Psalms 142:1

A well-written song ²  by David, when he was in the cave; ³  a prayer. To the Lord I cry out; ⁴  to the Lord I plead for mercy. ⁵ 

A maskil of David. When he was in the cave. A prayer. I cry aloud to the LORD; I lift up my voice to the LORD for mercy.

<<Maskil of David, when he was in the cave. A Prayer.>> I cry aloud with my voice to the LORD; I make supplication with my voice to the LORD.

<<A psalm of David, regarding his experience in the cave. A prayer.>> I cry out to the LORD; I plead for the LORD’s mercy.

I cry out loudly to GOD, loudly I plead with GOD for mercy.

<Maschil. Of David. A prayer when he was in the hole of the rock.> The sound of my cry went up to the Lord; with my voice I made my prayer for grace to the Lord.

With my voice I cry to the LORD; with my voice I make supplication to the LORD.

<<A Contemplation of David. A Prayer when he was in the cave.>> I cry out to the LORD with my voice; With my voice to the LORD I make my supplication.

A well-written song ²  by David, when he was in the cave; ³  a prayer. To the Lord I cry out; ⁴  to the Lord I plead for mercy. ⁵ 

¹ sn Psalm 142. The psalmist laments his persecuted state and asks the Lord to deliver him from his enemies.

² tn The meaning of the Hebrew term מַשְׂכִּיל (maskil) is uncertain. The word is derived from a verb meaning “to be prudent; to be wise.” Various options are: “a contemplative song,” “a song imparting moral wisdom,” or “a skillful [i.e., well-written] song.” The term occurs in the superscriptions of Pss 32, 42, 44, 45, 52-55, 74, 78, 88, 89, and 142, as well as in Ps 47:7.

³ sn According to the superscription, David wrote this psalm while in “the cave.” This probably refers to either the incident recorded in 1 Sam 22:1 or to the one recorded in 1 Sam 24:3. See the superscription of Ps 57.

⁴ tn Heb “[with] my voice to the Lord I cry out.”

⁵ tn Heb “[with] my voice to the Lord I plead for mercy.”