Psalms 43:20
For thou hast humbled us in the place of affliction: and the shadow of death hath covered us.
Open Psalms 43:20 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- quoniam humiliasti nos in loco afflictionis, et cooperuit nos umbra mortis.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- ὅτι ἐταπείνωσας ἡμᾶς ἐν τόπῳ κακώσεως, καὶ ἐπεκάλυψεν ἡμᾶς σκιὰ θανάτου.
- Hebrew (WLC) shown from Psalms 44:20
- כִּ֣י דִ֭כִּיתָנוּ בִּמְק֣וֹם תַּנִּ֑ים וַתְּכַ֖ס עָלֵ֣ינוּ בְצַלְמָֽוֶת
Haydock's commentary
Affliction. Hebrew, or "dragons," (St. Jerome; Menochius) alluding to the deserts, to which the Jews retired, when the Assyrians invaded them. The text may be more applicable to the first Christians, who might truly say, that they had not transgressed. (Houbigant), To the martyrs, death was but like a shadow. (St. Gregory) (Mark iv. 17.)
Here it denotes great darkness and misery. (Menochius)
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
Origen Origen De Principiis, Chapter VIII
5. But perhaps some one may meet us with one of those objections which we have ourselves warned you of in our statements, and say, “How then is there said to be also a soul of God?” To which we answer as follows: That as with respect to everything corporeal which is spoken of God, such as fingers, or hands, or arms, or eyes, or feet, or mouth, we say that these are not to be understood as human members, but that certain of His powers are indicated by these names of members of the body; so also we are to suppose that it is something else which is pointed out by this title, soul of God. And if it is allowable for us to venture to say anything more on such a subject, the soul of God may perhaps be understood to mean the only-begotten Son of God. …
St Augustine Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Psalm XLIV
15. “For Thou hast brought us low in the place of infirmity” ( ver. 18 ): therefore Thou wilt exalt us in the place of strength. “And the shadow of death has covered us” ( ver. 19 ). For this mortality of ours is but the “shadow” of death. The true death is condemnation with the devil.
St Gregory Nazianzen Panegyric on His Brother S. Cæsarius
22. But now, laying aside lamentation, I will look at myself, and examine my feelings, that I may not unconsciously have in myself anything to be lamented. O ye sons of men, for the words apply to you, how long will ye be hard-hearted and gross in mind? Why do ye love vanity and seek after leasing, supposing life here to be a great thing and these few days many, and shrinking from this separation, welcome and pleasant as it is, as if it were really grievous and awful? Are we not to know ourselves? Are we not to cast away visible things? Are we not to look to the things unseen? Are we not, even if we are somewhat grieved, to be on the contrary distressed at our lengthened sojourn, like holy David, who calls things here the tents of darkness, and the place of affliction, and the deep mire, and the shadow of death; because we linger in the tombs we bear about with us, because, though we are …