Psalm 109:22
New International Version
For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.

New Living Translation
For I am poor and needy, and my heart is full of pain.

English Standard Version
For I am poor and needy, and my heart is stricken within me.

Berean Standard Bible
For I am poor and needy; my heart is wounded within me.

King James Bible
For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.

New King James Version
For I am poor and needy, And my heart is wounded within me.

New American Standard Bible
For I am afflicted and needy, And my heart is wounded within me.

NASB 1995
For I am afflicted and needy, And my heart is wounded within me.

NASB 1977
For I am afflicted and needy, And my heart is wounded within me.

Legacy Standard Bible
For I am afflicted and needy, And my heart is pierced within me.

Amplified Bible
For I am suffering and needy, And my heart is wounded within me.

Christian Standard Bible
For I am suffering and needy; my heart is wounded within me.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
For I am afflicted and needy; my heart is wounded within me.

American Standard Version
For I am poor and needy, And my heart is wounded within me.

Contemporary English Version
I am poor and helpless, and I have lost all hope.

English Revised Version
For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
I am oppressed and needy. I can feel the pain in my heart.

Good News Translation
I am poor and needy; I am hurt to the depths of my heart.

International Standard Version
Indeed, I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.

Majority Standard Bible
For I am poor and needy; my heart is wounded within me.

NET Bible
For I am oppressed and needy, and my heart beats violently within me.

New Heart English Bible
for I am poor and needy. My heart is wounded within me.

Webster's Bible Translation
For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.

World English Bible
for I am poor and needy. My heart is wounded within me.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
For I [am] poor and needy, "" And my heart has been pierced in my midst.

Young's Literal Translation
For I am poor and needy, And my heart hath been pierced in my midst.

Smith's Literal Translation
For poor and needy am I, and my heart wounded in my midst.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
for I am poor and needy, and my heart is troubled within me.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Free me, for I am destitute and poor, and my heart has been disquieted within me.

New American Bible
For I am poor and needy; my heart is pierced within me.

New Revised Standard Version
For I am poor and needy, and my heart is pierced within me.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
For I am poor and needy, and my heart is troubled within me.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Because I am poor and afflicted my heart is troubled within me.
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
For I am poor and needy, And my heart is wounded within me.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Deliver me, for I am poor and needy; and my heart is troubled within me.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Song of the Slandered
21But You, O GOD, the Lord, deal kindly with me for the sake of Your name; deliver me by the goodness of Your loving devotion. 22For I am poor and needy; my heart is wounded within me. 23I am fading away like a lengthening shadow; I am shaken off like a locust.…

Cross References
Isaiah 53:3-4
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. Like one from whom men hide their faces, He was despised, and we esteemed Him not. / Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows; yet we considered Him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted.

Matthew 5:3
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Psalm 34:18
The LORD is near to the brokenhearted; He saves the contrite in spirit.

Psalm 69:20
Insults have broken my heart, and I am in despair. I looked for sympathy, but there was none, for comforters, but I found no one.

Matthew 11:28-29
Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. / Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

Psalm 147:3
He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.

Isaiah 61:1
The Spirit of the Lord GOD is on Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners,

Luke 4:18
“The Spirit of the Lord is on Me, because He has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to release the oppressed,

2 Corinthians 12:9-10
But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest on me. / That is why, for the sake of Christ, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Psalm 6:2-3
Be merciful to me, O LORD, for I am frail; heal me, O LORD, for my bones are in agony. / My soul is deeply distressed. How long, O LORD, how long?

Psalm 22:14-15
I am poured out like water, and all my bones are disjointed. My heart is like wax; it melts away within me. / My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. You lay me in the dust of death.

Hebrews 4:15
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who was tempted in every way that we are, yet was without sin.

Psalm 25:16-18
Turn to me and be gracious, for I am lonely and afflicted. / The troubles of my heart increase; free me from my distress. / Consider my affliction and trouble, and take away all my sins.

Psalm 31:9-10
Be merciful to me, O LORD, for I am in distress; my eyes fail from sorrow, my soul and body as well. / For my life is consumed with grief and my years with groaning; my iniquity has drained my strength, and my bones are wasting away.

