Psalm 38

Psalm 38 is one of seven liturgical psalms known as the penitential psalms. These psalms are characterized by expressions of repentance and sorrow for sin. In the context of Hebrew literature, the Psalms (known in Hebrew as Tehillim, or Songs of Praise) are poems and hymns that were compiled for worship and continue to be central to Jewish and Christian liturgy.12

Hebrew poetry, including the Psalms, features rhythm and parallelism. Parallelism is a key characteristic where the idea in one part of a line is balanced or contrasted in another part. Psalm 38:1 exemplifies synonymous parallelism, where the second part of the line repeats the idea of the first with different wording: "Yahweh, do not punish me in your rage, or reprove me in the heat of anger". The collection of 150 poems in the Psalter represents a wide range of human emotions and faith experiences before God.2