Psalm 6: Soul in Anguish
Psalm 6 can be read in different ways. St. Augustine links it to the global Church as it drifts from its purpose. The psalm can also be seen as a lament, showcasing undeserved physical and emotional suffering. Jesus’s groaning during the crucifixion fits this view. Jewish tradition associates the psalm to Absalom’s revolt at the beginning of the Israelite monarchy. Early Judaism (and the Sadducees) did not have an expectation of life beyond the grave. David’s cry in verse 5 fits:
In death there is no memory of you. In Sheol, who shall give you thanks?
The author David sees his circumstance as deserved judgment and wonders: “How long?” The psalm’s words become ours whenever God seems absent and our prayers seem meaningless. It gives hope to those who scarcely can pray.
It is easy to read or sing a psalm without understanding the historical context. Before commenting further, let’s first describe the situation.
For the first half of David’s reign, all was well. But then:
At the return of the year, at the time when kings go out, David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem.
Isn’t this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, Uriah the Hittite’s wife? (2 Sam 11:1–3).
Uriah was a Hittite gentile. Did David have a bit of bigotry in his heart? We don’t know. At this point he should have backed off. But no:
David sent messengers, and took her; and she came in to him, and he lay with her (for she was purified from her uncleanness); and she returned to her house. The woman conceived; and she sent and told David,
I am with child (2 Sam 11:4–5).
David faced a dilemma. Some might say that Bathsheba was at fault, bathing in public view. This is a faulty assumption. She was more likely washing herself within a private walled area. When David summoned her, could she really have refused the king’s advances. Regardless, the deed was done. What was David to do now? He could confess and repent. But that would be a major embarrassment to David, Bathsheba, and her husband Uriah. A cover up seemed like the best option:
David sent to Joab,
Send me Uriah the Hittite.
Joab sent Uriah to David. When Uriah had come to him, David asked him how Joab did, and how the people fared, and how the war prospered. David said to Uriah,
Go down to your house and wash your feet.
Uriah departed out of the king’s house, and a gift from the king was sent after him. But Uriah slept at the door of the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and didn’t go down to his house. When they had told David, saying,
Uriah didn’t go down to his house,
David said to Uriah,
Haven’t you come from a journey? Why didn’t you go down to your house?
Uriah said to David,
The ark, Israel, and Judah, are staying in tents; and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord, are encamped in the open field. Shall I then go into my house to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing!”
David said to Uriah,
Stay here today also, and tomorrow I will let you depart.
So Uriah stayed in Jerusalem that day, and the next day. When David had called him, he ate and drink before him; and he made him drunk. At evening, he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but didn’t go down to his house. (2 Sam 11:6–14).
We don’t know what Uriah thought. He probably wondered, “Why is the king asking me about the war? Surely, Joab can give him this information. Perhaps he’s testing my loyalty.” Anyway, Uriah’s integrity shattered David’s coverup scheme. We might ask: “how many people knew the truth?” David and Bathsheba for sure. Servants also. News like this travels fast. What will David do? He proceeds to dig a deeper hole for himself.
In the morning, David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah. He wrote in the letter, saying,
Send Uriah to the forefront of the hottest battle, and retreat from him, that he may be struck, and die.
Uriah carried the letter that was to be his death sentence.
Joab . . . assigned Uriah to the place where he knew that valiant men were. The men of the city went out, and fought with Joab. Some of the people fell, even of David’s servants; and Uriah the Hittite died also. Then Joab sent and told David all the things concerning the war; and he commanded the messenger, saying,
When you have finished telling all the things concerning the war to the king, it shall be that, if the king’s wrath arise, and he asks you,
Why did you go so near to the city to fight? Didn’t you know that they would shoot from the wall?
. . . then you shall say,
Your servant Uriah the Hittite is also dead.
So the messenger went, and came and showed David all that Joab had sent him for. . . . David said to the messenger,
Tell Joab, “Don’t let this thing displease you, for the sword devours one as well as another. Make your battle stronger against the city, and overthrow it. Encourage him (2 Sam 11:14–25).
Joab was a perfect co-conspirator, having previously murdered Abner who threatened to take over as commander of the army. He not only sent Uriah to the front lines, but initiated a strategy that meant certain death for other brave servants.
When Uriah’s wife heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she mourned for her husband. When the mourning was past, David sent and took her home to his house, and she became his wife, and bore him a son (2 Sam 11:26–27).
David’s coverup seems successful. Unfortunately for him, he displeased Yahweh (2 Sam 11:27); judgment was coming. The following passage is one of the most dramatic in scripture:
Yahweh sent Nathan to David. He came to him, and said to him,
There were two men in one city; the one rich, and the other poor. The rich man had very many flocks and herds, but the poor man had nothing, except one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and raised. It grew up together with him, and with his children. It ate of his own food, drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was like a daughter to him.
David’s anger burned hot against the man, and he said to Nathan,
“As Yahweh lives, the man who has done this deserves to die! He must restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity! (2 Sam 12:1–5)”
Notice David’s self-righteousness. At this point, the entire Uriah incident has become a faded memory.
Nathan said to David,
You are the man. This is what Yahweh, the God of Israel, says:
I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul. I gave you your master’s house, and your master’s wives into your bosom, and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that would have been too little, I would have added to you many more such things. Why have you despised Yahweh’s word, to do that which is evil in his sight? You have struck Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and have taken his wife to be your wife, and have slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. Now therefore the sword will never depart from your house, because you have despised me, and have taken Uriah the Hittite’s wife to be your wife.
