Bible Strands
Psalms 88:8
You have removed my friends from me; You have made me repulsive to them; I am confined and cannot escape.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The psalmist addresses God while experiencing acute isolation and physical restraint, situated between the declaration of divine wrath in the preceding verse and the description of daily pleading in the following verse. This moment marks the peak of the speaker's alienation from human community and personal freedom.
The words — The Hebrew verb הִרְחַקְתָּ (hirḥaqtā) literally means "you have removed far away," and תוֹעֵבֹת (toʿēḇōt) translates to "abominations" or "repulsive things." These terms establish the cause of the speaker's social exile and physical imprisonment.
The thread — This pattern of divinely caused social rejection and confinement appears in Psalms 31:11, Job 30:10, and Isaiah 49:7, where the righteous or the Servant faces similar abandonment and abhorrence. The motif consistently links divine action with human isolation.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition that divine action, not merely human failure, can sever relationships and restrict movement. It requires the reader to confront the reality of unmerited isolation without offering comfort beyond the stated condition.
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
Thou hast put away mine acquaintance far from me; thou hast made me an abomination unto them: I am shut up, and I cannot come forth.
Cross-references
- Psalms 31:11 Among all my enemies I am a disgrace, and among my neighbors even more. I am dreaded by my friends—they flee when they see me on the street.
- Job 30:10 They abhor me and keep far from me; they do not hesitate to spit in my face.
- Isaiah 49:7 Thus says the LORD, the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel, to Him who was despised and abhorred by the nation, to the Servant of rulers: “Kings will see You and rise, and princes will bow down, because of the LORD, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen You.”
- Job 19:13 He has removed my brothers from me; my acquaintances have abandoned me.
- Isaiah 63:3 “I have trodden the winepress alone, and no one from the nations was with Me. I trampled them in My anger and trod them down in My fury; their blood spattered My garments, and all My clothes were stained.
- Jeremiah 32:2 At that time the army of the king of Babylon was besieging Jerusalem, and Jeremiah the prophet was imprisoned in the courtyard of the guard, which was in the palace of the king of Judah.
- Lamentations 3:7 He has walled me in so I cannot escape; He has weighed me down with chains.
- Zechariah 11:8 And in one month I dismissed three shepherds. My soul grew impatient with the flock, and their souls also detested me.
- John 15:23 Whoever hates Me hates My Father as well.
- 1 Samuel 23:18 So the two of them made a covenant before the LORD. And David remained in Horesh, while Jonathan went home.