Psalm 41

Psalm 42 in the KJV and most English Bibles

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For the end, a Psalm for instruction, for the sons of Korah.

Εἰς τὸ τέλος, εἰς σύνεσιν τοῖς υἱοῖς Κορέ.

As the hart earnestly desires the fountains of water, So my soul earnestly longs for thee, O God.

Ὃν τρόπον ἐπιποθεῖ ἡ ἔλαφος ἐπὶ τὰς πηγὰς τῶν ὑδάτων, οὕτως ἐπιποθεῖ ἡ ψυχή μου πρὸς σὲ ὁ Θεός.

My soul has thirsted for the living God: When shall I come and appear before God?

Ἐδίψησεν ἡ ψυχή μου πρὸς τὸν Θεὸν τὸν ζῶντα· πότε ἥξω καὶ ὀφθήσομαι τῷ προσώπῳ τοῦ Θεοῦ;

My tears have been bread to me day and night, While they daily said to me, Where is thy God?

Ἐγενήθη τὰ δάκρυά μου ἐμοὶ ἄρτος ἡμέρας καὶ νυκτὸς, ἐν τῷ λέγεσθαί μοι καθʼ ἑκάστην ἡμέραν, ποῦ ἐστιν ὁ Θεός σου;

I remembered these things, and poured out my soul in me, For I will go to the place of thy wondrous tabernacle, even to the house of God, With a voice of exultation and thanksgiving and of the sound of those who keep festival.

Ταῦτα ἐμνήσθην, καὶ ἐξέχεα ἐπʼ ἐμὲ τὴν ψυχήν μου, ὅτι διελεύσομαι ἐν τόπῳ σκηνῆς θαυμαστῆς ἕως τοῦ οἴκου τοῦ Θεοῦ· ἐν φωνῇ ἀγαλλιάσεως καὶ ἐξομολογήσεως ἤχου ἑορταζόντων.

Wherefore art thou very sad, O my soul? and wherefore dost thou trouble me? Hope in God; for I will give thanks to him; He is the salvation of my countenance.

Ἱνατί περίλυπος εἶ ἡ ψυχή μου, καὶ ἱνατί συνταράσσεις με; ἔλπισον ἐπὶ τὸν Θεὸν, ὅτι ἐξομολογήσομαι αὐτῷ, σωτήριον τοῦ προσώπου μου,

O my God, my soul has been troubled within me: Therefore will I remember thee from the land of Jordan, and of the Hermonites, from the little hill.

Ὁ Θεός μου· πρὸς ἐμαυτὸν ἡ ψυχή μου ἐταράχθη, διὰ τοῦτο μνησθήσομαί σου ἐκ γῆς Ἰορδάνου, καὶ Ἐρμωνιεὶμ ἀπὸ ὄρους μικροῦ.

Deep calls to deep at the voice of thy cataracts: All thy billows and thy waves have gone over me.

Ἄβυσσος ἄβυσσον ἐπικαλεῖται εἰς φωνὴν τῶν καταῤῥακτῶν σου· πάντες οἱ μετεωρισμοί σου, καὶ τὰ κύματά σου ἐπʼ ἐμὲ διῆλθον.

By day the Lord will command his mercy, And manifest it by night: With me is prayer to the God of my life.

Ἡμέρας ἐντελεῖται Κύριος τὸ ἔλεος αὐτοῦ, καὶ νυκτὸς δηλώσει· παρʼ ἐμοὶ προσευχὴ τῷ Θεῷ τῆς ζωῆς μου,

I will say to God, Thou art my helper; why hast thou forgotten me? Wherefore do I go sad of countenance, while the enemy oppresses me?

ἐρῶ τῷ Θεῷ, ἀντιλήπτωρ μου εἶ, διατί μου ἐπελάθου; ἱνατί σκυθρωπάζων πορεύομαι ἐν τῷ ἐκθλίβειν τὸν ἐχθρόν μου;

While my bones were breaking, they that afflicted me reproached me; While they said to me daily, Where is thy God?

Ἐν τῷ καταθλᾶσθαι τὰ ὀστᾶ μου, ὠνείδισάν με οἱ θλίβοντές με· ἐν τῷ λέγειν αὐτούς μοι καθʼ ἑκάστην ἡμέραν, ποῦ ἐστιν ὁ Θεός σου;

Wherefore art thou very sad, O my soul? and wherefore dost thou trouble me? Hope in God; for I will give thanks to him; He is the health of my countenance, and my God.

Ἱνατί περίλυπος εἶ ἡ ψυχή μου, καὶ ἱνατί συνταράσσεις με; ἔλπισον ἐπὶ τὸν Θεὸν, ὅτι ἐξομολογήσομαι αὐτῷ, ἡ σωτηρία τοῦ προσώπου μου, καὶ ὁ Θεός μου.

About these notes

Every note is a real passage, quoted word for word from a published English translation, with its source. Nothing here is summarised or written by us. Some verses have many notes and some have none, because the Fathers wrote more on some passages than others.

Blessed Augustine, Expositions on the Book of Psalms, tr. A. Cleveland Coxe from the Oxford translation, Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 8 (1888).
Scripture: the Septuagint, in the translation of Sir Lancelot Brenton (1851), with spelling updated by Adam Boyd (2020); the Greek is Brenton's Septuagint text.

All of these translations are in the public domain. The passages were matched to their verses by the Historical Christian Commentaries project, which also hosts the full texts we link to. The Fathers are a treasury of the Church's mind, and they are best read alongside the life of the Church: if a passage raises a question, bring it to your priest.