This is what Yahweh says:
Behold, I will raise up evil against you out of your own house; and I will take your wives before your eyes, and give them to your neighbor, and he will lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. For you did this secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun (2 Sam 12:7–12).
Amazingly, God forgave David. Yet, he could not avoid the downward spiral that was to follow. David’s son Amnon raped his half-sister Tamar (2 Sam 13:1–22). Tamar’s full-brother Absalom was enraged and after a time he murdered Amnon (2 Sam 13:23–33). When David and Absalom seemingly reconciled (2 Sam 14:28–33) the plot began. It took Absalom four years to steal the hearts of the people and declare himself king (2 Sam 15:1–13). David had no choice but to leave Jerusalem with a small band of loyal followers.
This provides an understanding of the background to Psalm 6’s composition.
For the Chief Musician; on stringed instruments, upon the eight-stringed lyre.
1 Yahweh, don’t rebuke me in your anger,2 Have mercy on me, Yahweh,3 My soul is also in great anguish.4 Return, Yahweh.5 For in death there is no memory of you.6 I am weary with my groaning.7 My eye wastes away because of grief.8 Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity,9 Yahweh has heard my supplication.10 May all my enemies be ashamed and dismayed.
Comments
This psalm divides into two sections. Verses one through seven describes David’s anguish. He knows full well that the circumstances stem from his sin with Bathsheba and his murder of Uriah. Though he is surrounded by workers of iniquity, and though he has found forgiveness, he is not immune from the consequences.
There could be a pause between verses seven and eight. David hears God’s answer. His enemies will not succeed. The final three verses are full of hope, even certainty.
Conclusion
There are many lessons subtly presented in this psalm. The first is the risk of idleness. If David had gone out with his troops, the Uriah saga would never have happened. What was he thinking as he went to the roof of his palace? I doubt he intended to commit adultery. Maybe he was bored. But then, he saw Bathsheba and lust took over.
Second is the temptation to cover up a sin. Excuses abound. Consider a respected religious leader that uses his position to be sexually inappropriate with members of the congregation. When an inside group of elders get wind of it, they might say, “We can’t make this public; it will hurt God’s reputation and the work of our mission.” God didn’t care about that in his rebuke of David. A verse in proverbs comes to mind:
He who conceals his sins doesn’t prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy. (Prov 28:13).
A third point is the web of coverup. Lies beget more lies. Denials beget more denials. In the end, it’s a house-of-cards that at some point will collapse under its own weight. Consider the verse:
Everyone who hears these words of mine, and doesn’t do them will be like a foolish man, who built his house on the sand. The rain came down, the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house; and it fell—and great was its fall (Matt 7:26–27).”
A fourth lesson is our tendency to overlook our own shortcomings. Our conscience is quick to judge the wrongdoings done by them and be totally unaware of our own. “Mercy for me, justice for you.” Another verse comes to mind:
Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but don’t consider the beam that is in your own eye? Or how will you tell your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye;’ and behold, the beam is in your own eye? You hypocrite! First remove the beam out of your own eye, and then you can see clearly to remove the speck out of your brother’s eye (Matt 7:3–5).
Finally, there is God’s willingness to forgive. No matter what we have done, there is hope if we are willing to come to grips with our actions:
Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked?” says the Lord Yahweh; “and not rather that he should return from his way, and live (Ezek 18:23)?
As I studied Psalm 6, I’m amazed of so many implications ten verses bring.
Thanks for listening
Modern Renditions
Stop Your Suffering by The Voice of Zion
Psalm 6 by Punk Rock Christian Rock
Return Oh Lord by Black Gospel
Have Mercy on Me for I am Weak by TT Light of Worship
Save My Life by Jason Silver
For Further Meditation
Agpeya: Prayer Book of the Hours , (Coptic Orthodox Church of Saint Mark, 2017).
Christopher Ash, The Psalms: A Christ Centered Commentary: Psalms 1–50 , Vol. 2, (Crossway, 2024).
Athanasius, “letter to Marcellinus: On the Interpretation of the Psalms .”
Augustine, “Exposition on the Psalms .”
Basil, The Fathers of the Church: A New Translation , Vol. 46.
Basil, On Prayer .
Bonhoeffer Dietrich, Psalms: The Prayer Book .
C. Hassell Bullock, Encountering the Book of Psalms , (Baker 2001).
Hilary of Poitiers, “Homilies on the Psalms .”
Joseph Galineau, The Psalms: A New Translation Singing version , (Paulist Press, 1991).
Jerome, The Fathers of the Church: The Homilies of Jerome 1–59 , Vol 1.
Dereck Kidner, Kidner Classic Commentaries: Psalms 1–72 , (IVP Academic, 1973).
C. S. Lewis, Reflections on the Psalms , (New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1958).
Temper Longman III and David E. Garland, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Psalms , Vol. 5, (Zondervan, 2008).
Origen of Alexandria, Fathers of the Church: Homilies on the Psalms Codex Monacensis Graecus 314 , (Catholic University of America Press, 2020).
Origen, Commentary on Psalms .
Pettingill, Christ in the Psalms , (Van Kampen Press, 1937.
Rashi, “On Psalms .”
Dan Harvey, author of
Wrestling with Faith and Experiencing the Apocalypse
How deep and full this article is!
So packed with information of sinfull behavior and of the consequences upon the perpetrators…and also an excellent article regarding the danger of lies and “cover-up”; danger for the perpetrators and for those who cause more trouble in the lives of other people….. and it also demonstrates Gods mercy and faithfulness to all of us.