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But to You, O LORD, I cry for help; in the morning my prayer comes before You.
Psalms 88:13 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB But to you, Yahweh, I have cried. In the morning, my prayer comes before you.
  • KJV But unto thee have I cried, O LORD; and in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee.
  • NKJV But to You I have cried out, O Lord, And in the morning my prayer comes before You.
  • NASB ¶But I, Lord, have cried out to You for help, And in the morning my prayer comes before You.
  • NLT O Lord, I cry out to you. I will keep on pleading day by day.

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

Despite everything, Heman cries to the LORD, bringing his prayer each morning. He resolves to keep seeking God.

Overview

The emphatic 'But to you' marks a turn of resolve: Heman will keep praying despite unanswered anguish. Morning prayer signals persistent, fresh seeking of God. This determined faith, crying out even without relief, reflects the trust that ultimately rests secure in Christ.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 4

  • Ps 5:3In the morning, O LORD, You hear my voice; at daybreak I lay my plea before You and wait in expectation.
  • Mark 1:35Early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up and slipped out to a solitary place to pray.
  • Ps 30:2O LORD my God, I cried to You for help, and You healed me.
  • Ps 119:147–148I rise before dawn and cry for help; in Your word I have put my hope.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Psalms videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Psalms 88:13YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on PsalmsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 88:13 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.