Psalms 102:9

For I have eaten ashes like bread, and mingled my drink with weeping.

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Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
eaten	אָכָ֑לְתִּי 'a.Khal.ti	H398	to eat (literally or figuratively) · verb, qal perfect, 1st person common singular
ashes	אֵ֭פֶר 'E.fer	H665	ashes · noun, common masculine singular absolute
bread	כַּלֶּ֣חֶם ka.Le.chem	H3899	food (for man or beast) · preposition with the article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
mingled	מָסָֽכְתִּי ma.Sa.khe.ti	H4537	to mix · verb, qal perfect, 1st person common singular
drink	וְ֝שִׁקֻּוַ֗י ve.shi.ku.Vai	H8249	(plural collective) a draught · conjunction + noun, common masculine plural construct + pronominal suffix
weeping	בִּבְכִ֥י biv.Khi	H1065	a weeping · preposition + noun, common masculine singular absolute

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Psalms 42:3 My tears have been my meat day and night, while they continually say unto me, Where is thy God?
Job 3:24 For my sighing cometh before I eat, and my roarings are poured out like the waters.
Psalms 80:5 Thou feedest them with the bread of tears; and givest them tears to drink in great measure.
Isaiah 44:20 He feedeth on ashes: a deceived heart hath turned him aside, that he cannot deliver his soul, nor say, Is there not a lie in my right hand?
Psalms 69:21 They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
Lamentations 3:15-16 He hath filled me with bitterness, he hath made me drunken with wormwood.
Lamentations 3:48-49 Mine eye runneth down with rivers of water for the destruction of the daughter of my people.
Micah 1:10 Declare ye it not at Gath, weep ye not at all: in the house of Aphrah roll thyself in the dust.

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Psalms 102:1-11

The title of this psalm is very observable; it is a prayer of the afflicted. It was composed by one that was himself afflicted, afflicted with the church and for it; and on those that are of a public spirit afflictions of that kind lie heavier than any other. It is calculated for an afflicted state, and is intended for the use of others that may be in the like distress; for whatsoever things were written aforetime were written designedly for our use. The whole word of God is of use to direct us in prayer; but here, as often elsewhere, the Holy Ghost has drawn up our petition for us, has put words into our mouths. Hos 14:2, Take with you words. Here is a prayer put into the hands of the affli…

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John Gill on Psalms 102:9

For I have eaten ashes like bread,.... He sitting in ashes, as Job did, and rolling himself in them in the manner of mourners; and, having no other table than the ground to eat his food upon, he might eat ashes along with it; and by an hypallage of the words, the sense may be, that he ate bread like ashes, no more savoured and relished it, or was nourished by it, than if he had eaten ashes; the meaning is, that he was fed with the bread of adversity, and water of affliction: and mingled my drink with weeping; that is, with tears; as he drank, the tears ran down his cheeks, and mixed with the liquor in his cup; he was fed with the bread of tears, and had them to drink in great measure; these…

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John Calvin on Psalms 102:8-11

Psalm 102:8-11 8. My enemies have reviled me daily; and those who are mad against me have sworn by me. [143] 9. For I have eaten ashes like bread, and mingled my drink with weeping, [or, with my tears,] 10. On account of thy indignation and thy wrath: for thou hast lifted me up, and cast me down. 11. My days are like a shadow which declineth; and I am dried up like the grass. 8. My enemies have reviled me daily The faithful, to excite the compassion of God towards them, tell him that they are not only objects of mockery to their enemies, but also that they swore by them. The indignity complained of is, that the ungodly so shamefully triumphed over God's chosen people, as even to borrow fro…

The Church Fathers

For I have eaten ashes like bread. I dipped my bread in ashes, and so ate it. If therefore the prophet says this, what should we do? And I mingled my drink with weeping. Nothing was sweet to me, neither bread, nor drink: but I longed only for the heavenly bread, that is, Christ.
— Jerome, Homily 28, on Psalm 101

And after humility of mind, there is need of intense prayers, of many tears, tears by day and tears by night, for, he says, "every night will I wash my bed, I will water my couch with my tears. I am weary with my groaning." And again, "For I have eaten ashes as if bread and mingled my drink with weeping."
— John Chrysostom, ON THE EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS 9:8

Indeed, to the penitent confession alone does not suffice, unless correction of the deed follows, with the result that the penitent does not continue to do deeds that demand repentance. He should even humble his soul just as holy David, who, when he heard from the prophet, "Your sin is pardoned," became more humble in the correction of his sin, so that "he did eat ashes like bread and mingled his drink with weeping."
— Paulinus of Milan, THE LIFE OF ST. AMBROSE 9:39

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Anger Of God, The · Against: Sin, in saints — Against: Sin, in saints

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

Psalms 102:9

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Psalms 102:1-11

John Gill on Psalms 102:9

John Calvin on Psalms 102:8-11

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Psalms 102:9

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Psalms 102:1-11

John Gill on Psalms 102:9

John Calvin on Psalms 102:8-11

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Keil & Delitzsch on Psalms 102:9-11

Tyndale Open Study Notes on Psalms 102:7-8

Spurgeon's Treasury of David on Psalms 102:9