Psalms 38:13 BSB — MannaFest

Psalms 38:13

But like a deaf man, I do not hear; and like a mute man, I do not open my mouth.

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

But I, as a deaf man, hear not; And I am as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth.

KJV

But I, as a deaf man, heard not; and I was as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth.

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Commentary

4 voices

Ambrose of Milan

Commentaries on the Twelve Davidic Psalms (397)

The just person will want to conform his life to the image and likeness of Jesus, and though accused, he will be silent; if he is hurt, he will forgive. Wrongs done to him he will cover up, not opening his mouth. In this way he will be imitating him who like a lamb was led to the slaughter, never opening his mouth.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

John Gill

1697–1771

Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763)

But I, as a deaf man, heard not,.... He acted the part of a deaf man, and made as if he did not hear the mischievous things his enemies spoke; as Saul, when the sons of Belial spoke against him and despised him, 1Sa 10:27; and as our Lord when his enemies accused him, Mat 27:12; and I was as a dumb man, that openeth not his mouth; made no reply to what they said, and did not render railing for railing; in which Christ was the antitype of him, Isa 53:7.

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

Herein David was a type of Christ, who was as a sheep dumb before the shearer, and, when he was reviled, reviled not again; and both are examples to us not to render railing for railing. He kept close to his God by faith and prayer, and so both supported himself under these injuries and silenced his own resentments of them.

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

Charles Spurgeon

1834–1892

The Treasury of David, Vol. 2 (1870)

But I, as a deaf man, heard not. Well and bravely was this done. A sacred indifference to the slanders of malevolence is true courage and wise policy. It is well to be as if we could not hear or see. Perhaps the psalmist means that this deafness on his part was unavoidable because he had no power to answer the taunts of the cruel, but felt much of the truth of their ungenerous accusations. And I was as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth.

Voices on this verse

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Original language & word study

8 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
וַאֲנִ֣י	va.'a.Ni	and I	H589 →
כְ֭חֵרֵשׁ	Khe.che.resh	[am] like a deaf [person]	H2795 →
לֹ֣א	lo'	not	H3808 →
אֶשְׁמָ֑ע	'esh.Ma'	I hear	H8085 →
וּ֝כְאִלֵּ֗ם	u.khe.'i.Lem	and like a dumb [person]	H483 →
לֹ֣א	lo'	[who] not	H3808 →
יִפְתַּח־	yif.tach-	he opens	H6605 →
פִּֽיו׃	Piv	mouth his	H6310 →

Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread: the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.

H6605yiftach-he opens144×

The walk

The walk8

Where the connections lead

Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.

Through
1 Peter 2:23
When they heaped abuse on Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats, but entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.
leads to
- Isaiah 53:7
  He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so He did not…
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- 1 Peter 4:19
  So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should entrust their souls to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.
- Hebrews 12:3
  Consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Through
Isaiah 53:7
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so He did not…
leads to
- Matthew 27:12–14
  And when He was accused by the chief priests and elders, He gave no answer.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- Acts 8:32–33
  The eunuch was reading this passage of Scripture: “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before the shearer is silent, so He did not open His mouth.
- Matthew 26:63
  But Jesus remained silent. Then the high priest said to Him, “I charge You under oath by the living God: Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God.”
- 1 Peter 2:23
  When they heaped abuse on Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats, but entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.
- Mark 14:61

About Psalms

Saul attempts to kill David (the harpist of Israel) — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain

Psalms: the study guide →Read chapter 38 →The featured study →

Continue: Psalms 38 →

01Commentary

The record, by era

Voices on this verse

02Original language & word study

03The walk

Where the connections lead

04Related verses

06About Psalms

The record, by era

Where the connections lead

Commentary

Original language & word study

The walk

Related verses

About Psalms