The Meaning of Psalms 143:6 Explained

Psalms 143:6

KJV: I stretch forth my hands unto thee: my soul thirsteth after thee, as a thirsty land. Selah.

YLT: I have spread forth my hands unto Thee, My soul is as a weary land for Thee. Selah.

Darby: I stretch forth my hands unto thee: my soul, as a parched land, thirsteth after thee. Selah.

ASV: I spread forth my hands unto thee: My soul thirsteth after thee, as a weary land. Selah

KJV Reverse Interlinear

I stretch forth  my hands  unto thee: my soul  [thirsteth] after thee, as a thirsty  land.  Selah. 

What does Psalms 143:6 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalms 143:1-12 - The Cry Of The Thirsty Soul
This psalm falls into four stanzas of three verses each. Complaint, Psalms 143:1-3. Though the enemy has resorted to unwarrantable violence, David realized that his past had been by no means immaculate. The holiest have least confidence in themselves, Job 9:3; Philippians 3:7. Bernard of Clairvaux said: "So far from being able to answer for my sins, I cannot answer even for my righteousness." There is no judgment or condemnation for those who are in Christ, because they were judged in Him. Now God's justice is on our side, 1 John 1:9.
Depression, Psalms 143:4-6. Those capable of the sunny heights are capable of the lowest depths. Memory, meditation, and musing often lead to melancholy. But reach out after God. To thirst for Him is to have Him. To desire is to possess. Entreaty, Psalms 143:7-9. Hear me; cause me to hear; cause me to know; deliver me. Docility, Psalms 143:10-12 : We can trust ourselves absolutely to be led by God's Spirit, because He is good and He brings the soul out of trouble into the land of uprightness, Romans 8:14. [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalms 143

1  David prays for favor in judgment
3  He complains of his grief
5  He strengthens his faith by meditation and prayer
7  He prays for grace
9  For deliverance
10  For sanctification
12  For destruction of his enemies

What do the individual words in Psalms 143:6 mean?

I spread out my hands to You My soul [longs] like a land Thirsty for You Selah
פֵּרַ֣שְׂתִּי יָדַ֣י אֵלֶ֑יךָ נַפְשִׁ֓י ׀ כְּאֶֽרֶץ־ עֲיֵפָ֖ה לְךָ֣ סֶֽלָה

פֵּרַ֣שְׂתִּי  I  spread  out 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Perfect, first person common singular
Root: פָּרַשׂ  
Sense: to spread, spread out, stretch, break in pieces.
יָדַ֣י  my  hands 
Parse: Noun, fdc, first person common singular
Root: יָד  
Sense: hand.
אֵלֶ֑יךָ  to  You 
Parse: Preposition, second person masculine singular
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
נַפְשִׁ֓י ׀  My  soul  [longs] 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, first person common singular
Root: נֶפֶשׁ  
Sense: soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion.
כְּאֶֽרֶץ־  like  a  land 
Parse: Preposition-k, Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֶרֶץ  
Sense: land, earth.
עֲיֵפָ֖ה  Thirsty 
Parse: Adjective, feminine singular
Root: עָיֵף  
Sense: faint, exhausted, weary.
לְךָ֣  for  You 
Parse: Preposition, second person masculine singular
סֶֽלָה  Selah 
Parse: Interjection
Root: סֶלָה  
Sense: to lift up, exalt.