“But I, as a deaf man, heard not; and I was as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth.”
The psalmist declares that he is like a deaf man who hears not, and like a mute who opens not his mouth. The image of deafness and muteness suggests that the psalmist has ceased to engage in normal communication and social interaction. The silence and withdrawal suggest profound shock and resignation. This verse portrays the psalmist as withdrawn and isolated, unable or unwilling to speak.
Church Fathers on Psalms 38:13
A psalm to David himself, on the remembrance of the Sabbath. 1. What does this recollection of the Sabbath mean? What is this Sabbath? For it is with groaning that he “calls it to recollection.” You have both heard already when the Psalm was read, and you will now hear it when we shall go over it, how great is his groaning, his mourning, his tears, his misery. But happy he who is wretched after this manner! Whence the Lord also in the Gospel Matthew 5:4 called some who mourn…
Nicene & Post-Nicene / Ante-Nicene Fathers translations · public domain
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