Psalm 141: Verse 2 - Prayer in times of distress

Juan Sánchez Cotán, after 1603,
Granada Charterhouse

Today's verse of Psalm 141 can be seen as the continuation of the prayer of Christ on the cross, and sets before us the proper actions of a person in distress, namely one who turns immediately to God, and pours out his heart to him.

Text notes

The Latin and Greek translations

2	V	Effúndo in conspéctu ejus oratiónem meam, * et tribulatiónem meam ante ipsum pronúntio
	NV	Effundo in conspectu eius lamentationem meam, et tribulationem meam ante ipsum pronuntio.
	R	Effundam in conspectu eius orationem meam tribulationem meam ante ipsum pronuntio
	JH	Effundam in conspectu eius eloquium meum: tribulationem meam coram illo adnuntiabo.
		ἐκχεῶ ἐναντίον αὐτοῦ τὴν δέησίν μου τὴν θλῖψίν μου ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ ἀπαγγελῶ

Although the meaning is essentially the same in all the Latin versions, the variety of words used for prayer or entreaty is interesting: prayers (Vulgate), lamentations (neo-Vulgate) and words (St Jerome's from the Hebrew).

Word by word

Effundo (I pour out) in conspectu (in the presence/sight) ejus (his) orationem (the prayer) meam (my), et (and) tribulationem (trouble/distress/affliction) meam (my) ante (before) ipsum (him) pronuntio (I announce/declare) 

effundo, fudi, fusum, ere 3  to pour out, pour forth, to shed; Of a sword, to draw, unsheathe; of one's steps, to slip.

conspectus, us, m. sight, presence

pronuntio, avi, atum, are, to announce, declare, proclaim

tribulatio, onis, f threshing; in Eccl. Latin, trouble, distress, anguish, affliction, tribulation, etc.

DR	In his sight I pour out my prayer, and before him I declare my trouble:
Brenton	I will pour out before him my supplication: I will declare before him mine affliction.
MD	I pour forth my prayer in His sight, and before Him I declare my affliction
RSV	I pour out my complaint before him, I tell my trouble before him.
Cover	I poured out my complaints before him, and showed him of my trouble.
Knox	as I pour out my complaint before him, tell him of the affliction I endure.
Grail	I pour out my trouble before him; I tell him all my distress

In times of distress, turn to God

Today's verse provides a model for us to follow, in putting out trust in God in times of trouble.

Doing so, St John Chrysostom said, can make us both feed our fervour for God, make us more conscious of his presence in our lives, and even wipe out our sins:

Do you see a spirit freed of earthly concerns? I mean, he neither had recourse to human beings, nor looked for assistance from them, but for invincible help and grace from on high....From this we learn that tribulations also make no slight contribution to sound values....It has in fact two advantages: one, in making us more zealous and attentive; the other, in proving no insignificant reason to be heard...And everywhere in Scripture we find that those bearing their tribulations with gratitude not only expiate many of their sins but also obtain thereby no little confidence in God's presence.

Sharing our troubles with God

The verse also instructs on how to make our prayer.

First, we must pour out our hearts: we must pray intently, with our whole heart, mind and inner voice.  

Secondly, we must set out all before God: while he knows all, we have to articulate it fully, and honestly acknowledge all its dimensions so that we can truly know it has been answered.  

As St Jerome suggests:

Without the least reserve the prophet cries: I pour out my whole heart to the Lord, like a man who shows his wound to the physician and tells him of all his sufferings so he may prescribe a remedy.

Thirdly, we must pray to God alone: we should go into that inner, secret room and pray before God, not other people.

Psalm 141 (142): Voce mea ad Dominum clamavi 

Vulgate	Douay-Rheims
Intellectus David, cum esset in spelunca, oratio	Of understanding for David, A prayer when he was in the cave.
1 Voce mea ad Dóminum clamávi: * voce mea ad dóminum deprecátus sum.	2 I cried to the Lord with my voice: with my voice I made supplication to the Lord.
2. Effúndo in conspéctu ejus oratiónem meam, * et tribulatiónem meam ante ipsum pronúntio	3 In his sight I pour out my prayer, and before him I declare my trouble:
3. In deficiéndo ex me spíritum meum: * et tu cognovísti sémitas meas.	4 When my spirit failed me, then you knew my paths.
4  In via hac, qua ambulábam, * abscondérunt láqueum mihi.	In this way wherein I walked, they have hidden a snare for me.
5 Considerábam ad déxteram, et vidébam: * et non erat qui cognósceret me.	5 I looked on my right hand, and beheld, and there was no one that would know me.
6. Périit fuga a me: * et non est qui requírat ánimam meam.	Flight has failed me: and there is no one that has regard to my soul.
7. Clamávi ad te, Dómine, * dixi: Tu es spes mea, pórtio mea in terra vivéntium.	6 I cried to you, O Lord: I said: You are my hope, my portion in the land of the living.
8.  Inténde ad deprecatiónem meam: * quia humiliátus sum nimis.	7 Attend to my supplication: for I am brought very low.
9.  Líbera me a persequéntibus me: * quia confortáti sunt super me.	Deliver me from my persecutors; for they are stronger than I.
10 Educ de custódia ánimam meam ad confiténdum nómini tuo: me exspéctant justi, donec retríbuas mihi.	8 Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise your name: the just wait for me, until you reward me.

You can find notes on verse 3 of the psalm here.

Psalm 141: verse 1 - Prayer in times of trouble and persecution

Psalm 141 opens with an intense prayer for help.  In it, we are given the start of a mini-treatise on prayer.

