Psalm 38:2
“For thine arrows stick fast in me, and thy hand presseth me sore.”
KJV
Read in Psalm 38Meaning
The arrows and heavy hand imagery expresses how crushing divine displeasure feels to the psalmist; it is poetic language, not a medical diagnosis.
Pain, discipline, and confession
Verses 1–8 describe overwhelming distress in penitential language, joining bodily pain and guilt without giving a universal formula that illness proves personal sin.
Read carefully
The arrows and heavy hand imagery expresses how crushing divine displeasure feels to the psalmist; it is poetic language, not a medical diagnosis.
Reflection
The arrows and heavy hand imagery expresses how crushing divine displeasure feels to the psalmist; it is poetic language, not a medical diagnosis.