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Psalm 6
New Catholic Bible
Psalm 6
New Catholic Bible
Psalm 6[a]
Evening Prayer for God’s Mercy
1 For the director.[b] With stringed instruments. “Upon the eighth.” A psalm of David.
2 O Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger
or punish me in your wrath.
3 Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am tottering;
help me, O Lord, for my body is in agony.[c]
4 My soul[d] is also filled with anguish.
But you, O Lord—how long?
5 Turn, O Lord, and deliver my soul;
save me because of your kindness.[e]
6 For among the dead who remembers you?
In the netherworld who sings your praises?[f]
7 I am exhausted from my sighing;
every night I flood my bed with my tears,
and I soak my couch with my weeping.
8 My eyes grow dim because of my grief;
they are worn out[g] because of all my foes.
9 Depart from me, all you evildoers,[h]
for the Lord has heard the sound of my weeping.
10 The Lord has listened to my pleas;
the Lord has accepted my prayer.
11 All my enemies will be shamed and terrified;
they will flee in utter confusion.[i]
Footnotes
- Psalm 6:1 This is the first of the so-called Penitential Psalms (6; 32; 38; 51; 102; 130; 143), a designation for psalms suitable for expressing repentance that goes back to the sixth century A.D. In affliction, the psalmist invokes the divine mercy, begs to be saved from death, confesses his wretchedness, and expresses faith in his own deliverance and his enemies’ total abasement.
- Psalm 6:1 For the director: these words are thought to be a musical or liturgical notation. Upon the eighth: probably a musical term referring to an eight-stringed instrument.
- Psalm 6:3 Body is in agony: literally, “bones are shaken.”
- Psalm 6:4 Soul: the Hebrew word, nephesh, usually means a person’s life-giving breath, which disappears at death. It is thus applied to a person’s very self as a living, conscious being (“my soul” equals “myself”). How long?: elliptical formula used in psalms of lamentation both in Babylonia and in Israel (see Pss 74:10; 80:5; 90:13; 94:3) to express anxiety over the divine aid that is late in coming.
- Psalm 6:5 Kindness: Hebrew, hesed, which may also be translated as “mercy” and refers to all that God promised to give to his people (see Deut 7:9, 12) through the Davidic dynasty (see Ps 89:25, 29, 34; 2 Sam 7:15; Isa 55:3). See also note on Ps 5:8.
- Psalm 6:6 The psalmist offers a motive for God to save him from death: it is the living who praise him. The netherworld was viewed as the place where the souls of the dead had a kind of shadowy existence, with no activity or lofty emotion. Just what that existence entailed at any given Old Testament period is difficult to gauge until the second century B.C. It is then that the sacred Books begin to speak more clearly about life after death (see Wis 3; Dan 12:1-3).
- Psalm 6:8 Eyes grow dim . . . worn out: a sign of failing strength (see Ps 38:11; 1 Sam 14:27, 29; Jer 14:6) or sorrow in affliction (see Pss 31:10; 88:10; Job 17:7; Lam 2:11) or dashed hopes (see Pss 69:4; 119:82, 123; Deut 28:32; Isa 38:14).
- Psalm 6:9 This apostrophe (taken up in Mt 7:23) has been prepared for by the end of verse 8. The enemies of the sick person, like the friends of Job, see in his trials a heavenly chastisement for hidden faults; they insult him and accuse him unjustly—a theme that is more developed elsewhere (see Pss 31; 35; 38; 69).
- Psalm 6:11 See notes on Pss 5:11; 35.
Psalm 6
New International Version
Psalm 6
New International Version
Psalm 6[a]
For the director of music. With stringed instruments. According to sheminith.[b] A psalm of David.
1 Lord, do not rebuke me in your anger(A)
or discipline me in your wrath.
2 Have mercy on me,(B) Lord, for I am faint;(C)
heal me,(D) Lord, for my bones are in agony.(E)
3 My soul is in deep anguish.(F)
How long,(G) Lord, how long?
4 Turn,(H) Lord, and deliver me;
save me because of your unfailing love.(I)
5 Among the dead no one proclaims your name.
Who praises you from the grave?(J)
Psalm 6
King James Version
Psalm 6
King James Version
6 O Lord, rebuke me not in thine anger, neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure.
2 Have mercy upon me, O Lord; for I am weak: O Lord, heal me; for my bones are vexed.
3 My soul is also sore vexed: but thou, O Lord, how long?
4 Return, O Lord, deliver my soul: oh save me for thy mercies' sake.
5 For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks?
6 I am weary with my groaning; all the night make I my bed to swim; I water my couch with my tears.
7 Mine eye is consumed because of grief; it waxeth old because of all mine enemies.
8 Depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity; for the Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping.
9 The Lord hath heard my supplication; the Lord will receive my prayer.
10 Let all mine enemies be ashamed and sore vexed: let them return and be ashamed suddenly.
Psalm 6
New King James Version
Psalm 6
New King James Version
A Prayer of Faith in Time of Distress
To the Chief Musician. With stringed instruments. (A)On [a]an eight-stringed harp. A Psalm of David.
6 O Lord, (B)do not rebuke me in Your anger,
Nor chasten me in Your hot displeasure.
2 Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am weak;
O Lord, (C)heal me, for my bones are troubled.
3 My soul also is greatly (D)troubled;
But You, O Lord—how long?
4 Return, O Lord, deliver me!
Oh, save me for Your mercies’ sake!
5 (E)For in death there is no remembrance of You;
In the grave who will give You thanks?
6 I am weary with my groaning;
[b]All night I make my bed swim;
I drench my couch with my tears.
7 (F)My eye wastes away because of grief;
It grows old because of all my enemies.
Psalm 6
English Standard Version
Psalm 6
English Standard Version
O Lord, Deliver My Life
To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments; according to (A)The Sheminith.[a] A Psalm of David.
6 O Lord, (B)rebuke me not in your anger,
nor (C)discipline me in your wrath.
2 Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am languishing;
(D)heal me, O Lord, (E)for my bones are troubled.
3 My (F)soul also is greatly troubled.
But you, O Lord—(G)how long?
4 Turn, O Lord, deliver my life;
save me for the sake of your steadfast love.
5 For in (H)death there is no remembrance of you;
in Sheol who will give you praise?
6 I am (I)weary with my (J)moaning;
every night I flood my bed with tears;
I drench my couch with my weeping.
7 My (K)eye wastes away because of grief;
it grows weak because of all my foes.
8 (L)Depart from me, all you (M)workers of evil,
for the Lord (N)has heard the sound of my weeping.
9 The Lord has heard my (O)plea;
the Lord accepts my prayer.
10 All my enemies shall be ashamed and greatly troubled;
they shall (P)turn back and be put to shame in a moment.
Footnotes
- Psalm 6:1 Probably a musical or liturgical term
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
English Standard Version (ESV) 
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.