Bible Strands
Psalms 13:3
Consider me and respond, O LORD my God. Give light to my eyes, lest I sleep in death,
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The psalmist addresses Yahweh directly during a period of daily sorrow and enemy domination, pleading for immediate intervention before death or enemy triumph occurs.
The words — The imperative הַבִּיטָה (ha.Bi.ta/h) literally means "pay attention" or "look," paired with עֲנֵנִי ('A.ne./ni) for "answer me," which frames the plea as a demand for divine attention and response.
The thread — The text states God's role in giving light to eyes, a motif that runs to Psalms 18:28, while the warning against sleeping in death connects to the preservation themes in Ezra 9:8 and the downfall imagery in Jeremiah 51:39.
Why it lands — The verse states that human vulnerability requires divine intervention to prevent defeat, requiring the reader to acknowledge dependence on God for survival and clarity rather than self-reliance.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Consider and hear me, O Lord my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death;
Cross-references
- Ezra 9:8 But now, for a brief moment, grace has come from the LORD our God to preserve for us a remnant and to give us a stake in His holy place. Even in our bondage, our God has given us new life and light to our eyes.
- Psalms 18:28 For You, O LORD, light my lamp; my God lights up my darkness.
- Jeremiah 51:39 While they are flushed with heat, I will serve them a feast, and I will make them drunk so that they may revel; then they will fall asleep forever and never wake up, declares the LORD.
- 1 Samuel 14:29 “My father has brought trouble to the land,” Jonathan replied. “Just look at how my eyes have brightened because I tasted a little of this honey.
- Psalms 5:1 For the choirmaster, to be accompanied by flutes. A Psalm of David. Give ear to my words, O LORD; consider my groaning.
- 1 Samuel 14:27 Jonathan, however, had not heard that his father had bound the people with the oath. So he reached out the end of the staff in his hand, dipped it into the honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth, and his eyes brightened.
- Psalms 9:13 Be merciful to me, O LORD; see how my enemies afflict me! Lift me up from the gates of death,
- Psalms 25:19 Consider my enemies, for they are many, and they hate me with vicious hatred.
- Psalms 31:7 I will be glad and rejoice in Your loving devotion, for You have seen my affliction; You have known the anguish of my soul.
- Psalms 119:153 Look upon my affliction and rescue me, for I have not forgotten Your law.