Psalm 141: 5 - The denial of Peter

In the previous verse, the psalmist tells of the snares and traps being laid for him.  Here, he looks for help, but found none, a verse that has long been interpreted as the abandonment and denial of Christ by his disciples.

 Text notes 

5	V/NV	Considerabam ad dexteram, et videbam: * et non erat qui cognosceret me.
	R	Considerabam a dextris et videbam et non erat qui agnosceret me.
	JH	Custodem quia adhuc oratio ambulo: respice ad dexteram, et vide quia non sit qui cognoscat me:
		κατενόουν εἰς τὰ δεξιὰ καὶ ἐπέβλεπονὅτι οὐκ ἦν ὁ ἐπιγινώσκων με

 Word by word 

Considerabam ( looked) ad dexteram (to the right hand), et (and) videbam (I was watching), et (and) non (not) erat (he was) qui (who) cognosceret (he would know) me (me)

Key vocabulary

considero, avi, atum, are, to look at closely, observe, contemplate; to lie in wait for, to watch for with hostile intent.

dexter, tera, terum; the right hand.

video, vidi, visum, ere 2,  to see, behold; consider; experience, undergo, suffer, realize; keep watch, look for, meditate on

cognosco, gnovi, gnitum, ere 3, to know, see, learn, perceive, be come acquainted with. 

Selected English translations

DR	I looked on my right hand, and beheld, and there was no one that would know me.
Brenton	I looked on my right hand, and behold, for there was none that noticed me
MD	I look to the right to see, but there is none that taketh note of me
RSV	I look to the right and watch, but there is none who takes notice of me;
Cover	I looked also upon my right hand, and saw there was no man that would know me.
Knox	I look to the right of me, and find none to take my part;
Grail	Look on my right and see: there is no one who takes my part.

Looking to the right

The right side was traditionally the place of a friend or bodyguard; in court the place of the witnesses for the defense.

St Augustine draws out the implied distinction:

If, in bearing, you seek the praise of men, you have regarded the left: if, in bearing, you seek the promises of God, you have regarded the right hand. 

The lack of anyone there paints a picture of the isolation and alienation that can come at times of persecution, when even those on our side fade away out of fear, as St John Chrysostom points out:

Here he shows the extent of the disaster, the increasing problems and plots of the enemies, how they approached and came nearer, intending to trip him up; and what in fact was worse, that not only were any assistants or allies not at hand, but they did not even recognize him.  This is the extent of isolation, this height of alienation; it is true of few people, after all, to be at hand and give assistance, especially when disaster entails risk….

The Passion

 As St Jerome points out, though, the verse most obviously applies to Christ's abandonment by his disciples:

If we construe the psalm in the name of Our Lord, it is the Lord himself who is saying: All my disciples abandoned me and fled.  One only remained, Peter who had promised: ‘Even if I should have to die with thee, I will not deny thee,’ yet he is the one who denied his Lord.  Because Peter repented, however, the Lord said: I look to the right to him, and I did not look to the left. 

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 this psalm here.

Psalm 141: 4 - Recognise that you are travelling amidst snares

  

Verse 4 of Psalm 141 is a reminder that we always need to be alert and aware both of our own weaknesses and the dangers posed by others.

Text notes

The Latin translations

4	V/NV	In via hac, qua ambulábam, * abscondérunt láqueum mihi.
	R	In via hac qua ambulabam absconderunt laqueos mihi.
	JH	In via hac, qua ambulabo, absconderunt laqueum mihi.
		ἐν ὁδῷ ταύτῃ ᾗ ἐπορευόμην ἔκρυψαν παγίδα μοι

Word by word: 

In via (in the way) hac (this) qua (that) ambulabam (I was walking) absconderunt (they have hidden/concelaed) laqueum (a trap/snare) mihi (for me). 

Key vocabulary

ambulo, avi, atum, are to walk; the manner in which one orders one's life;

abscondo, condi, conditum, ere 3, to hide, conceal; to lay up, to treasure, guard jealously.

laqueus, ei, m., a noose for capturing animals; a snare, trap, net, 

abscondo, condi, conditum, ere 3, to hide, conceal; to lay up, to treasure, guard jealously.

laqueus, ei, m., a noose for capturing animals; a snare, trap, net,

Selected English translations:

DR	In this way wherein I walked, they have hidden a snare for me.
Brenton	in the very way wherein I was walking, they hid a snare for me.
MD	On the way where I must go, they have hid a snare for me
RSV	In the path where I walk they have hidden a trap for me.
Cover	in the way wherein I walked have they privily laid a snare for me.
Knox	They lie in ambush for me, there by the wayside
Grail	On the way where I shall walk they have hidden a snare to entrap me.

Traps set by the hunter

At the literal level the story reflects that of King David, as Theodoret explained:

The hunters pick up the traces of the wild beasts and set traps there. In imitation of them Saul continued his exertions against David, learned where he was living and focused his schemes in that direction. 

But of course the image of the hunter, seeking to trick or trap his prey is a common one in Scripture, and there are many plays on this in the Gospels as they speak of the Scribes and Pharisees attempts to trap Our Lord in the lead up to his arrest, and then at his trials.

