Psalm 31:10 kjv
For my life is spent with grief, and my years with sighing: my strength faileth because of mine iniquity, and my bones are consumed.
Psalm 31:10 nkjv
For my life is spent with grief, And my years with sighing; My strength fails because of my iniquity, And my bones waste away.
Psalm 31:10 niv
My life is consumed by anguish and my years by groaning; my strength fails because of my affliction, and my bones grow weak.
Psalm 31:10 esv
For my life is spent with sorrow, and my years with sighing; my strength fails because of my iniquity, and my bones waste away.
Psalm 31:10 nlt
I am dying from grief;
my years are shortened by sadness.
Sin has drained my strength;
I am wasting away from within.
Psalm 31 10 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Psa 6:2-7 | "Have mercy... for my bones are troubled... My eye is consumed because of grief..." | David's physical decay due to profound sorrow. |
| Psa 32:3-4 | "When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long... my moisture is turned into the drought of summer." | Severe physical suffering stemming from unconfessed sin. |
| Psa 38:3, 7 | "No soundness in my flesh because of your indignation... my loins are filled with a loathsome disease, and there is no soundness in my flesh." | Bodily illness and decay described as a consequence of sin. |
| Psa 42:3 | "My tears have been my food day and night, while they continually say unto me, Where is thy God?" | Deep, consuming sorrow and despair. |
| Psa 77:2-3 | "In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord... My soul refused to be comforted... I am troubled." | Inner turmoil and distress that resists comfort. |
| Psa 88:15 | "I am afflicted and ready to die from my youth up; while I suffer your terrors I am distraught." | A profound and sustained state of affliction. |
| Psa 102:3-5 | "My days are consumed like smoke, and my bones are burned as a hearth... my groaning." | The body wasting away and aching from intense sorrow. |
| Lam 1:20 | "See, O Lord, how distressed I am! My soul is troubled; my heart is overturned within me..." | Expressing profound inner anguish and despair. |
| Gen 47:9 | "Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life..." | Jacob's reflection on the hardship and brevity of his life. |
| Job 7:3-4 | "I have been allotted months of futility, and nights of misery have been appointed to me." | Description of prolonged and weary existence under suffering. |
| Isa 59:1-2 | "But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you..." | Iniquity causing separation and adverse consequences. |
| Jer 9:1 | "Oh that my head were waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night..." | A desire for endless lament due to overwhelming grief. |
| Rom 6:23 | "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." | Sin's ultimate consequence (spiritual death/decay). |
| Jam 1:15 | "Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death." | The progression of sin leading to death (deterioration). |
| Gal 6:7-8 | "Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap." | The principle of consequence for one's actions, including sin. |
| Rom 8:26 | "Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words." | Groaning as an expression of profound, unspoken anguish. |
| Exo 2:23 | "And the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up unto God..." | The collective groaning and sighing of the oppressed. |
| Neh 8:10 | "...the joy of the LORD is your strength." | A theological contrast: true strength comes from divine joy, not human fortitude. |
| Phil 4:13 | "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." | Spiritual strength enabling endurance through reliance on Christ. |
| 2 Cor 12:9-10 | "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." | God's power made manifest and complete in human frailty. |
| Isa 40:29-31 | "He gives power to the faint; and to those who have no might He increases strength." | God as the source of renewed strength for the weary and weak. |
| Psa 28:7 | "The LORD is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped..." | Declaration of the Lord as the true source of all strength. |
Psalm 31 verses
Psalm 31 10 Meaning
Psalm 31:10 vividly describes a person consumed by overwhelming physical and emotional distress. The speaker's entire existence—life, years, strength, and even the core of his physical being (bones)—is deeply affected, indicating prolonged and pervasive suffering. This deterioration is linked to 'iniquity' or the resulting 'misery' or 'affliction,' implying a recognition that personal failings or the severe consequences of difficult circumstances, viewed through a covenantal lens, contribute to the overwhelming sense of decay and weakness.
Psalm 31 10 Context
Psalm 31 is a profound psalm of lament and trust, depicting King David in a state of severe personal crisis. Following an earnest appeal to God for rescue and an affirmation of his steadfast trust in the Lord (Psa 31:1-8), verse 10 initiates a section (Psa 31:9-13) that elaborates on the overwhelming extent of David's suffering. He paints a picture of comprehensive decline, noting how his eyes, soul, and stomach are consumed (Psa 31:9), culminating in the statement that his entire existence—his life, his years, his physical strength, and even his bones—is wasting away. This intense physical and emotional debilitation is exacerbated by the reproach and plots of his enemies (Psa 31:11-13). Historically, David experienced numerous periods of profound distress, whether from King Saul's relentless pursuit, the anguish of his son Absalom's rebellion, or the spiritual and physical consequences of his own sins (as highlighted in Psa 32 and Psa 51, and foreshadowed by Nathan's prophecy in 2 Sam 12). This verse captures the utter depth of personal anguish when life's burdens, particularly those intertwined with spiritual brokenness, overwhelm the individual.
