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You have removed my acquaintances far from me; You have made me an object of loathing to them; I am shut up and cannot go out.
Psalms 88:8 · New American Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB You have taken my friends from me. You have made me an abomination to them. I am confined, and I can’t escape.
  • KJV Thou hast put away mine acquaintance far from me; thou hast made me an abomination unto them: I am shut up, and I cannot come forth.
  • BSB You have removed my friends from me; You have made me repulsive to them; I am confined and cannot escape.
  • NKJV You have put away my acquaintances far from me; You have made me an abomination to them; I am shut up, and I cannot get out;
  • NLT You have driven my friends away by making me repulsive to them. I am in a trap with no way of escape.

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

God has removed his friends and made him repulsive to them, leaving him confined and unable to escape. His suffering includes painful isolation.

Overview

Heman laments abandonment by companions and entrapment in his affliction, adding loneliness to his sorrow. Social rejection compounds his sense of being shut in. This isolation foreshadows Christ, forsaken by friends and despised by men in His hour of suffering.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 17

  • Ps 31:11Because of all my adversaries I have become utterly contemptible to my neighbors, A fear to my acquaintances. Those who saw me on the street fled from me.
  • Isa 49:7Yahweh, the Redeemer of Israel, and his Holy One, says to him whom man despises, to him whom the nation abhors, to a servant of rulers: “Kings shall see and rise up; princes, and they shall worship; because of Yahweh who is faithful, even the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”
  • Job 30:10They abhor me, they stand aloof from me, and don’t hesitate to spit in my face.
  • Jer 32:2Now at that time the king of Babylon’s army was besieging Jerusalem; and Jeremiah the prophet was shut up in the court of the guard, which was in the king of Judah’s house.
  • Zech 11:8I cut off the three shepherds in one month; for my soul was weary of them, and their soul also loathed me.
  • John 15:23–24He who hates me, hates my Father also.
  • Job 19:13–19“He has put my brothers far from me. My acquaintances are wholly estranged from me.
  • Lam 3:7–9He has walled me about, that I can’t go out; he has made my chain heavy.
  • Ps 143:4Therefore my spirit is overwhelmed within me. My heart within me is desolate.
  • Ps 142:4Look on my right, and see; for there is no one who is concerned for me. Refuge has fled from me. No one cares for my soul.
  • 1 Sam 23:18–20They both made a covenant before Yahweh. Then David stayed in the woods, and Jonathan went to his house.
  • Ps 88:18You have put lover and friend far from me, and my friends into darkness.
  • Matt 27:21–25But the governor answered them, “Which of the two do you want me to release to you?” They said, “Barabbas!”
  • Job 12:14Behold, he breaks down, and it can’t be built again. He imprisons a man, and there can be no release.
  • John 11:57Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had commanded that if anyone knew where he was, he should report it, that they might seize him.
  • Job 19:8He has walled up my way so that I can’t pass, and has set darkness in my paths.
  • Isa 63:3“I have trodden the wine press alone; and of the peoples, no one was with me: Yes, I trod them in my anger, and trampled them in my wrath. Their lifeblood is sprinkled on my garments, and I have stained all my clothing.

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 88:8YouTube · 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 88:8 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.