And it is part of the devil's ongoing playbook, tailoring his traps to each of our particular weaknesses.  St Jerome says:

Vices are next door neighbour to the virtues.  In whatever path a man is determined to walk, traps are set for him: in fasting, in almsgiving, or in any other good works.  

Theodoret expanded out the point:

This the devil also does: for the one traveling the way of temperance he sets the trap of pleasure, whereas for the one taking satisfaction in almsgiving the net of vainglory, for the one scorning wealth the chances of avarice, for virginity pride, and for every single state of life the snare most likely to catch them.

We must then be alert, St John Chrysostom tells us, for awareness that we are 'travelling amidst snares, walking on the parapets of cities' helps keep us on our toes: such traps are a call to awaken from our slumber, and shake off indifference.

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.

Psalm 141: 3 - Tribulation as the teacher of zeal

c1450

The third verse of Psalm 141 is a reminder that God is always aware of us, and we must therefore constantly cultivate our awareness of him, so that we use setbacks and difficulties as a source of spiritual growth, rather than resorting to blaming others, murmuring about the unfairness of life, or falling into despair. 

Text notes

 Latin and Greek translations

3	V	In deficiendo ex me spiritum meum: * et tu cognovisti semitas meas.
	NV	Cum deficit in me spiritus meus, tu nosti semitas meas.
	R	In deficiendo in me spiritum meum et tu cognovisti semitas meas.
	JH	Cum anxius fuerit in me spiritus meus, tu enim nosti semitam meam :
		ἐν τῷ ἐκλείπειν ἐξ ἐμοῦ τὸ πνεῦμά μου καὶ σὺ ἔγνως τὰς τρίβους μου

 Word by word translation

in deficiendo (in failing/fainting/wasting away/when it failed) ex me (from me) spiritum (the spirit) meum (my), et (and) tu (you) cognovisti (you have known/knew) semitas (the paths) meas (my).

Key vocabulary

deficio, feci, fectum, ere 3 to fail, to be spent, destroyed;to waste away, pine, deficere in with ace, to long for, pine for,

spiritus, us, m.  breath;  wind;  breath of life, vital spirit; the soul; spirit, disposition; Divine assistance, grace

cognosco, gnovi, gnitum, ere 3, to know, see, learn, perceive, be come acquainted with.

semita, ae, f, a path, way; course of life, action, conduct, or procedure

Selected English translations

DR	When my spirit failed me, then you knew my paths.
Brenton	When my spirit was fainting within me, then thou knewest my paths
MD	My spirit is fainting within me, but Thou knowest my paths
RSV	When my spirit is faint, thou knowest my way!
Cover	When my spirit was in heaviness, thou knewest my path;
Knox	My heart is ready to faint within me, but thou art watching over my path.
Grail	while my spirit faints within me. But you, O Lord, know my path.

The words of Christ or us?

Can we really interpret this verse, 'when my spirit failed me', as being the words of Christ?

The various commentaries have different takes on this issue.  St John Chrysostom, for example, puts the phrase in a slightly broader context, which can then be seen as consistent with the Agony in the Garden:

Do you observe him also more aroused in tribulation, taking refuge in God, to a greater degree clinging to him with extreme vehemence, even in the very depths of troubles (this is in fact the meaning of When my spirit fails me), and then most of all proving more zealous?  Now the phrase you know my paths a different translator rendered as “you are in fact aware of.”

The Knox translation perhaps captures this best, saying, implying the experience of human emotions, but not succumbing to them, with 'My heart is ready to faint within me...' 

But the alternative approach, summarised by Cassiodorus, is that Christ is articulating our response, on behalf of the Church:

His phrase: When my spirit fails me, we are to understand as if He were saying: Before him I declare my trouble, when my spirit fails me. He wants us to realise that the troubles which He claims to be proclaiming before the Lord are many and most oppressive. But since we read that on no occasion did His spirit fail, for He fulfilled everything by voluntary suffering, we must interpret the phrase as spoken on behalf of His members.

Against murmurers

Either way, the key message of the verse is that our proper response to times of difficulty is not to give up, not to blame God or others, but to cultivate an awareness that God knows what is happening to us, and wants us to stay on the correct path.

St John Chrysostom's take on the subject fits well with St Benedict's teaching on this subject in the chapter of the Rule on humility, which quotes the same verse of Psalm 118:

 When fainthearted people in particular give up and many utter defamatory words, then the psalmist most of all employs good sense, having tribulation as a teacher of zeal.  So when you see someone despairing as a result of tribulation, or uttering some harsh word, hold not tribulation as responsible but the faintheartedness of the speaker: it is natural with tribulation to have the opposite effect – attention, a contrite mind, an alert attitude, depth of piety.  Hence Paul also said, Tribulation produces endurance, and endurance character.

 

If, on the other hand, the Jews murmured, the murmuring was due not to tribulation but to their folly; for when the saints underwent tribulation, they proved more conspicuous and their values sounder.  Hence the psalmist himself also said, ‘It was good for me, Lord, that you humbled me, so that I might learn your decrees’.  And Paul: Lest I be carried away from the magnitude of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given me, a messenger of Satan, to punish me.  Three times I besought the Lord about it, and he said to me, My grace is enough for you: my power is brought to completion in weakness.  When I am weak, you see, then I am strong.

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.

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.