The text of the psalm

  The Latin and Greek

1	V	Voce mea ad Dóminum clamávi: * voce mea ad Dóminum deprecátus sum.
	NV	Voce mea ad Dominum clamo, voce mea ad Dominum deprecor;
	R	Voce mea ad Dominum clamavi voce mea ad Deum deprecatus sum
	JH	Voce mea ad Dominum clamavi: voce mea ad Dominum deprecatus sum.
		φωνῇ μου πρὸς κύριον ἐκέκραξα φωνῇ μου πρὸς κύριον ἐδεήθην

 Key: V=Vulgate; NV=Neo-Vulgate; R=Romanus; JH - St Jerome's translation from the Hebrew.

The differences between the various Latin versions are minor, relating only to the tense of the verbs, and the use of Deus (God) instead of Lord in the Romanum.

Word by word translation and key vocabulary

Voce (voice) mea (my) ad (to) Dominum (the Lord) clamavi (I have called), voce (voice) mea (my) ad (to) Dominum (the Lord) deprecatus sum (I have entreated/made supplication).  

clamo, avi, atum, are to call, cry out; to call to or upon for aid.

vox, vocis, f., the voice of a person, or, the sound of an instrument, etc.  

deprecor, atus sum, ari, to entreat; to pray, make supplication; to be entreated, supplicated.

Selected English translations

DR	I cried to the Lord with my voice: with my voice I made supplication to the Lord.
Brenton	I cried to the Lord with my voice; with my voice I made supplication to the Lord.
MD	Loudly I cry to the Lord; with a loud voice I beseech the Lord for help
RSV	I cry with my voice to the LORD, with my voice I make supplication to the LORD,
Cover	I cried unto the Lord with my voice; yea, even unto the Lord did I make my supplication
Knox	Loud is my cry to the Lord, the prayer I utter for the Lord’s mercy,
Grail	With all my voice I cry to the Lord, with all my voice I entreat the Lord.

Christ prays for us

This verse can be read firstly as said in the mouth of Jesus, and can be seen as either his prayer on the Cross, or the night before in the Garden.  

Its purpose, as Cassiodorus explains, is to obtain remission for our sins:

"In the holy person of His venerable incarnation, He says in His customary manner that He has cried to the Lord with his voice... How pure and sweet was the prayer poured out in the Father's sight, like a stream of clear water!  Clearly it was issued not to sink to the depths but to reach the height of heavenly devotion...So the devoted advocate declares His troubles before the Father, so as to be able to obtain pardon for our sins."

This is, of course, a prayer we can also make our own, especially at times of trouble or temptation: although some today seem to think it is hypocritical to turn to God at the low points of our life, even on our deathbed, if we have neglected him at other times.  Catholic tradition takes the diametrically opposite approach: our difficult times are meant to help us turn to God more intently, as St John Chrysostom pointed out:

From this we learn that tribulations also make no slight contribution to sound values....It has in fact two advantages: one, in making us more zealous and attentive; the other, in proving no insignificant reason to be heard...And everywhere in Scripture we find that those bearing their tribulations with gratitude not only expiate many of their sins but also obtain thereby no little confidence in God's presence.

The necessity of fervour

Many of the Fathers and Theologians also point out that the addition of the words 'with my voice' means we should not just mouth the words, but say them wholeheartedly, engaging body and mind: 'voice' here means our inner thought aligned to our external words.

As St Jerome put it:

Without the least reserve the prophet cries: I pour out my whole heart to the Lord, like a man who shows his wound to the physician and tells him of all his sufferings so he may prescribe a remedy.

Let us then cultivate our inner conscience this Lent, reflect on our past sins, and thus stimulate our sense of the need for God's healing grace.

Psalm 141 (142): Voce mea ad Dominum clamavi 

Vulgate	Douay-Rheims
Intellectus David, cum esset in spelunca, oratio	Of understanding for David, A prayer when he was in the cave.
1 Voce mea ad Dóminum clamávi: * voce mea ad dóminum deprecátus sum.	2 I cried to the Lord with my voice: with my voice I made supplication to the Lord.
2. Effúndo in conspéctu ejus oratiónem meam, * et tribulatiónem meam ante ipsum pronúntio	3 In his sight I pour out my prayer, and before him I declare my trouble:
3. In deficiéndo ex me spíritum meum: * et tu cognovísti sémitas meas.	4 When my spirit failed me, then you knew my paths.
4  In via hac, qua ambulábam, * abscondérunt láqueum mihi.	In this way wherein I walked, they have hidden a snare for me.
5 Considerábam ad déxteram, et vidébam: * et non erat qui cognósceret me.	5 I looked on my right hand, and beheld, and there was no one that would know me.
6. Périit fuga a me: * et non est qui requírat ánimam meam.	Flight has failed me: and there is no one that has regard to my soul.
7. Clamávi ad te, Dómine, * dixi: Tu es spes mea, pórtio mea in terra vivéntium.	6 I cried to you, O Lord: I said: You are my hope, my portion in the land of the living.
8.  Inténde ad deprecatiónem meam: * quia humiliátus sum nimis.	7 Attend to my supplication: for I am brought very low.
9.  Líbera me a persequéntibus me: * quia confortáti sunt super me.	Deliver me from my persecutors; for they are stronger than I.
10 Educ de custódia ánimam meam ad confiténdum nómini tuo: me exspéctant justi, donec retríbuas mihi.	8 Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise your name: the just wait for me, until you reward me.

And you can find the next set of notes on the psalm here.