Psalms 142:3 (KJV)

What does Psalms 142:3 mean?

Psalms 142:3 describes a speaker who feels unable to cope while facing a hidden danger. He addresses God as the one who knows the course of his life, even when other people are secretly working against him.

The verse pictures danger as a snare placed along a path. A snare is a trap for catching an animal, so the image makes the speaker’s enemies’ actions seem both concealed and deliberate.

The Hebrew behind Psalms 142:3

• “spirit” — רוּחַ (ruaḥ): This word can mean a person’s inner life or disposition. Here it points to the speaker’s inward distress, rather than to a separate being.
• “overwhelmed” — עָטַף (ʿataf): This word can carry the sense of growing faint or weak. The phrase portrays distress as draining the speaker’s strength.
• “laid” — טָמַן (ṭaman): This word can mean to hide or conceal. It adds to the picture of a trap placed where the person walking would not see it.

Why Psalms 142:3 matters

• The speaker addresses God personally amid the danger. He says “thou knewest my path,” rather than merely speaking about God to someone else.
• The image of the path joins two parts of the verse. God knows the speaker’s path, while the people against him have hidden a trap in the way he walks.
• The danger is not simply a feeling of distress. The words “have they privily laid a snare” describe people acting against the speaker, even though the verse leaves them unnamed.