Psalm 31 10 Word analysis
- For my life is spent: The Hebrew term for "life" here is nafshi (נַפְשִׁי), which denotes not merely physical existence but the entire inner person: soul, spirit, vitality, and emotional self. "Spent" is derived from kalah (כָּלָה), signifying "to be complete, finished, come to an end, consumed." This suggests a gradual, thorough exhaustion or wearing away, indicating a complete draining of one's essence.
- with grief: The word is yagon (יָגוֹן), indicating deep sorrow, anguish, or profound emotional distress. It conveys a consuming sadness that penetrates the soul, highlighting an internal, pervasive pain that depletes life itself.
- and my years with sighing: "Years" (sh'notay - שְׁנוֹתַי) points to the passage and accumulation of one's experiences. "Sighing" translates anachah (אֲנָחָה), which describes a deep groaning, lamentation, or mournful sound born of pain or heavy affliction. It suggests a chronic, audible expression of profound, continuous suffering that marks the entire span of his life.
- my strength fails: "Strength" (kocḥi - כֹּחִי) encompasses both physical power and inner fortitude or resilience. "Fails" is from kashal (כָּשַׁל), meaning "to stumble, totter, or collapse." This implies a loss of capacity to endure or function, denoting both a physical and spiritual breakdown.
- because of my iniquity: This critical phrase employs avon (עָוֹן), a complex Hebrew word that can mean sin, guilt for sin, or the consequences/punishment that arise from sin. In David's lament psalms, avon often refers to personal transgressions and their grievous effects. This suggests David's acknowledgement that his debilitation is, at least in part, connected to his own moral failings or the severe afflictions viewed through a framework of covenant accountability.
- and my bones waste away: "Bones" (atz'motay - עַצְמוֹתָי) in biblical poetry often represent the core, innermost being, or the foundational structure of the body. "Waste away" is ashash (עָשַׁשׁ), meaning "to decay, wear out, or rot." This imagery conveys a profound, internal, and pervasive deterioration, implying that the suffering has penetrated to the very marrow of his being, leading to fundamental physical and existential weakness.
Words-group by words-group analysis:
- "For my life is spent with grief, and my years with sighing": This parallelism emphasizes the utter and complete consumption of David's being by distress. His inner self (nafshi) and the totality of his lived experience (years) are both depicted as fully exhausted and defined by pervasive sorrow (yagon) and its audible manifestation (anachah). It portrays a state where every aspect of life is overshadowed by suffering.
- "my strength fails because of my iniquity": This segment presents a clear link between a failing human capability (kocḥi) and the underlying cause: avon. David perceives his physical and emotional resilience collapsing as a direct result of his transgressions or the heavy burdens flowing from them. It underscores a spiritual conviction that moral and spiritual conditions profoundly affect one's physical vitality and mental fortitude.
- "and my bones waste away": This concluding phrase culminates the depiction of suffering by describing the deepest form of decay. The "bones" symbolize the deepest core, the very foundation of existence. Their "wasting away" signifies an extreme, internal, and pervasive deterioration that affects the entire person, far beyond superficial symptoms. It implies chronic, debilitating suffering that saps all life force.
Psalm 31 10 Bonus section
The vivid imagery in this verse, particularly of "bones wasting away," connects deeply with ancient Near Eastern and biblical understanding of the human body as a holistic entity. Unlike modern dualistic views, biblical anthropology frequently links emotional, spiritual, and physical health intricately. Physical symptoms of decay often point to an underlying spiritual or emotional dis-ease. Furthermore, David's willingness to acknowledge "iniquity" as a contributing factor to his distress contrasts with Job's friends' rigid interpretation of suffering as solely a direct result of sin; in this psalm, David makes the direct connection, which may stem from his specific personal transgressions (e.g., as detailed in 2 Sam 12 regarding Bathsheba and its repercussions). This vulnerability strengthens his plea to God, not through self-justification, but through honest lament and reliance on divine mercy despite personal culpability.
Psalm 31 10 Commentary
Psalm 31:10 portrays David's experience of profound physical and emotional breakdown. The cumulative language "life... spent," "years with sighing," and "bones waste away" illustrates a state of total exhaustion, not merely superficial sadness but a deep-seated anguish that saps his very vitality. This is amplified by the image of his bones decaying, indicating a systemic, internal collapse of his being. The poignant phrase "my strength fails because of my iniquity" reveals a crucial aspect of David's lament. The Hebrew term avon points strongly to personal sin or its consequences. This connection highlights David's spiritual sensitivity and covenantal understanding—he recognized that his personal moral state, or the resultant divine discipline, significantly impacted his overall well-being. Even amidst such extreme debilitation, and an acknowledgment of personal contribution to his distress, this verse remains part of a Psalm that ultimately moves towards steadfast trust in God. It underscores that profound human suffering, sometimes linked to personal failing, is still presented to the Lord as a desperate plea for deliverance, reinforcing that God remains the ultimate refuge.