The Meaning of Psalms 31:9 Explained

Psalms 31:9

KJV: Have mercy upon me, O LORD, for I am in trouble: mine eye is consumed with grief, yea, my soul and my belly.

YLT: Favour me, O Jehovah, for distress is to me, Mine eye, my soul, and my body Have become old by provocation.

Darby: Be gracious unto me, Jehovah, for I am in trouble: mine eye wasteth away with vexation, my soul and my belly.

ASV: Have mercy upon me, O Jehovah, for I am in distress: Mine eye wasteth away with grief, yea , my soul and my body.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Have mercy  upon me, O LORD,  for I am in trouble:  mine eye  is consumed  with grief,  [yea], my soul  and my belly. 

What does Psalms 31:9 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalms 31:1-13 - A Cry Out Of Deep Trouble
Some have supposed that this psalm was written during the Sauline persecutions; but it is more likely that it dates from Absalom's rebellion. It alternates between the depths of despondency and the heights of sublime faith, and well befits those who walk in darkness and have no light, Isaiah 50:10.
It sounds as if the soul were on a wind-swept moor, with no shelter from the storm. All is dark and wild; and it dreads to be caught in the entangling net, Psalms 31:4. What a magnificent prayer is that of Psalms 31:5! It supplied their last words to Stephen, Polycarp, Bernard, Hus, Luther, Melanchthon-above all, to our Lord, Luke 23:46; Acts 7:59. The Psalter was our Lord's prayer book. This verse is a suitable petition also, as we go forth into the unknown day, 2 Timothy 1:12.
Sin, slander, neglect make the heart break; but God is all-sufficient. Hide in Him; that life is safe which is God-encompassed. "Hid with Christ in God!" Colossians 3:1-4. [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalms 31

1  David, showing his confidence in God, craves his help
7  He rejoices in his mercy
9  He prays in his calamity
19  He praises God for his goodness

What do the individual words in Psalms 31:9 mean?

Have mercy on me Yahweh for in trouble I am wastes away with grief My eye [Yes] my soul and my body
חָנֵּ֥נִי יְהוָה֮ כִּ֤י צַ֫ר־ לִ֥י עָשְׁשָׁ֖ה בְכַ֥עַס עֵינִ֗י נַפְשִׁ֥י וּבִטְנִֽי

חָנֵּ֥נִי  Have  mercy  on  me 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine singular, first person common singular
Root: חָנַן 
Sense: to be gracious, show favour, pity.
יְהוָה֮  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
צַ֫ר־  in  trouble 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: צָרַר 
Sense: to bind, be narrow, be in distress, make narrow, cause distress, besiege, be straitened, be bound.
לִ֥י  I  am 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
עָשְׁשָׁ֖ה  wastes  away 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person feminine singular
Root: עָשַׁשׁ  
Sense: (Qal) to waste away, fail.
בְכַ֥עַס  with  grief 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular
Root: כַּעַס 
Sense: anger, vexation, provocation, grief.
עֵינִ֗י  My  eye 
Parse: Noun, common singular construct, first person common singular
Root: עֹונָה 
Sense: eye.
נַפְשִׁ֥י  [Yes]  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.
וּבִטְנִֽי  and  my  body 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, feminine singular construct, first person common singular
Root: בֶּטֶן  
Sense: belly, womb, body.