I.A. (88:1–2) I Cry to You, O Lord. The song opens by declaring its purpose: “Let my prayer come before you” (v. 2). The psalm is therefore a petition; it belongs to a circumstance that is earnest (“day and night,” i.e., all the time; the singer will not let up) and urgent (the phrases “I cry out” and “my cry” convey how a great feeling of distress lies behind it). As mentioned above, the second and third overall sections of the psalm open with a similar cry for help (vv. 9b, 13).

The expression in verse 2 (“incline your ear”) is a vivid way of describing the paying of careful attention, used in the Psalms both of God’s activity (17:6; 31:2; 71:2; 86:1; 102:2; 116:2), and of man’s (45:10; 49:4; 78:1).

I.B. (88:3–9a) My Soul Is Full of Troubles. The next subsection describes the trouble in general terms, focusing more on the feelings than on the external circumstances: “My soul is full of troubles” (v. 3). These verses use the image of death to convey how bleak the singer feels. Terms such as “Sheol” (v. 3), “the pit” (vv. 4, 6), “the dead,” and “the slain” (v. 5) convey the picture.

The death in view is an image, not a literal death; here this is clear from “I am counted” (v. 4) and “like” (v. 5). But the image is not simply of death as such but of a death under God’s condemnation. We can see this from the following factors. Verse 3 mentions “Sheol.” This is a poetical name for the grave but can also refer to perdition for those who die under God’s judgment (cf. comment on 6:1–5 [at v. 5]). The word “pit” (88:4, 6; commonly a hewn cistern, with mire at the bottom) can sometimes be used for the grave, especially as the place of the lost (30:3, where it parallels “Sheol”). Since the psalm states “Like those whom you remember no more . . . your wrath lies heavy upon me” (v. 5, 7), “pit” more likely refers to the place to which the wicked go. From this we can see that the idea of verses 3–7 is the following: “It feels like I am dying and, worse than that, dying under your wrath, with no hope either now or ever.”574

The psalm allows the singer to lay out these despairing feelings; it does not claim that such feelings correspond to external reality. Indeed, anyone genuinely singing this to the Lord, however miserable he may feel, can be assured that he is still expressing true faith. And yet these despairing feelings produce genuine pain, whether or not they correspond to external reality. The fact that God has “caused [the singer’s] companions”—who ought to have stood by him—to “shun” him only makes it harder to bear. The pain keeps building: the psalmist feels “shut in”; his “eye grows dim through sorrow” (vv. 8b–9a). And yet, tough faith will not let go: “Every day I call upon you, O Lord; I spread out my hands to you” (v. 9b). The members of the singing congregation are learning here to keep coming to the Lord even when they feel this way. Those in the congregation who are not in such suffering are learning sympathy with those who are.

II.A. (88:9b) I Cry to You, O Lord. The terms “every day” and “spread out my hands” convey the sense of earnestness in the prayer.575

II.B. (88:10–12) Do the Dead Praise You? The mention of dying under God’s wrath (vv. 3–7) leads to the question “Do you work wonders for the dead?”

Several terms here require clarification. The “departed” (v. 10) are in Hebrew the rephaʾim, which is probably especially looking at the dead from the perspective of their spirits’ having departed (Prov. 2:18; 9:18; 21:16; Isa. 14:9; 26:14, 19).576 The name “Abaddon” (v. 11) is related to the word that means “to perish”; hence the name designates the “place of perishing” (cf. Job 26:6; 28:22; 31:12; Prov. 15:11; 27:20; and, in Greek transliteration, Rev. 9:11).577 In Psalm 88:12 the subsection repeats the word “darkness” (cf. vv. 6, 18) and dreads the prospect of the “land of forgetfulness” (cf. “remember no more”; v. 5).

Like most questions in the Bible, this is a rhetorical question, not a request for information; we must discern its purpose. In this case the purpose is not to deny that the OT has a hope for the afterlife (cf. comments on Psalms 49; 73) but rather to allow worshipers who feel the pain of 88:3–9 to continue expressing their fears and actually to turn those fears into argumentative questions toward God. If one were to die under God’s wrath, he could not anticipate any experience of God’s wonders, or any chance to praise him, in “Abaddon.” The person who sings this in the worshiping congregation obviously does not want to perish in this way (a believer is singing this), cut off from God’s “steadfast love” and “faithfulness” (v. 11).

III.A. (88:13) I Cry to You, O Lord. Here the psalm continues the earnest and urgent prayer (using the word “prayer” found in v. 2). Whereas verse 1 spoke of “day and night” and verse 9b of “every day,” here we focus on “the morning” (which may refer specifically to the time of worship).

III.B. (88:14) Why Do You Cast Off Me? The question here continues to express the fear of God’s rejection. The question makes this subsection match the questions of verses 10–12. As in the previous parts of the psalm, the verse gives words to the feelings without claiming this to be the reality. (On “hide your face” cf. comments on 13:1–2; 27:7–12.)

III.C. (88:15–18) I Am Afflicted. The psalm closes with a further exposition of the troubles and sense of despair the singer experiences, building on the description above (vv. 3–9). The despair, however, is not the whole story; the song speaks of “your” (i.e., God’s) “terrors,” “wrath,” and “dreadful assaults” (vv. 15–16), and it is “you” (God) who “caused” the singer’s isolation (v. 18). To have the suffering faithful continue to address God in this way is to nurture them in their trust. To whom else would they go?

Verse 18 echoes verse 8 (“shun,” “companions”) and continues the mention of “darkness” (vv. 6, 12). The ESV renders the second line of verse 18 as “My companions have become darkness,” which is preferable to the alternative offered, “Darkness has become my only companion” (ESV mg.; cf. NIV).578 The companions and friends, who should be giving solace, are instead part of the darkness surrounding the sufferer: “My beloved and my friend” continue to “shun me,” and “my companions” (cf. v. 8, the people from whom the singer might have expected help and sympathy) are “darkness” (and not the light he needed). This somber word, “darkness,” is the last word in the psalm, and yet, as the preceding notes argue, even this does not mean that the ultimate outcome will be totally bleak. The faithful know there is no alternative but to keep seeking the Lord in prayer.