The Meaning of Psalms 30:3 Explained

Psalms 30:3

KJV: O LORD, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave: thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.

YLT: Jehovah, Thou hast brought up from Sheol my soul, Thou hast kept me alive, From going down to the pit.

Darby: Jehovah, thou hast brought up my soul from Sheol, thou hast quickened me from among those that go down to the pit.

ASV: O Jehovah, thou hast brought up my soul from Sheol; Thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

O LORD,  thou hast brought up  my soul  from the grave:  thou hast kept me alive,  that I should not go down  {08675;03381:08802} to the pit. 

What does Psalms 30:3 Mean?

Study Notes

grave
Heb. "Sheol," .
hell
Sheol is, in the O.T., the place to which the dead go.
(1) Often, therefore, it is spoken of as the equivalent of the grave, merely, where all human activities cease; the terminus toward which all human life moves (e.g. Genesis 42:38 grave Job 14:13 grave Psalms 88:3 grave
(2) To the man "under the sun," the natural man, who of necessity judges from appearances, sheol seems no more than the grave-- the end and total cessation, not only of the activities of life, but of life itself. Ecclesiastes 9:5 ; Ecclesiastes 9:10
(3) But Scripture reveals sheol as a place of sorrow 2 Samuel 22:6 ; Psalms 18:5 ; Psalms 116:3 ; in which the wicked are turned Psalms 9:17 and where they are fully conscious; Isaiah 14:9-17 ; Ezekiel 32:21 see, especially, Jonah 2:2 what the belly of the great fish was to Jonah that sheol is to those who are therein). The sheol of the O.T. and hades of the N.T. (See Scofield " Luke 16:23 ") are identical.

Context Summary

Psalms 30:1-12 - "joy Cometh In The Morning"
This psalm dates from 2 Samuel 5:11. What a contrast between Adullam's cave and the house of cedar! When God has lifted us up in mercy, we should lift Him up in song.
Apparently David had been passing through a time of sickness or intense sorrow, and now he could not be thankful enough for God's redeeming mercy. When shall we realize that God both forgives sin and redeems us from its eternal consequences! Weeping is here personified; she is only a lodger, who tarries for the brief Eastern night, and then, veiled, glides out of the house at daybreak. With the first ray of light Joy comes to abide, and we hear His hearty salutation in the vestibule.
We need more of the joy of the Lord. The first touch of pain makes us cry, Psalms 30:8; but we are slow to put on and wear the girdle and the garments of gladness. Be of good cheer, sad friend; God will yet turn "the shadow of death into the morning!" [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalms 30

1  David praises God for his deliverance
4  He exhorts others to praise him by example of God's dealings with him

What do the individual words in Psalms 30:3 mean?

Yahweh You brought up from the grave my soul You have kept me alive - that I should not go down to the pit
יְֽהוָ֗ה הֶֽעֱלִ֣יתָ מִן־ שְׁא֣וֹל נַפְשִׁ֑י חִ֝יִּיתַ֗נִי [מיורדי־] (מִיָּֽרְדִי־) (בֽוֹר)

יְֽהוָ֗ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
הֶֽעֱלִ֣יתָ  You  brought  up 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Perfect, second person masculine singular
Root: סָלַק 
Sense: to go up, ascend, climb.
שְׁא֣וֹל  the  grave 
Parse: Noun, common singular
Root: שְׁאֹול  
Sense: sheol, underworld, grave, hell, pit.
נַפְשִׁ֑י  my  soul 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, first person common singular
Root: נֶפֶשׁ  
Sense: soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion.
חִ֝יִּיתַ֗נִי  You  have  kept  me  alive 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Perfect, second person masculine singular, first person common singular
Root: חָיָה  
Sense: to live, have life, remain alive, sustain life, live prosperously, live for ever, be quickened, be alive, be restored to life or health.
[מיורדי־]  - 
Parse: Preposition-m, Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine plural construct
(מִיָּֽרְדִי־)  that  I  should  not  go  down  to 
Parse: Preposition-m, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct, first person common singular
Root: יָרַד  
Sense: to go down, descend, decline, march down, sink down.
(בֽוֹר)  the  pit 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: יָרַד  
Sense: to go down, descend, decline, march down, sink down.