Out of the Depths
“Out of the depths I cry to you, Lord; Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.”
— Psalm 130:1-2 (NIV)
The Hebrew word for depths means deep water, the kind you cannot stand up in. This is one of fifteen songs pilgrims sang walking up to Jerusalem, so people said it out loud on a road, together. The writer does not clean himself up first. He shouts from the bottom. The whole psalm is eight verses long and it ends on forgiveness and full redemption. The crying out comes first and the answer comes after.
Not every prayer starts from a good place. Some start from the bottom, and that is where this one starts. God is not waiting for you to compose yourself before He listens. You can say the ugly version first.
Say the Unedited Version
- 1Tell God one thing exactly as it is, without softening the wording.
- 2Ask one person how they really are, then wait through the pause for the second answer.
God, this is hard. Do not go.
I do not have to be okay to pray.
What does out of the depths mean?
The Hebrew points to deep water you cannot stand up in. It is drowning language, not a figure of speech for a bad mood.
Is it acceptable to pray angry or unpolished?
This psalm was sung publicly by pilgrims on the road. Honest desperation was part of shared worship, not something to hide.
How does the psalm end?
With forgiveness and full redemption. It does not stay in the depths, but it refuses to skip them either.