📖 Psalms — Chapter 39 (KJV)
Read the complete King James Version chapter below, then explore the passage sections, check what you remember, and keep your private study notes.
Scripture source: Project Gutenberg KJV, ebook 10.
Psalms 39:1 RI said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue: I will keep Tmy mouth with a bridle, while the wicked is before me.
Psalms 39:2 RI was dumb with silence, I held my peace, even from good; and my sorrow was Tstirred.
Psalms 39:3 My heart was hot within me, while I was musing the fire burned: then spake I with my tongue,
Psalms 39:4 LORD, Rmake me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is: that I may know Thow frail I am.
Psalms 39:5 RBehold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee: verily every man Tat his best state is altogether vanity. Selah.
Psalms 39:6 Surely every man walketh in RTa vain shew: surely they are disquieted in vain: he heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them.
Psalms 39:7 And now, Lord, Rwhat wait I for? my hope is in thee.
Psalms 39:8 RDeliver me from all my transgressions: make me not the reproach of the foolish.
Psalms 39:9 I was dumb, RI opened not my mouth; because thou didst it.
Psalms 39:10 RRemove thy stroke away from me: I am consumed by the Tblow of thine hand.
Psalms 39:11 RWhen thou with rebukes dost correct man for iniquity, thou makest This beauty to consume away like a moth: surely every man is vanity. Selah.
Psalms 39:12 Hear my prayer, O LORD, and give ear unto my cry; Rhold not thy peace at my tears: for I am a stranger with thee, and a sojourner, as all my fathers were.
Psalms 39:13 O Rspare me, that I may recover strength, before I go hence, and be no more.
📚 Study This Chapter
📖 What We’re Reading
Psalms 39:1–3 — Guarded speech and burning sorrow
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
The speaker tries to guard his tongue in the presence of the wicked but finds sorrow growing during silence. Inward reflection becomes like a fire until he speaks. The next verses direct his words to God, showing a movement from strained restraint toward honest prayer rather than careless speech.
Key Truth: Guarding words need not prevent honest prayer.
Check What You Remember
1. What does the speaker seek not to sin with? (Psalms 39:1)
Find it in Psalms 39:1 (KJV).
2. What image describes controlling his mouth? (Psalms 39:1)
Find it in Psalms 39:1 (KJV).
3. What burned while he mused? (Psalms 39:3)
Find it in Psalms 39:3 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Psalms 39:4–6 — Learning life's frailty
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
The speaker asks to know the measure of his days and his frailty. Human life is pictured as a handbreadth and a passing show, while accumulated riches may pass to unknown hands. These reflections challenge pride and anxious accumulation, calling for awareness of life's brevity under God.
Key Truth: Life's brevity calls for humble priorities.
Check What You Remember
1. What does he ask to know about himself? (Psalms 39:4)
Find it in Psalms 39:4 (KJV).
2. What measure pictures his days? (Psalms 39:5)
Find it in Psalms 39:5 (KJV).
3. What does a person heap up? (Psalms 39:6)
Find it in Psalms 39:6 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Psalms 39:7–13 — Hope and a plea for strength
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
The speaker places hope in the Lord, asks deliverance from transgressions, and appeals for relief. Calling himself a stranger and sojourner, he asks God to hear his tears and spare him. The urgent ending shows a mortal person seeking mercy, not a command to withdraw from life's responsibilities.
Key Truth: Human frailty can be met with hope in God.
Check What You Remember
1. In whom is his hope? (Psalms 39:7)
Find it in Psalms 39:7 (KJV).
2. What insects picture fading beauty? (Psalms 39:11)
Find it in Psalms 39:11 (KJV).
3. What does he ask to recover? (Psalms 39:13)
Find it in Psalms 39:13 (KJV).
Related Scripture (KJV)
James 4:14 — James compares human life to a brief vapor.
This related passage is selected for its connection with this chapter. It is separate from the chapter text.
Reflect and Apply
How might remembering life's brevity change one priority while deepening your hope in God?
Advanced Questions and Answers
Study this chapter’s wording, patterns, contrasts, and meaning in greater depth.
1. What tension appears between the resolve to guard speech and inward distress?
2. What is the purpose of asking about the measure of his days?
3. How does the image of heaped riches expose uncertainty?
4. How does recognition of frailty lead into prayer?
5. How does the sojourner image shape the closing appeal?
Notes
Write what you want to remember, questions to explore, or Scriptures to look up later. Your saved notes are private to your account.
Loading your notes…
Chapter Navigation