Lord, the God of my salvation, I have cried out by day and in the night before You.
Parallel translations
- WEB A Song. A Psalm by the sons of Korah. For the Chief Musician. To the tune of “The Suffering of Affliction.” A contemplation by Heman, the Ezrahite. Yahweh, the God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before you.
- KJV O LORD God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee:
- BSB A song. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. For the choirmaster. According to Mahalath Leannoth. A Maskil of Heman the Ezrahite. O LORD, the God of my salvation, day and night I cry out before You.
- NKJV O Lord, God of my salvation, I have cried out day and night before You.
- NLT O Lord, God of my salvation, I cry out to you by day. I come to you at night.
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
Heman cries to the LORD, the God of his salvation, day and night in deep distress. Even in darkness, he addresses God as his Savior.
Overview
Psalm 88 is the Bible's darkest lament, yet it opens by naming Yahweh as 'the God of my salvation.' Heman's persistent crying shows faith clinging to God amid unrelieved suffering. This honest anguish, addressed to God, foreshadows Christ's own cries from the depths of His passion.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 27
- Isa 12:2Behold, God is my salvation. I will trust, and will not be afraid; for Yah, Yahweh, is my strength and song; and he has become my salvation.”
- Ps 22:2My God, I cry in the daytime, but you don’t answer; in the night season, and am not silent.
- Luke 18:7Won’t God avenge his chosen ones, who are crying out to him day and night, and yet he exercises patience with them?
- Ps 86:3Be merciful to me, Lord, for I call to you all day long.
- Ps 27:9Don’t hide your face from me. Don’t put your servant away in anger. You have been my help. Don’t abandon me, neither forsake me, God of my salvation.
- 1 Kgs 4:31For he was wiser than all men; than Ethan the Ezrahite, Heman, Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol: and his fame was in all the nations all around.
- Ps 53:1For the Chief Musician. To the tune of “Mahalath.” A contemplation by David. The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, and have done abominable iniquity. There is no one who does good.
- Titus 3:4–7But when the kindness of God our Savior and his love toward mankind appeared,
- Gen 49:18I have waited for your salvation, Yahweh.
- Luke 2:37and she had been a widow for about eighty-four years), who didn’t depart from the temple, worshiping with fastings and petitions night and day.
- Ps 51:14Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, the God of my salvation. My tongue shall sing aloud of your righteousness.
- Titus 2:13looking for the blessed hope and appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ;
- Luke 2:30for my eyes have seen your salvation,
- Ps 65:5By awesome deeds of righteousness, you answer us, God of our salvation. You who are the hope of all the ends of the earth, of those who are far away on the sea;
- Ps 68:19Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burdens, even the God who is our salvation. Selah.
- Luke 1:47My spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior,
- Ps 27:1By David. Yahweh is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? Yahweh is the strength of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid?
- Ps 79:9Help us, God of our salvation, for the glory of your name. Deliver us, and forgive our sins, for your name’s sake.
- Ps 24:5He shall receive a blessing from Yahweh, righteousness from the God of his salvation.
- Ps 140:7Yahweh, the Lord, the strength of my salvation, you have covered my head in the day of battle.
- Ps 62:7With God is my salvation and my honor. The rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.
- Neh 1:6Let your ear now be attentive, and your eyes open, that you may listen to the prayer of your servant, which I pray before you at this time, day and night, for the children of Israel your servants, while I confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Yes, I and my father’s house have sinned.
- Isa 62:6I have set watchmen on your walls, Jerusalem. They will never be silent day nor night. You who call on Yahweh, take no rest,
- 1 Chr 2:6The sons of Zerah: Zimri, Ethan, Heman, Calcol, and Dara; five of them in all.
- 1 Th 3:10night and day praying exceedingly that we may see your face, and may perfect that which is lacking in your faith?
- Titus 2:10not stealing, but showing all good fidelity; that they may adorn the doctrine of God, our Savior, in all things.
- 2 Tim 1:3I thank God, whom I serve as my forefathers did, with a pure conscience. How unceasing is my memory of you in my petitions, night and day
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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 88:1 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.