Psalms 116:16

Yes, Lord! I am indeed your servant; I am your lowest slave. ¹  You saved me from death. ² 

2Ch 33:11-13; Ps 86:16; Ps 107:14-16; Ps 119:125; Ps 143:12; Isa 61:1; Joh 12:26; Ac 27:23; Ro 6:22; Jas 1:1

¹ tn Heb “I am your servant, the son of your female servant.” The phrase “son of a female servant” (see also Ps 86:16) is used of a son born to a secondary wife or concubine (Exod 23:12). In some cases the child’s father is the master of the house (see Gen 21:10, 13; Judg 9:18). The use of the expression here certainly does not imply that the Lord has such a secondary wife or concubine! It is used metaphorically and idiomatically to emphasize the psalmist’s humility before the Lord and his status as the Lord’s servant.

² tn Heb “you have loosed my bonds.” In this context the imagery refers to deliverance from death (see v. 3).