Psalm 58:8
“As a snail which melteth, let every one of them pass away: like the untimely birth of a woman, that they may not see the sun.”
KJV
Read in Psalm 58Meaning
These images are ancient poetic rhetoric about disappearance and judgment. They should not be used to speak cruelly about pregnancy loss, disability, infants, or bereaved families.
Prayer for destructive power to collapse
A sequence of severe images asks God to render violent injustice powerless and short-lived.
Read carefully
The image is a poetic comparison for disappearance and does not provide a theology of pregnancy loss or infant worth.
Reflection
Preserve the literary function of the image while speaking with particular care toward people affected by miscarriage, stillbirth, infertility, or grief.