultimate despair from a human perspective, with lives completely dispersed and given over to the realm of death, Sheol.

Psalm 141 7 Context

Psalm 141 is a prayer of David, a psalm of distress and urgent petition to God. Throughout the chapter, David seeks divine protection from sin, especially sins of the tongue and heart, and deliverance from his enemies' snares. The preceding verses focus on David's desire for personal integrity and guidance (vv. 3-4), willingness to receive rebuke from the righteous (v. 5), and trust in God's judgment upon the wicked (v. 6). Verse 7 depicts the ultimate outcome feared by the psalmist and his people if God does not intervene: complete devastation and unceremonious death at the hands of their foes.

Historically and culturally, a proper burial was paramount in ancient Israelite society, signifying dignity, respect for the dead, and peace in their resting place. To be unburied, or for one's bones to be scattered, was considered a profound curse, a mark of severe judgment, dishonor, and the absolute antithesis of a peaceful end. This imagery communicates a dire situation where they are not merely dead but subjected to the ultimate disgrace, signifying that even the most basic human dignity has been stripped away.

Psalm 141 7 Word analysis

• כְּמוֹ (k'mo) – As when, like: This Hebrew particle introduces a simile, drawing a comparison between two seemingly disparate images. Here, it sets up a powerful, grim analogy.
• חֹרֵשׁ (choreš) – one who plows: Derived from the root ḥāraš, meaning to plow or engrave. Plowing typically involves breaking up the hard, fallow ground to prepare it for planting new seeds and bringing forth life. The use of this active participle creates a vivid image of a farmer diligently working the soil.
• וּבֹקֵעַ (uvoke'a) – and breaks up, and cleaves: From the root bāqaʿ, meaning to split, cleave, or break open. In conjunction with "plows," it describes the vigorous action of tearing apart the earth, breaking large clods into smaller pieces. This action is usually associated with preparation for fertility and growth.
• בָּאָרֶץ (bā'ārets) – in the earth, on the ground: This phrase grounds the simile literally, emphasizing the physical context of the agricultural action. The scattered bones lie upon or within the earth itself.
• נִפְזְרוּ (nipz'ru) – have been scattered: This is a passive verb (Nifal conjugation), indicating that the scattering is something done to them, not something they do. It conveys an utter lack of control and a complete disintegration. The scattering of bones is the opposite of being gathered for burial, representing profound disrespect and the finality of their defeat.
• עֲצָמֵינוּ (atzameinu) – our bones: Bones symbolize the very essence of a person, the remains that endure after flesh decays, or the entirety of a person. Here, "our bones" can signify the psalmist and his entire people, reduced to mere fragments. Scattered bones represent complete destruction and dishonor.
• לְפִי שְׁאוֹל (lephi she'ol) – at the mouth of the grave, at the mouth of Sheol:
  • לְפִי (lephi) – at the mouth of: The Hebrew word peh means "mouth" or "opening." Using lephi personifies Sheol, giving it an opening, like a devouring mouth. It suggests a close proximity, almost as if they are right at the entrance to the underworld, or have already been consumed by it.
  • שְׁאוֹל (she'ol) – Sheol, the grave, the underworld: In the Old Testament, Sheol is the general realm of the dead, a shadowy place where all go after death. It is not necessarily a place of punishment or reward in the classical sense, but simply the cessation of life on earth. To be scattered "at the mouth of Sheol" is to be completely yielded to death's domain, signifying the absolute loss of life and hope.

Words-group analysis:

• כְּמוֹ חֹרֵשׁ וּבֹקֵעַ בָּאָרֶץ (Like one who plows and breaks up the earth): This opening phrase sets up a stark contrast. Plowing usually anticipates new life, sowing, and harvesting. Here, this productive, life-giving image is inverted to represent total destruction and the desolation of death. It implies a systematic, even violent, breaking apart of what once was.
• נִפְזְרוּ עֲצָמֵינוּ לְפִי שְׁאוֹל (our bones have been scattered at the mouth of Sheol): This is the grim reality to which the simile points. The result of this "plowing" is not a fertile field but scattered, unburied bones—a symbol of complete defeat, utter shame, and a definitive surrender to the power of death. The image of bones, the enduring remnants, scattered before the very entrance of the underworld emphasizes the irreversible and humiliating extent of their demise. The contrast highlights the perversion of a normal, life-giving act into an instrument of profound devastation and the absolute vulnerability of human life without God's intervention.

Psalm 141 7 Bonus section

The rendering of Psalm 141:7 in older translations, notably the King James Version ("Our bones are scattered at the grave's mouth, as when one cutteth and cleaveth wood upon the earth"), reflects an alternative interpretation of the Hebrew verbs ḥāraš and bāqaʿ. While bāqaʿ can indeed mean to "cleave wood" (as in Deut 20:20), the verb ḥāraš overwhelmingly means "to plow" or "to engrave" in the Old Testament, rarely if ever applying to wood. Moreover, the act of "cleaving wood" usually results in neatly stacked firewood, which poorly aligns with the image of scattered bones. Modern scholarly consensus, therefore, strongly favors the "plowing and breaking up the earth" interpretation, as it coheres better with the agricultural context implied by ḥāraš and powerfully conveys the idea of dismemberment and dispersal akin to disturbing soil. This reading emphasizes the inversion of life-giving acts into deathly destruction.

Psalm 141 7 Commentary

Psalm 141:7 presents an exceptionally vivid and distressing image of profound suffering and apparent demise. The psalmist, likely David, uses the familiar agricultural act of plowing—which is meant to prepare the ground for new growth—to illustrate the scattering and destruction of his people's very physical existence. This simile highlights the violence and totality of their predicament; their bodies are not merely dead but completely disrespected, left fragmented like churned earth, and abandoned at the precipice of the underworld. "Our bones scattered at the mouth of Sheol" speaks of ultimate dishonor, an unburied state symbolizing God's judgment or enemy's cruelty, directly contrasting the ancient Near Eastern emphasis on proper burial. The verse expresses the utter hopelessness of a situation from a human vantage point, where physical and symbolic obliteration seems complete. It acts as the dark backdrop against which David's plea for divine intervention in the subsequent verses (141:8-10) gains urgent intensity. Though a depiction of utter desolation, it serves to magnify the necessity of God's redemptive power, which alone can reverse such a desolate state, as seen powerfully in the prophetic vision of dry bones given new life (Eze 37).