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Psalms 39:3

Old Testament Poetry/Hymns ASV (1901)

What does Psalms 39:3 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “My heart was hot within me; While I was musing the fire burned: [Then] spake I with my tongue:” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

My heart was hot within me; While I was musing the fire burned: [Then] spake I with my tongue:
Psalms 39:3 — American Standard Version

Context — Psalms 39

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
1I said, I will take heed to my ways, That I sin not with my tongue: I will keep my mouth with a bridle, While the wicked is before me.
2I was dumb with silence, I held my peace, even from good; And my sorrow was stirred.
3My heart was hot within me; While I was musing the fire burned: [Then] spake I with my tongue:
4Jehovah, make me to know mine end, And the measure of my days, what it is; Let me know how frail I am.
5Behold, thou hast made my days [as] handbreadths; And my life-time is as nothing before thee: Surely every man at his best estate is altogether vanity. Selah
6Surely every man walketh in a vain show; Surely they are disquieted in vain: He heapeth up [riches], and knoweth not who shall gather them.
← Psalms 39:2Psalms 39:4 →
← Full Chapter 39 Psalms Overview

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“My heart was hot within me, etc.] Either with zeal for God; or rather with envy at the prosperity of wicked men, and with impatience at his own afflictions; while I was musing the fire burned; not the fire of the divine word, while he was meditating upon it, which caused his heart to burn within him; nor the fire of divine love, the coals whereof give a most vehement flame, when the love of God is shed abroad in the heart, and the thoughts of it are directed by the Spirit of God to dwell in meditation on it; but the fire of passion, anger, and resentment, while meditating on his own adversity, and the prosperity of others; [then] spake I with my tongue; and so broke the resolution he had…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“His emotions, as a smothered flame, burst forth.”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“My heart was hot within me - My mind became more and more excited; my feelings more and more intense. The attempt to suppress my emotions only more and more enkindled them. While I was musing the fire burned - literally, “in my meditation the fire burned.” That is, while I was dwelling on the subject; while I was agitating it in my mind; while I thought about it - the flame was enkindled, and my thoughts found utterance. He was unable longer to suppress his feelings, and he gave vent to them in words. Compare Jeremiah 20:9; Job 32:18-19. Then spake I with my tongue - That is, in the words which are recorded in this psalm. He gave vent to his pent-up feelings in the language which follows.…”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“Jer 20:9; Eze 3:14; Luk 24:32 Psalms 39:4”
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Related study paths

Read Psalms 39 in contextBrowse Hebrew word studiesOpen this verse in the study reader

Sources and verification