O Lord, hear me as I pray; pay attention to my groaning.
Parallel translations
- WEB For the Chief Musician, with the flutes. A Psalm by David. Give ear to my words, Yahweh. Consider my meditation.
- KJV Give ear to my words, O LORD, consider my meditation.
- BSB For the choirmaster, to be accompanied by flutes. A Psalm of David. Give ear to my words, O LORD; consider my groaning.
- NKJV Give ear to my words, O Lord, Consider my meditation.
- NASB Listen to my words, Lord, Consider my sighing.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
David asks the Lord to listen to his words and consider his unspoken meditation. God attends to both our spoken and silent prayers.
Overview
This morning prayer opens with David pleading that God give ear even to his sighing or whispered thoughts. He knows the Lord hears not only formed words but the groanings of the heart. This assurance frees believers to bring God their deepest, half-formed cries, knowing the Spirit Himself intercedes for us (Romans 8:26).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 12
- 1 Jn 5:14–15This is the boldness which we have toward him, that, if we ask anything according to his will, he listens to us.
- Ps 54:2Hear my prayer, God. Listen to the words of my mouth.
- Ps 19:14Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, Yahweh, my rock, and my redeemer.
- Ps 55:1–2For the Chief Musician. On stringed instruments. A contemplation by David. Listen to my prayer, God. Don’t hide yourself from my supplication.
- 1 Pet 3:12For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears open to their prayer; but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
- Ps 64:1For the Chief Musician. A Psalm by David. Hear my voice, God, in my complaint. Preserve my life from fear of the enemy.
- Ps 86:1A Prayer by David. Hear, Yahweh, and answer me, for I am poor and needy.
- Rom 8:26In the same way, the Spirit also helps our weaknesses, for we don’t know how to pray as we ought. But the Spirit himself makes intercession for us with groanings which can’t be uttered.
- Ps 17:1A Prayer by David. Hear, Yahweh, my righteous plea; Give ear to my prayer, that doesn’t go out of deceitful lips.
- 1 Sam 1:16Don’t consider your servant a wicked woman; for I have been speaking out of the abundance of my complaint and my provocation.”
- Ps 80:1For the Chief Musician. To the tune of “The Lilies of the Covenant.” A Psalm by Asaph. Hear us, Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock, you who sit above the cherubim, shine out.
- 1 Sam 1:13Now Hannah spoke in her heart. Only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli thought she was drunk.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.
How Psalms 5:1 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.