Out of the Depths
De profundis clamavi ad te, Domine
Psalm 130 summary: what it means
Psalm 130 is a prayer from the lowest point. It opens with someone crying out to God from what the psalm calls the depths, and it does not pretend the trouble is small or that the person praying is innocent. Verse 3 asks the question the whole psalm turns on: if God kept a record of sins, nobody could stand.
The answer comes in the second half. Forgiveness is with God, so he is feared rather than avoided. The psalm then shifts from one person to the whole nation, and ends by telling Israel to hope in the LORD, because with him there is mercy and full redemption.
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Psalm 130: Out of the Depths
World English Bible, public domain. allpsalms.com/psalm-130
Psalm 130 commentary: explained verse by verse
Out of the depths I have cried to you, LORD.
Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O LORD.
The psalm begins in the depths, not at the point of rescue. Nothing in the opening line suggests the trouble has lifted, and the writer does not say what the depths are.
Also read Psalm 127:1, Psalm 71:20, Psalm 123:1, Psalm 18:16
Lord, hear my voice.Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my petitions.
Lord, hear my voice: let thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications.
The request is simply to be heard. Nothing is offered in exchange, no case is made, and no promise of better behaviour is attached.
Also read Psalm 64:1, Isaiah 37:17, 2 Chronicles 6:40, Psalm 55:1-2
If you, LORD, kept a record of sins,Lord, who could stand?
If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?
This is the hinge of the psalm. If God kept a record of every wrong, nobody could stand, and the psalm includes the person praying in that nobody.
Also read Isaiah 53:6, Nahum 1:6, Malachi 3:2, Job 15:14
But there is forgiveness with you,therefore you are feared.
But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared.
The verse links forgiveness and fear. Forgiveness does not reduce reverence here, it produces it: God is feared because he forgives, not in spite of it.
Also read Psalm 103:2-3, 2 Corinthians 5:19, Psalm 25:11, Jeremiah 33:8-9
I wait for the LORD.My soul waits.I hope in his word.
I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope.
Waiting is the psalm's main action, and it is repeated. The writer waits on God's word rather than on a change in circumstances.
Also read Isaiah 26:8, Isaiah 30:18, Psalm 119:49, Luke 2:38
My soul longs for the Lord more than watchmen long for the morning,more than watchmen for the morning.
My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: I say, more than they that watch for the morning.
Watchmen stood the night knowing morning was certain but not knowing the hour. The line repeats, which slows the reader down to the pace of the waiting.
Also read Psalm 63:6, Isaiah 21:8, Acts 27:29, Psalm 119:147
Israel, hope in the LORD,for there is loving kindness with the LORD.Abundant redemption is with him.
Let Israel hope in the LORD: for with the LORD there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption.
The prayer turns outward. What one person has found is now urged on the whole of Israel, with loving kindness and abundant redemption given as the reason.
Also read Hebrews 10:35, Psalm 86:15, Psalm 71:5, Revelation 5:9
He will redeem Israel from all their sins.
And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.
Redemption covers all iniquities rather than a partial reprieve, and it is promised to the whole community rather than to the one who began the psalm alone.
Also read Psalm 103:3-4, Luke 1:68, Matthew 1:21, Titus 2:14
A prayer from Psalm 130
Out of the depths I have cried to you, LORD. Hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to my petitions. If you kept a record of sins, who could stand? I could not. But there is forgiveness with you, and so I fear you. I wait for you, LORD. My soul waits, and I hope in your word. I long for you more than watchmen long for the morning. There is loving kindness with you, and abundant redemption. Redeem your people from all their sins. Amen.
Psalm 130 Bible study questions
- In verse 3, what question does the writer ask, and in verse 4, what answer does he give?
- In verse 6, what picture does the writer use for his waiting, and why do you think the line is repeated?
- The psalm begins in the depths but does not say what they are. What words would you use for your own depths?
- Verse 4 says God is feared because there is forgiveness with him. What do you make of that link between forgiveness and reverence?
- Psalm 103:10 says God has not dealt with us according to our sins. How does it compare with Psalm 130:3?
Questions about Psalm 130
Who wrote Psalm 130?
The psalm does not name its author. It is one of the fifteen Songs of Ascents, Psalms 120 to 134.
What does Psalm 130 mean?
It is a prayer for mercy from someone at their lowest point, built around the claim that if God kept a record of sins nobody could stand, and that because he forgives instead, he is worth waiting for.
Why is Psalm 130 called De Profundis?
De profundis is Latin for out of the depths, the psalm's first words in the Latin Bible. The phrase became the traditional name for the psalm.
What are the seven penitential psalms?
Psalms 6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130 and 143. They have been grouped together in Christian use since at least the sixth century.
What does Psalm 130:7 mean?
It turns a personal prayer into an appeal to everyone: put your hope in the Lord, because with him there is mercy and full redemption.
Psalm 130 KJV: the King James Version
Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O LORD.1
Lord, hear my voice: let thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications.2
If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?3
But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared.4
I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope.5
My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: I say, more than they that watch for the morning.6
Let Israel hope in the LORD: for with the LORD there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption.7
And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.8
Psalm 130 in Hebrew
The Hebrew text from the Westminster Leningrad Codex, public domain. Verse numbers follow the Hebrew Bible, which counts a psalm's heading as verse 1, so they can run one ahead of English Bibles.
