Psalms 116:3

Psalms 116:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me: I found trouble and sorrow.
• New International Version (NIV)The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came over me; I was overcome by distress and sorrow.
• English Standard Version (ESV)The snares of death encompassed me; the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me; I suffered distress and anguish.
• New King James Version (NKJV)The pains of death surrounded me, And the pangs of Sheol laid hold of me; I found trouble and sorrow.

Context of Psalms 116:3

1I love the Lord, because He hears [and continues to hear] My voice and my supplications (my pleas, my cries, my specific needs). 2Because He has inclined His ear to me, Therefore I will call on Him as long as I live. The cords and sorrows of death encompassed me, And the terrors of Sheol came upon me; I found distress and sorrow. 4Then I called on the name of the Lord: “O Lord, please save my life!” 5Gracious is the Lord, and [consistently] righteous; Yes, our God is compassionate.

Psalms 116:3 word by word

אֲפָפ֤וּנִי׀ חֶבְלֵי־מָ֗וֶת וּמְצָרֵ֣י שְׁא֣וֹל מְצָא֑וּנִי צָרָ֖ה וְיָג֣וֹן אֶמְצָֽא׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• The sorrowsחֶ֫בֶלchebel chêbel · cordH2256
• of deathמָ֫וֶתmâveth · deathH4194
• compassedאָפַף'âphaph · to surroundH661
• me, and the painsמֵצַרmêtsar · straitsH4712
• of hellשְׁאוֹלshe'ôl she'ôl · hell: SheolH7585
• gat holdמָצָאmâtsâ' · to findH4672
• troubleצָרָהtsârâh · distressH6869
• and sorrowיָגוֹןyâgôn · sorrowH3015

Cross-references for Psalms 116:3

• Psalms 18:4The cords of death surrounded me, And the streams of ungodliness and torrents of destruction terrified me.
• Psalms 88:6You have laid me in the lowest pit, In dark places, in the depths.
• Jonah 2:2and said, “I called out of my trouble and distress to the Lord, And He answered me; Out of the belly of Sheol I cried for help, And You heard my voice.
• Mark 14:33He took Peter and James and John with Him, and He began to be deeply distressed and troubled [extremely anguished at the prospect of what was to come].
• Luke 22:44And being in agony [deeply distressed and anguished; almost to the point of death], He prayed more intently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down on the ground.
• Hebrews 5:7In the days of His earthly life, Jesus offered up both [specific] petitions and [urgent] supplications [for that which He needed] with fervent crying and tears to the One who was [always] able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverent submission toward God [His sinlessness and His unfailing determination to do the Father’s will].
• Psalms 32:3When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away Through my groaning all the day long.
• Psalms 38:6I am bent over and greatly bowed down; I go about mourning all day long.
• Isaiah 53:3He was despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and pain and acquainted with grief; And like One from whom men hide their faces He was despised, and we did not appreciate His worth or esteem Him.

Commentaries on Psalms 116:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3The sorrows of death - מות חבלי chebley maveth, the cables or cords of death; alluding to their bonds and fetters during their captivity; or to the cords by which a criminal is bound who is about to be led out to execution; or to the bandages in which the dead were enveloped, when head, arms, body, and limbs were all laced down together. The pains of hell - שאול מצרי metsarey sheol the straitnesses of the grave. So little expectation was there of life…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3The sorrows of death - What an expression! We know of no intenser sorrows pertaining to this world than those which we associate with the dying struggle - whether our views in regard to the reality of such sorrows be correct or not. We may be - we probably are - mistaken in regard to the intensity of suffering as ordinarily experienced in death; but still we dread those sorrows more than we do anything else, and all that we dread may be experienced then…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3It is not clear if the psalmist’s crisis was a literal near-death experience or if he was using the term figuratively.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 3-43-4. For similar figures for distress see Psa 18:4, 5. gat hold upon me--Another sense ("found") of the same word follows, as we speak of disease finding us, and of our finding or catching disease.Read the comment

Topics related to Psalms 116:3

• Afflictions and Adversities
• Hades
• Hell
• Testimony

In the dictionaries

• Hallel
• Haste
• Hear
• Hymn
• Net
• Psalms
• Temple, the Second
• Celebrate
• Hallelujah
• Pain

Commentaries on Psalms 116

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• The Treasury of David
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings