By reason of the voice of my groaning my bones cleave to my skin.
By reason of groaning the speaker is in severe physical and emotional distress, groaning so constantly and painfully that the body is wasted and the bones cling to the skin. Those who take the words as David's hold that they express his deep distress and loneliness. The weight of testimony places the writing with Asaph, Ethan, and others during the latter part of the Babylonian captivity in the reign of Belshazzar, when persecution and distress of the Jews were greatest. In that setting the verse expresses the sorrows and afflictions of the Hebrew captives in wasting, groaning distress. The psalm containing it is mingled with exhortation, encouragement, and assurance of divine help and final deliverance from persecutors.
The verse is part of a plea for mercy that every true believer may adopt as his own. Even in such misery and isolation, the sufferer is not forgotten by God, who tenderly cares for him.
Severe mental distress and groaning can cause a person to lose appetite and waste away physically, until the bones seem to cling to the skin. In this way the verse illustrates how sorrow and worry can harm bodily health. Severe mental distress can waste the body, with loss of flesh accompanying groaning, illustrating how worry and discontent can damage health.
By reason of groaning the speaker is in severe physical and emotional distress, groaning so constantly and painfully that the body is wasted and the bones cling to the skin. Those who take the words as David's hold that they express his deep distress and loneliness. The weight of testimony places the writing with Asaph, Ethan, and others during the latter part of the Babylonian captivity in the reign of Belshazzar, when persecution and distress of the Jews were greatest. In that setting the verse expresses the sorrows and afflictions of the Hebrew captives in wasting, groaning distress. The psalm containing it is mingled with exhortation, encouragement, and assurance of divine help and final deliverance from persecutors.
The verse is part of a plea for mercy that every true believer may adopt as his own. Even in such misery and isolation, the sufferer is not forgotten by God, who tenderly cares for him.
Severe mental distress and groaning can cause a person to lose appetite and waste away physically, until the bones seem to cling to the skin. In this way the verse illustrates how sorrow and worry can harm bodily health. Severe mental distress can waste the body, with loss of flesh accompanying groaning, illustrating how worry and discontent can damage health.