The Meaning of Psalms 109:24 Explained

Psalms 109:24

KJV: My knees are weak through fasting; and my flesh faileth of fatness.

YLT: My knees have been feeble from fasting, And my flesh hath failed of fatness.

Darby: My knees are failing through fasting, and my flesh hath lost its fatness;

ASV: My knees are weak through fasting; And my flesh faileth of fatness.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

My knees  are weak  through fasting;  and my flesh  faileth  of fatness. 

What does Psalms 109:24 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalms 109:17-31 - The Deliverer Of The Needy
This psalm emphasizes the difference, indicated by our Lord, between His teaching and that addressed to "them of old time," especially on the point of forgiveness. It is in such teaching as this that the psalmist's mood is distinctly inferior to that which has now become the law for devout men. This at least may be said, that these ancient saints did not desire vengeance for private injuries, but that God's name and character might be vindicated. Devout men could not but long for the triumph of good and the defeat and destruction of its opposite.
The closing paragraph voices some of those lowly, sad petitions for help, which occur in so many of the psalms. This combination of devout meekness and trust with the fiery imprecations or predictions at the core of this psalm, substantiates what has been said above as to the spirit in which the psalm was conceived. It is not personal, but the voice of the Church asking God to make known the righteousness of His government. The psalm begins and ends with praise. It starts by picturing an adversary at the right hand of the wicked, Psalms 109:6, and closes with assurance that Jehovah stands at the right hand of His afflicted servant to deliver him. "I have set the Lord always before me: because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved," Psalms 16:8. [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalms 109

1  David complains of his slanderous enemies
16  He shows their sin
21  Complaining of his own misery, he prays for help
29  He promises thankfulness

What do the individual words in Psalms 109:24 mean?

My knees are weak through fasting and my flesh is feeble from lack of fatness
בִּ֭רְכַּי כָּשְׁל֣וּ מִצּ֑וֹם וּ֝בְשָׂרִ֗י כָּחַ֥שׁ מִשָּֽׁמֶן

בִּ֭רְכַּי  My  knees 
Parse: Noun, fdc, first person common singular
Root: בֶּרֶךְ  
Sense: knee.
כָּשְׁל֣וּ  are  weak 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person common plural
Root: כָּשַׁל  
Sense: to stumble, stagger, totter.
מִצּ֑וֹם  through  fasting 
Parse: Preposition-m, Noun, masculine singular
Root: צֹום  
Sense: fast, fasting.
וּ֝בְשָׂרִ֗י  and  my  flesh 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct, first person common singular
Root: בָּשָׂר  
Sense: flesh.
כָּחַ֥שׁ  is  feeble 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: כָּחַשׁ  
Sense: to deceive, lie, fail, grow lean, be disappointing, be untrue, be insufficient, be found liars, belie, deny, dissemble, deal falsely.
מִשָּֽׁמֶן  from  lack  of  fatness 
Parse: Preposition-m, Noun, masculine singular
Root: שֶׁמֶן  
Sense: fat, oil.