Psalms 12:2
How long shall I take counsels in my soul, sorrow in my heart all the day?
Open Psalms 12:2 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- quamdiu ponam consilia in anima mea ; dolorem in corde meo per diem ?
- Septuagint (Swete) shown from Psalms 12:3
- ἕως τίνος θήσομαι βουλὰς ἐν ψυχῇ μου, ὀδύνας ἐν καρδίᾳ μου ἡμέρας; ἕως πότε ὑψωθήσεται ὁ ἐχθρός μου ἐπ᾽ ἐμέ;
- Hebrew (WLC) shown from Psalms 13:3
- עַד אָ֨נָה אָשִׁ֪ית עֵצ֡וֹת בְּנַפְשִׁ֗י יָג֣וֹן בִּלְבָבִ֣י יוֹמָ֑ם עַד אָ֓נָה יָר֖וּם אֹיְבִ֣י עָלָֽי
Haydock's commentary
Day; frequently. (Worthington)
Septuagint adds, "and night." (Calmet)
These cares and perplexities arise from persecutions and from man's weakness. (Worthington)
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Augustine Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Psalm XIII
2. “How long shall I place counsel in my soul?” ( ver. 2 ). There is no need of counsel but in adversity. Therefore “How long shall I place counsel in my soul?” is as if it were said, How long shall I be in adversity? Or at least it is an answer, so that the meaning is this, So long, O Lord, wilt Thou forget me to the end, and so long turn away Thy face from me, until I shall place counsel in mine own soul: so that except a man place counsel in his own soul to work mercy perfectly, God will not direct him to the end, nor give him that full knowledge of Himself, which is “face to face.” “Sorrow in my heart through the day?” How long shall I have, is understood. And “through the day” signifies continuance, so that day is taken for time: from which as each one longs to be free, he has sorrow in his heart, making entreaty to rise to things eternal, and not endure man’s day.