1 Peter 5:7
Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.


Treasury of Scripture

For I am poor and needy, and my heart is wounded within me.

for I

Psalm 22:6
But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people.

Psalm 40:17
But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinketh upon me: thou art my help and my deliverer; make no tarrying, O my God.

Psalm 86:1
A Prayer of David. Bow down thine ear, O LORD, hear me: for I am poor and needy.

and my

Psalm 109:16
Because that he remembered not to shew mercy, but persecuted the poor and needy man, that he might even slay the broken in heart.

Psalm 88:15,16
I am afflicted and ready to die from my youth up: while I suffer thy terrors I am distracted…

Psalm 102:4
My heart is smitten, and withered like grass; so that I forget to eat my bread.

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Afflicted Heart Midst Need Needy Pierced Poor Stricken Within Wounded
Psalm 109
1. David complains of his slanderous enemies
16. He shows their sin
21. Complaining of his own misery, he prays for help
29. He promises thankfulness














For I am poor and needy;
This phrase reflects a state of humility and dependence on God, often seen throughout the Psalms. The psalmist acknowledges his lack of resources and his need for divine intervention. In biblical times, poverty was not only a lack of material wealth but also a social status that left individuals vulnerable. This expression of need is a common theme in the Psalms, where the psalmist often cries out to God for help (Psalm 40:17). It also echoes the Beatitudes in the New Testament, where Jesus blesses the poor in spirit (Matthew 5:3), highlighting the spiritual poverty that leads one to rely on God.

my heart is wounded within me.
The imagery of a wounded heart suggests deep emotional or spiritual pain. In the ancient Near Eastern context, the heart was considered the center of one's emotions and thoughts. The psalmist's use of this metaphor indicates a profound inner turmoil, possibly due to betrayal or persecution. This phrase can be connected to the suffering servant in Isaiah 53, who is described as "a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief." It also prefigures the anguish of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26:38), where He expresses His deep sorrow and distress. The wounded heart signifies a plea for healing and restoration, a theme that resonates with the promise of God binding up the brokenhearted (Isaiah 61:1).

Persons / Places / Events
1. David
Traditionally attributed as the author of Psalm 109, David is expressing his deep distress and reliance on God amidst adversities.

2. Enemies
Though not named in this specific verse, the context of Psalm 109 involves David's adversaries who are unjustly attacking him.

3. God
The ultimate source of refuge and strength for David, to whom he directs his plea for help and justice.
Teaching Points
Dependence on God
Recognize our own spiritual poverty and need for God's intervention in our lives.

Emotional Honesty
Be honest with God about our emotional and spiritual wounds, trusting Him to heal and restore us.

God's Compassion for the Needy
Understand that God has a special concern for those who are poor and needy, and He invites us to share in His compassion.

Prayer as a Response to Adversity
Use prayer as a means to express our struggles and seek God's help, just as David did.

Community Support
Encourage the church community to support one another, especially those who are experiencing hardship and emotional wounds.Verse 22. - For I am poor and needy (comp. ver. 16). David was "poor and needy" both when hunted upon the mountains by Saul, and when forced to flee from Absalom. And my heart is wounded within me. The wound to David's heart was, on the former occasion, from the malignity of Saul; on the latter, especially from the desertion of his "own familiar friend whom he trusted."

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
For
כִּֽי־ (kî-)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

I
אָנֹ֑כִי (’ā·nō·ḵî)
Pronoun - first person common singular
Strong's 595: I

[am] poor
עָנִ֣י (‘ā·nî)
Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 6041: Poor, afflicted, humble

and needy;
וְאֶבְי֣וֹן (wə·’eḇ·yō·wn)
Conjunctive waw | Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 34: In want, needy, poor

my heart
וְ֝לִבִּ֗י (wə·lib·bî)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 3820: The heart, the feelings, the will, the intellect, centre

is wounded
חָלַ֥ל (ḥā·lal)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 2490: To bore, to wound, to dissolve, to profane, to break, to begin, to play

within me.
בְּקִרְבִּֽי׃ (bə·qir·bî)
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct | first person common singular
Strong's 7130: The nearest part, the center


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OT Poetry: Psalm 109:22 For I am poor and needy (Psalm Ps Psa.)
Psalm 109:21
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