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1 שִׁ֥יר הַֽמַּעֲל֑וֹת מִמַּעֲמַקִּ֖ים קְרָאתִ֣יךָ יְהוָֽה׃
2 אֲדֹנָי֮ שִׁמְעָ֪ה בְק֫וֹלִ֥י תִּהְיֶ֣ינָה אָ֭זְנֶיךָ קַשֻּׁב֑וֹת לְ֝ק֗וֹל תַּחֲנוּנָֽי׃
3 אִם־עֲוֺנ֥וֹת תִּשְׁמָר־יָ֑הּ אֲ֝דֹנָ֗י מִ֣י יַעֲמֹֽד׃
4 כִּֽי־עִמְּךָ֥ הַסְּלִיחָ֑ה לְ֝מַ֗עַן תִּוָּרֵֽא׃
5 קִוִּ֣יתִי יְ֭הוָה קִוְּתָ֣ה נַפְשִׁ֑י וְֽלִדְבָר֥וֹ הוֹחָֽלְתִּי׃
6 נַפְשִׁ֥י לַֽאדֹנָ֑י מִשֹּׁמְרִ֥ים לַ֝בֹּ֗קֶר שֹׁמְרִ֥ים לַבֹּֽקֶר׃
7 יַחֵ֥ל יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל אֶל־יְה֫וָה כִּֽי־עִם־יְהוָ֥ה הַחֶ֑סֶד וְהַרְבֵּ֖ה עִמּ֣וֹ פְדֽוּת׃
8 וְ֭הוּא יִפְדֶּ֣ה אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל מִ֝כֹּ֗ל עֲוֺנֹתָֽיו׃
Psalm 130 in the Catholic Douay-Rheims Bible
The Douay-Rheims Bible, 1899 edition, public domain. It follows the Greek and Latin numbering, so this psalm is Psalm 129 there.
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1 Out of the depths I have cried to thee, O Lord:
2 Lord, hear my voice. Let thy ears be attentive to the voice of my supplication.
3 If thou, O Lord, wilt mark iniquities: Lord, who shall stand it.
4 For with thee there is merciful forgiveness: and by reason of thy law, I have waited for thee, O Lord. My soul hath relied on his word:
5 My soul hath hoped in the Lord.
6 From the morning watch even until night, let Israel hope in the Lord.
7 Because with the Lord there is mercy: and with him plentiful redemption.
8 And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.
Psalm 130 in Latin
The Clementine Vulgate, public domain, where this psalm is Psalm 129.
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1 Canticum graduum. De profundis clamavi ad te, Domine;
2 Domine, exaudi vocem meam. Fiant aures tuæ intendentes in vocem deprecationis meæ.
3 Si iniquitates observaveris, Domine, Domine, quis sustinebit?
4 Quia apud te propitiatio est; et propter legem tuam sustinui te, Domine. Sustinuit anima mea in verbo ejus:
5 speravit anima mea in Domino.
6 A custodia matutina usque ad noctem, speret Israël in Domino.
7 Quia apud Dominum misericordia, et copiosa apud eum redemptio.
8 Et ipse redimet Israël ex omnibus iniquitatibus ejus.
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Psalm 130 in Catholic tradition
Psalm 130 is one of the seven penitential psalms, a grouping of Psalms 6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130 and 143 named in Cassiodorus's commentary in the sixth century. Its Latin opening, De profundis, has become the usual name for the psalm.
Psalm 130 at a glance
| Verses | 8 |
| Heading in the text | A Song of Ascents. |
| Attributed to | Not named in the text. It is one of the fifteen Songs of Ascents, Psalms 120 to 134. |
| Type | Penitential psalm and Song of Ascents |
| Number in Greek and Latin Bibles | Psalm 129 |
| Latin first line | De profundis clamavi ad te, Domine |
Read Psalm 130 when you are facing
Which translation you are reading
The King James Version opens "Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O LORD". The Coverdale version used in the Book of Common Prayer has "Out of the deep", which is why some prayer books word it that way.
Psalm 130 in other translations
This page prints the World English Bible and the King James Version because both are public domain. The NIV, ESV, NKJV, NLT and NASB are under copyright, so they cannot be printed in full here. You can read Psalm 130 in those translations at Bible Gateway.
Where Psalm 130 belongs
Songs of AscentsThe seven penitential psalmsBook 5 of the Psalms
How this page was made
The psalm text comes from public domain translations and is not edited. The summary, the verse notes and the answers are written by hand for this page. Where a claim is about Christian tradition rather than the text itself, it is labelled as tradition and sourced below.
Sources
- Text: World English Bible and King James Version, both public domain, from ebible.org source
- Cross references: openbible.info, CC BY source
- Penitential psalms: The grouping of Psalms 6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130 and 143 is named in Cassiodorus's commentary in the sixth century source
- Psalm 130 and De profundis: Wikipedia summary of Psalm 130, its place among the penitential psalms and its Latin name source
- Hebrew text: Westminster Leningrad Codex, public domain, from ebible.org source
- Douay-Rheims: Douay-Rheims Bible, 1899 edition, public domain, from ebible.org source
- Latin text: Clementine Vulgate, public domain, from ebible.org source
- Numbering: Greek and Latin psalm numbering, Wikipedia, Psalms source