Psalms 38:13

But like a deaf man, I do not hear; and like a mute man, I do not open my mouth.

Berean Standard Bible

Study note

Setting — The psalmist speaks from a position of acute suffering, responding to enemies who lay snares and plot deceit throughout the day. He addresses God in a moment of isolation where he deliberately withholds defense or retaliation.

The words — The Hebrew terms חֵרֵשׁ (che.resh) and אִלֵּם ('ilem) literally denote a deaf person and a mute person, describing the speaker’s physical posture of refusing to hear or speak.

The thread — This deliberate silence under accusation appears in Psalms 39:9, Psalms 39:2, and Isaiah 53:7, where the speaker similarly closes the mouth in response to oppression or divine action.

Why it lands — The text demands recognition that restraint can be a deliberate response to hostility, requiring the reader to evaluate whether silence stems from fear, submission, or disciplined trust.

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

וַאֲנִ֣יva./'a.Niand/ I כְ֭חֵרֵשׁKhe./che.resh[am] like/ a deaf [person]לֹ֣אlo'not אֶשְׁמָ֑ע'esh.Ma'I hear וּ֝כְאִלֵּ֗םu./khe./'i.Lemand/ like/ a dumb [person]לֹ֣אlo'[who] not יִפְתַּח־yif.tach-he opens פִּֽיו׃Pi/vmouth/ his

King James Version

But I, as a deaf man, heard not; and I was as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth.

Cross-references

Psalms 39:9 I have become mute; I do not open my mouth because of what You have done.
Isaiah 53:7 He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so He did not open His mouth.
Psalms 39:2 I was speechless and still; I remained silent, even from speaking good, and my sorrow was stirred.
1 Peter 2:23 When they heaped abuse on Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats, but entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.
2 Samuel 16:10 But the king replied, “What have I to do with you, O sons of Zeruiah? If he curses me because the LORD told him, ‘Curse David,’ who can ask, ‘Why did you do this?’”