Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Psalms 6:7

Mine eye is consumed because of grief; it waxeth old because of all mine enemies.

7. Mine eye Is wasted away because of provocation;

It is waxed old because of all mine adversaries.

With the first clause comp. Psa 31:9. The look of the eye is a sure indication of the state of health, mental and bodily. The word rendered adversaries means literally them that distress me. Cp. Psa 7:4; Psa 7:6; and the cognate words in Psa 3:1, Psa 4:1.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

Mine eye is consumed – The word here rendered consumed – ashesh – means properly to fall in, to fall away, and is applied here to the eye as pining or wasting away from care, anxiety, and sorrow. Tears were poured forth from the eye, and it seemed to be exhausting itself in this manner. The meaning is, that it had grown dim, or that its sight began to fail, like that of an old man, on account of his troubles. Many have understood the word here rendered eye as referring to the countenance; but it is doubtful whether the word ever has this signification; and at any rate the common signification, referring it to the eye, best suits this connection.

It waxeth old – It seems to grow old; it experiences the effects commonly produced by age in blunting the power of vision. This is not an uncommon effect of grief and sadness. Even while I am writing this I am called in my pastoral visitations to attend on a young lady lying on a bed of languishing, and probably of death, one of whose symptoms is a quite diminished, and indeed almost total loss of vision, as the effect of trouble and disease.

Because of all mine enemies – From the trouble which they have brought upon me. The reference here, according to the interpretation proposed of the psalm, is to Absalom and those who were associated with him. Their conduct had been such as to bring upon David this overwhelming tide of sorrows.

Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible

Verse 7. Mine eye is consumed] asheshah, is blasted, withered, sunk in my head.

Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible

Consumed; or, grown dim or dull, through plenty of salt tears which I shed; or through the decay of my spirits.

Because of grief, i.e. my grief arising from mine enemies, as the next clause interprets it, and from the consideration of their multitude, and rage, and falseness.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

7. consumedor, “hasfailed,” denoting general debility (Psa 13:3;Psa 38:10).

waxeth oldor, “dim.”

griefmingled withindignation.

Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

Mine eye is consumed because of grief,…. Either by reason of the affliction he laboured under, which could not he joyous, but grievous; or because, of the sin that was in him, and those that he had committed, which were grieving to him; or through the sins of other professors of religion, or profane sinners, whom he beheld with grief of heart and weeping eyes: the word f used signifies anger and indignation, and sorrow arising from thence, and may denote either indignation in himself at his enemies, who were rejoicing at his calamities; or the sense he had of the anger of God, and his hot displeasure, which he feared he was rebuking and chastening him with; and now his heart being filled with grief on one or other of these accounts, or all of them, vented itself in floods of tears, which hurt the visive faculty; for through much weeping the eye is weakened and becomes dim; and through a multitude of tears, and a long continuance of them, it fails; see Job 17:7;

it waxeth old because of all mine enemies; saints have many enemies, sin, Satan, and the world; and these are very oppressive ones, as the word g here signifies; such as beset them about, straiten them on all hands, and press them sore; and they must be pressed down by them, were it not that he that is in them is greater than he that is in the world; and David’s enemies gave him so much trouble, and caused him to shed such plenty of tears, that his eye waxed old, was shrunk up, and beset with wrinkles, the signs of old age; or it was removed out of its place, as the word is rendered in Job 18:4; or the sight was removed from that, it was gone from him, Ps 38:10.

f “prae ira”, Pagninus; “prae indignatione”, Montanus, Musculus; “ex indignatione”, Piscator. g “angustiatores”, Montanus; “angustiis afficientes me”, Vatablus; “oppressores meos”, Junius & Tremellius, Gejerus.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

(7) Consumedi.e., sunken; literally, fallen away. The LXX. use the same word employed to render vexed in Psa. 6:2. Grief has brought the signs of premature age (Job. 17:7; Psa. 31:9, and Note there). (See Homers Odyssey, xix. 360, Quickly do mortals grow old from trouble.)

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

7. Mine eye is consumed waxeth old By reason of long continued suffering and weeping his eyes had grown languid, and dull, and sunken in the head, as in extreme age. He here finishes the picture of his sorrow, and as Calvin says, “They who know only in some small degree what it is to wrestle with the fear of eternal death, will find in these words no exaggeration.”

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

Psa 6:7. Mine eye, &c. Mine eye is {fretted / worn away} with indignation; it is grown old because of all my oppressors. Mr. Mudge observes, that the original word athkah, rendered waxeth old, signifies to be fixed, stiffened, set in one’s head. According to him, it never implies age, in the sense of decay, but duration only; and means hard, stiff, firm, durable. Parkhurst, however, rather thinks, that its proper meaning is to sink, or be sunk with grief. So Dryden,

His eye-balls in their hollow sockets sink.

Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke

Psa 6:7 Mine eye is consumed because of grief; it waxeth old because of all mine enemies.

Ver. 7. Mine eye is consumed ] Heb. gnawn, moth eaten. That eye of his that had looked and lusted after his neighbour’s wife is now dimmed and darkened with grief and indignation, he had wept himself almost blind; as it is stated of Faustus, the son of King Vortigern by his own daughter, that he wept himself stark blind for the abominable incest of his parents (Prideaux’s Introduct. to Hist. p. 289).

It waxeth old ] Or, Is sunk in my head. Doth not do its office, but is become like an old dusty window that lets in little light. A heavy affliction to those whose eyes have been loop holes of lust and windows of wickedness, the remembrance whereof is a thorn to their blind eyes, and puts them to grievous pain, especially when their enemies shall have got it by the end, as David’s had his ill pranks, and spared not to lay it in his dish.

Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

consumed = wasted.

enemies = adversaries.

Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics

Mine: Psa 31:9, Psa 31:10, Psa 38:10, Psa 88:9, Job 17:7, Lam 5:17

it waxeth: Psa 32:3

Reciprocal: Job 16:7 – he hath Job 16:16 – face Ecc 2:23 – his heart Lam 2:11 – eyes

Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge