The Seven Penitential Psalms

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Psalm 6

Taken from The Liturgical Year by Dom Prosper Gueranger (1841-1875)

David, struck down by sickness, asks pardon of God, and beseeches Him to heal the wounds of his soul.

Domine, ne in furore tuo arguas me, neque in ira tua corripias me. Miserere mei, Domine, quoniam infirmus sum; sana me, Domine, quoniam conturbata sunt ossa mea. Et anima mea turbata est valde; sed tu, Domine, usquequo? Convertere, Domine, et eripe animam meam; salvum me fac propter misericordiam tuam. Quoniam non est in morte qui memor sit tui; in inferno autem quis confitebitur tibi? Laboravi in gemitu meo; lavabo per singulas noctes lectum meum; lacrimis meis stratum meum rigabo. Turbatus est a furore oculus meus; inveteravi inter omnes inimicos meos. Discedite a me omnes qui operamini iniquitatem, quoniam exaudivit Dominus vocem fletus mei. Exaudivit Dominus deprecationem meam; Dominus orationem meam suscepit. Erubescant, et conturbentur vehementer omnes inimici mei; convertantur, et erubescant valde velociter. 

O Lord, rebuke me not in thy indignation, nor chastise me in thy wrath. Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am weak: heal me, O Lord, for my bones are troubled. And my soul is troubled exceedingly: but thou, O Lord, how long? Turn to me, O Lord, and deliver my soul: O save me for thy mercy's sake. For there is no one in death, that is mindful of thee: and who shall confess to thee in hell? I have laboured in my groanings, every night I will wash my bed: I will water my couch with my tears. My eye is troubled through indignation: I have grown old amongst all my enemies. Depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity: for the Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping. The Lord hath heard my supplication: the Lord hath received my prayer. Let all my enemies be ashamed, and be very much troubled: let them be turned back, and be ashamed very speedily.

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Psalm 31

David experiences the happiness felt by a soul whose sins have been forgiven her by God; 

he expresses his feelings, by comparing himself to a sick man, who was at the point of death, and is restored to health.

Beati quorum remissae sunt iniquitates, et quorum tecta sunt peccata. Beatus vir cui non imputavit Dominus peccatum, nec est in spiritu ejus dolus. Quoniam tacui, inveteraverunt ossa mea, dum clamarem tota die. Quoniam die ac nocte gravata est super me manus tua; conversus sum in aerumna mea, dum configitur spina. Delictum meum cognitum tibi feci, et injustitiam meam non abscondi. Dixi : Confitebor adversum me injustitiam meam Domino; et tu remisisti impietatem peccati mei. Pro hac orabit ad te omnis sanctus in tempore opportuno. Verumtamen in diluvio aquarum multarum, ad eum non approximabunt. Tu es refugium meum a tribulatione quae circumdedit me; exsultatio mea, erue me a circumdantibus me. Intellectum tibi dabo, et instruam te in via hac qua gradieris; firmabo super te oculos meos. Nolite fieri sicut equus et mulus, quibus non est intellectus. In camo et freno maxillas eorum constringe, qui non approximant ad te. Multa flagella peccatoris; sperantem autem in Domino misericordia circumdabit. Laetamini in Domino, et exsultate, justi; et gloriamini, omnes recti corde. 

Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord hath not imputed sin, and in whose spirit there is no guile. Because I was silent my bones grew old; whilst I cried out all the day long. For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: I am turned in my anguish, whilst the thorn is fastened. I have acknowledged my sin to thee, and my injustice I have not concealed. I said I will confess against myself my injustice to the Lord: and thou hast forgiven the wickedness of my sin. For this shall every one that is holy pray to thee in a seasonable time. And yet in a flood of many waters, they shall not come nigh unto him. Thou art my refuge from the trouble which hath encompassed me: my joy, deliver me from them that surround me. I will give thee understanding, and I will instruct thee in this way, in which thou shalt go: I will fix my eyes upon thee. Do not become like the horse and the mule, who have no understanding. With bit and bridle bind fast their jaws, who come not near unto thee. Many are the scourges of the sinner, but mercy shall encompass him that hopeth in the Lord. Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye just, and glory, all ye right of heart.

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Psalm 37

The royal prophet feels the consequences left in him by his past sins, and he begs God to have pity on him.

Domine, ne in furore tuo arguas me, neque in ira tua corripias me; quoniam sagittae tuae infixae sunt mihi, et confirmasti super me manum tuam. Non est sanitas in carne mea, a facie irae tuae; non est pax ossibus meis, a facie peccatorum meorum: quoniam iniquitates meae supergressae sunt caput meum, et sicut onus grave gravatae sunt super me. Putruerunt et corruptae sunt cicatrices meae, a facie insipientiae meae. Miser factus sum et curvatus sum usque in finem; tota die contristatus ingrediebar. Quoniam lumbi mei impleti sunt illusionibus, et non est sanitas in carne mea. Afflictus sum, et humiliatus sum nimis; rugiebam a gemitu cordis mei. Domine, ante te omne desiderium meum, et gemitus meus a te non est absconditus. Cor meum conturbatum est, dereliquit me virtus mea, et lumen oculorum meorum, et ipsum non est mecum. Amici mei et proximi mei adversum me appropinquaverunt, et steterunt; et qui juxta me erant, de longe steterunt, et vim faciebant qui quaerebant animam meam. Et qui inquirebant mala mihi, locuti sunt vanitates, et dolos tota die meditabantur. Ego autem, tamquam surdus, non audiebam; et sicut mutus non aperiens os suum. Et factus sum sicut homo non audiens, et non habens in ore suo redargutiones. Quoniam in te, Domine, speravi; tu exaudies me, Domine Deus meus. Quia dixi: Nequando supergaudeant mihi inimici mei; et dum commoventur pedes mei, super me magna locuti sunt. Quoniam ego in flagella paratus sum, et dolor meus in conspectu meo semper. Quoniam iniquitatem meam annuntiabo, et cogitabo pro peccato meo. Inimici autem mei vivunt, et confirmati sunt super me: et multiplicati sunt qui oderunt me inique. Qui retribuunt mala pro bonis detrahebant mihi, quoniam sequebar bonitatem. Ne derelinquas me, Domine Deus meus; ne discesseris a me. Intende in adjutorium meum, Domine, Deus salutis meae. 


Rebuke me not, O Lord, in thy indignation; nor chastise me in thy wrath. For thy arrows are fastened in me: and thy hand hath been strong upon me. There is no health in my flesh, because of thy wrath: there is no peace for my bones, because of my sins. For my iniquities are gone over my head: and as a heavy burden are become heavy upon me. My sores are putrified and corrupted, because of my foolishness. I am become miserable, and am bowed down even to the end: I walked sorrowful all the day long. For my loins are filled with illusions; and there is no health in my flesh. I am afflicted and humbled exceedingly: I roared with the groaning of my heart. Lord, all my desire is before thee, and my groaning is not hidden from thee. My heart is troubled, my strength hath left me, and the light of my eyes itself is not with me. My friends and my neighbours have drawn near, and stood against me. And they that were near me stood afar off: And they that sought my soul used violence. And they that sought evils to me spoke vain things, and studied deceits all the day long. But I, as a deaf man, heard not: and as a dumb man not opening his mouth. And I became as a man that heareth not: and that hath no reproofs in his mouth. For in thee, O Lord, have I hoped: thou wilt hear me, O Lord my God. For I said: Lest at any time my enemies rejoice over me: and whilst my feet are moved, they speak great things against me. For I am ready for scourges: and my sorrow is continually before me. For I will declare my iniquity: and I will think for my sin. But my enemies live, and are stronger than I: and they that hate me wrongfully are multiplied. They that render evil for good, have detracted me, because I followed goodness. Forsake me not, O Lord my God: do not thou depart from me. Attend unto my help, O Lord, the God of my salvation.

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Psalm 50

The grief and prayer of David, when the prophet Nathan was sent, by God, to reproach him for the twofold crime

he had committed by his sin with Bethsabee, are the subject of this psalm.

Miserere mei, Deus, secundum magnam misericordiam tuam; et secundum multitudinem miserationum tuarum, dele iniquitatem meam. Amplius lava me ab iniquitate mea, et a peccato meo munda me. Quoniam iniquitatem meam ego cognosco, et peccatum meum contra me est semper. Tibi soli peccavi, et malum coram te feci; ut justificeris in sermonibus tuis, et vincas cum judicaris. Ecce enim in iniquitatibus conceptus sum, et in peccatis concepit me mater mea. Ecce enim veritatem dilexisti; incerta et occulta sapientiae tuae manifestasti mihi. Asperges me hyssopo, et mundabor; lavabis me, et super nivem dealbabor. Auditui meo dabis gaudium et laetitiam, et exsultabunt ossa humiliata. Averte faciem tuam a peccatis meis, et omnes iniquitates meas dele. Cor mundum crea in me, Deus, et spiritum rectum innova in visceribus meis. Ne projicias me a facie tua, et spiritum sanctum tuum ne auferas a me. Redde mihi laetitiam salutaris tui, et spiritu principali confirma me. Docebo iniquos vias tuas, et impii ad te convertentur. Libera me de sanguinibus, Deus, Deus salutis meae, et exsultabit lingua mea justitiam tuam. Domine, labia mea aperies, et os meum annuntiabit laudem tuam. Quoniam si voluisses sacrificium, dedissem utique; holocaustis non delectaberis. Sacrificium Deo spiritus contribulatus; cor contritum et humiliatum, Deus, non despicies. Benigne fac, Domine, in bona voluntate tua Sion, ut aedificentur muri Jerusalem. Tunc acceptabis sacrificium justitiae, oblationes et holocausta; tunc imponent super altare tuum vitulos. 


Have mercy on me, O God, according to thy great mercy. And according to the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my iniquity. Wash me yet more from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my iniquity, and my sin is always before me. To thee only have I sinned, and have done evil before thee: that thou mayst be justified in thy words and mayst overcome when thou art judged. For behold I was conceived in iniquities; and in sins did my mother conceive me. For behold thou hast loved truth: the uncertain and hidden things of thy wisdom thou hast made manifest to me. Thou shalt sprinkle me with hyssop, and I shall be cleansed: thou shalt wash me, and I shall be made whiter than snow. To my hearing thou shalt give joy and gladness: and the bones that have been humbled shall rejoice. Turn away thy face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. Create a clean heart in me, O God: and renew a right spirit within my bowels. Cast me not away from thy face; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation, and strengthen me with a perfect spirit. I will teach the unjust thy ways: and the wicked shall be converted to thee. Deliver me from blood, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall extol thy justice. O Lord, thou wilt open my lips: and my mouth shall declare thy praise. For if thou hadst desired sacrifice, I would indeed have given it: with burnt offerings thou wilt not be delighted. A sacrifice to God is an afflicted spirit: a contrite and humbled heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. Deal favourably, O Lord, in thy good will with Sion; that the walls of Jerusalem may be built up. Then shalt thou accept the sacrifice of justice, oblations and whole burnt offerings: then shall they lay calves upon thy altar.

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Psalm 101

David laments over the captivity of God's people in Babylon, and prays for the restoration of Sion.
His words are appropriate for the soul, who grieves over her sins, and implores to be regenerated by grace.

Domine, exaudi orationem meam, et clamor meus ad te veniat. Non avertas faciem tuam a me; in quacumque die tribulor, inclina ad me aurem tuam; in quacumque die invocavero te, velociter exaudi me. Quia defecerunt sicut fumus dies mei, et ossa mea sicut cremium aruerunt. Percussus sum ut foenum, et aruit cor meum, quia oblitus sum comedere panem meum. A voce gemitus mei adhaesit os meum carni meae. Similis factus sum pellicano solitudinis; factus sum sicut nycticorax in domicilio. Vigilavi, et factus sum sicut passer solitarius in tecto. Tota die exprobrabant mihi inimici mei, et qui laudabant me adversum me jurabant: quia cinerem tamquam panem manducabam, et potum meum cum fletu miscebam; a facie irae et indignationis tuae, quia elevans allisisti me. Dies mei sicut umbra declinaverunt, et ego sicut foenum arui. Tu autem, Domine, in aeternum permanes, et memoriale tuum in generationem et generationem. Tu exsurgens misereberis Sion, quia tempus miserendi ejus, quia venit tempus; quoniam placuerunt servis tuis lapides ejus, et terrae ejus miserebuntur. Et timebunt gentes nomen tuum, Domine, et omnes reges terrae gloriam tuam; quia aedificavit Dominus Sion, et videbitur in gloria sua. Respexit in orationem humilium et non sprevit precem eorum. Scribantur haec in generatione altera, et populus qui creabitur laudabit Dominum. Quia prospexit de excelso sancto suo, Dominus de caelo in terram aspexit; ut audiret gemitus compeditorum, ut solveret filios interemptorum; ut annuntient in Sion nomen Domini, et laudem ejus in Jerusalem, in conveniendo populos in unum, et reges ut serviant Domino. Respondit ei in via virtutis suae: Paucitatem dierum meorum nuntia mihi: ne revoces me in dimidio dierum meorum, in generationem et generationem anni tui. Initio tu, Domine, terram fundasti, et opera manuum tuarum sunt caeli. Ipsi peribunt, tu autem permanes; et omnes sicut vestimentum veterascent. Et sicut opertorium mutabis eos, et mutabuntur; tu autem idem ipse es, et anni tui non deficient. Filii servorum tuorum habitabunt; et semen eorum in saeculum dirigetur. 


Hear, O Lord, my prayer: and let my cry come to thee. Turn not away thy face from me: in the day when I am in trouble, incline thy ear to me. In what day soever I shall call upon thee, hear me speedily. For my days are vanished like smoke: and my bones are grown dry like fuel for the fire. I am smitten as grass, and my heart is withered: because I forgot to eat my bread. Through the voice of my groaning, my bone hath cleaved to my flesh. I am become like to a pelican of the wilderness: I am like a night raven in the house. I have watched, and am become as a sparrow all alone on the housetop. All the day long my enemies reproached me: and they that praised me did swear against me. For I did eat ashes like bread, and mingled my drink with weeping. Because of thy anger and indignation: for having lifted me up thou hast thrown me down. My days have declined like a shadow, and I am withered like grass. But thou, O Lord, endurest for ever: and thy memorial to all generations. Thou shalt arise and have mercy on Sion: for it is time to have mercy on it, for the time is come. For the stones thereof have pleased thy servants: and they shall have pity on the earth thereof. And the Gentiles shall fear thy name, O Lord, and all the kings of the earth thy glory. For the Lord hath built up Sion: and he shall be seen in his glory. He hath had regard to the prayer of the humble: and he hath not despised their petition. Let these things be written unto another generation: and the people that shall be created shall praise the Lord: Because he hath looked forth from his high sanctuary: from heaven the Lord hath looked upon the earth. That he might hear the groans of them that are in fetters: that he might release the children of the slain: That they may declare the name of the Lord in Sion: and his praise in Jerusalem; When the people assemble together, and kings, to serve the Lord. He (the royal prophet, longing to see these glorious days) answered him in the way of his strength: Declare unto me the fewness of my days. Call me not away in the midst of my days: thy years are unto generation and generation. In the beginning, O Lord, thou foundedst the earth: and the heavens are the works of thy hands. They shall perish but thou remainest: and all of them shall grow old like a garment: And as a vesture thou shalt change them, and they shall be changed. But thou art always the selfsame, and thy years shall not fail. The children of thy servants shall continue: and their seed shall be directed for ever.

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Psalm 129

The sinner seeing the depths of the abyss into which sin has led him, can hope for help from non but his God, whose mercy is infinite.

De profundis clamavi ad te, Domine; Domine, exaudi vocem meam. Fiant aures tuae intendentes in vocem deprecationis meae. Si iniquitates observaveris, Domine, Domine, quis sustinebit? Quia apud te propitiatio est; et propter legem tuam sustinui te, Domine. Sustinuit anima mea in verbo ejus; speravit anima mea in Domino. A custodia matutina usque ad noctem, speret Israel in Domino; quia apud Dominum misericordia, et copiosa apud eum redemptio. Et ipse redimet Israel ex omnibus iniquitatibus ejus. 


Out of the depths I have cried to thee, O Lord: Lord, hear my voice. Let thy ears be attentive to the voice of my supplication. If thou, O Lord, wilt mark iniquities: Lord, who shall stand it. For with thee there is merciful forgiveness: and by reason of thy law, I have waited for thee, O Lord. My soul hath relied on his word: My soul hath hoped in the Lord. From the morning watch even until night, let Israel hope in the Lord. Because with the Lord there is mercy: and with him plentiful redemption. And he shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.

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Psalm 142

David, who had taken refuge in a cave, sees himself surrounded by the army of Saul; he beseeches God not to deal with him according to the rigour of His just judgments,
but to show him a way whereby to escape the danger that threatens him. The sinner implores God to deliver him from the sins and temptations which beset him.

Domine, exaudi orationem meam; auribus percipe obsecrationem meam in veritate tua; exaudi me in tua justitia. Et non intres in judicium cum servo tuo, quia non justificabitur in conspectu tuo omnis vivens. Quia persecutus est inimicus animam meam, humiliavit in terra vitam meam; collocavit me in obscuris, sicut mortuos saeculi. Et anxiatus est super me spiritus meus; in me turbatum est cor meum. Memor fui dierum antiquorum : meditatus sum in omnibus operibus tuis, in factis manuum tuarum meditabar. Expandi manus meas ad te; anima mea sicut terra sine aqua tibi. Velociter exaudi me, Domine; defecit spiritus meus. Non avertas faciem tuam a me, et similis ero descendentibus in lacum. Auditam fac mihi mane misericordiam tuam, quia in te speravi. Notam fac mihi viam in qua ambulem, quia ad te levavi animam meam. Eripe me de inimicis meis, Domine; ad te confugi. Doce me facere voluntatem tuam, quia Deus meus es tu. Spiritus tuus bonus deducet me in terram rectam. Propter nomen tuum, Domine, vivificabis me; in aequitate tua, educes de tribulatione animam meam; et in misericordia tua disperdes inimicos meos, et perdes omnes qui tribulant animam meam, quoniam ego servus tuus sum. 

Hear, O Lord, my prayer: give ear to my supplication in thy truth: hear me in thy justice. And enter not into judgment with thy servant: for in thy sight no man living shall be justified. For the enemy hath persecuted my soul: he hath brought down my life to the earth. He hath made me to dwell in darkness as those that have been dead of old: And my spirit is in anguish within me: my heart within me is troubled. I remembered the days of old, I meditated on all thy works: I meditated upon the works of thy hands. I stretched forth my hands to thee: my soul is as earth without water unto thee. Hear me speedily, O Lord: my spirit hath fainted away. Turn not away thy face from me, lest I be like unto them that go down into the pit. Cause me to hear thy mercy in the morning; for in thee have I hoped. Make the way known to me, wherein I should walk: for I have lifted up my soul to thee. Deliver me from my enemies, O Lord, to thee have I fled: Teach me to do thy will, for thou art my God. Thy good spirit shall lead me into the right land: For thy name's sake, O Lord, thou wilt quicken me in thy justice. Thou wilt bring my soul out of trouble: And in thy mercy thou wilt destroy my enemies. And thou wilt cut off all them that afflict my soul: for I am thy servant.