Psalms 109:23
I am gone like a shadow at evening; I am shaken off like a locust.
English Standard Version (ESV)
All verses
This page isn't yet indexed by search engines.
Psalms 109:23
I am gone like a shadow at evening; I am shaken off like a locust.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This page isn't yet indexed by search engines.
The Psalmist uses the image of a declining shadow not just to show disappearance, but the lengthening and fading that happens as day turns to night. He’s not just gone, but in the process of vanishing, much like a locust swarm easily scattered by the wind, highlighting his extreme vulnerability and helplessness.
The psalmist is in deep distress, feeling utterly forsaken and attacked by enemies. He describes himself as wasting away, just as a shadow lengthens and disappears at dusk, and as unstable and buffeted as a swarm of locusts in the wind. This verse vividly expresses his physical and emotional fragility in the face of overwhelming opposition, leading him to plead for God's intervention.
Have you ever felt like you're disappearing before your own eyes? The psalmist uses a powerful image to describe this feeling.
It's a picture of something real, yet transient.
The Declining Shadow
The psalmist compares himself to 'a shadow at evening.' When the sun begins to set, shadows lengthen and then vanish. This isn't just about being short-lived; it's about a life that is actively fading away, losing its substance and presence. It speaks to a profound sense of vulnerability and the swift passage of time.
This image captures the feeling of being on the decline, where one's strength, influence, or very presence seems to be diminishing rapidly, like the sun dipping below the horizon.
Imagine being completely at the mercy of the wind, tossed about without control.
This vivid comparison reveals a state of utter helplessness.
Tossed and Shaken
The psalmist likens himself to a locust, 'shaken off.' This isn't just any movement; it’s a violent agitation. Locusts, when in swarms, can be buffeted by winds, driven erratically, and seemingly thrown about with no agency of their own.
This conveys a sense of being unstable, constantly moved from one difficult circumstance to another, with external forces dictating one's path. It’s a picture of being physically and emotionally battered, with no solid ground beneath one's feet.
Understand the original words
tsel · Hebrew Noun
A common biblical motif representing the fleeting, transient, and shadowy nature of human life. It underscores the frailty and brevity of existence before an eternal God.
This passage echoes the psalmist's sense of life fading quickly, comparing his days to a rapidly lengthening shadow as the sun sets, mirroring the fleeting nature described in Psalm 109:23.
Job 39:20This verse describes the horse's fear, noting its mane 'tossed about like a locust,' which highlights the imagery of uncontrollable, agitated movement that Psalm 109:23 also conveys.
Matthew 8:20Jesus' statement, 'Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head,' shares the theme of rootlessness and instability implied by being 'tossed up and down,' as experienced by the psalmist.
Nahum 3:17This prophetic passage describes locust swarms scattering and moving restlessly, providing a vivid parallel to the psalmist's feeling of being 'shaken off' and uncontrollably dispersed.
pulpitPsalms 109:23: "I am gone like the shadow when it declineth: I am tossed up and down as the locust."
Verse 23. - I am gone like the shadow when it declineth; rather, lille a shodow (comp. Psalm 102:11). When shadows "decline," they are just about to cease and disappear. I am tossed up and down as the locust; or, "I am carried away" - swept off, i.e., or just ready to be swept off, from the face of the earth (see Exodus 10:19; Joel 2:20; Nahum 3:17).
clarkePsalms 109:23: "I am gone like the shadow when it declineth: I am tossed up and down as the locust."
I am gone like the shadow - "I have walked like the declining shadow," - I have passed my meridian of health and life; and as the sun is going below the horizon, so am I about to go under the earth. I am tossed up and down as the locust - When swarms of locusts take wing, and infest the countries in the east, if the wind happen to blow briskly, the swarms are agitated and driven upon each other,…
The Psalmist uses the image of a declining shadow not just to show disappearance, but the lengthening and fading that happens as day turns to night. He’s not just gone, but in the process of vanishing, much like a locust swarm easily scattered by the wind, highlighting his extreme vulnerability and helplessness.
The psalmist is in deep distress, feeling utterly forsaken and attacked by enemies. He describes himself as wasting away, just as a shadow lengthens and disappears at dusk, and as unstable and buffeted as a swarm of locusts in the wind. This verse vividly expresses his physical and emotional fragility in the face of overwhelming opposition, leading him to plead for God's intervention.
The psalmist is in deep distress, feeling utterly forsaken and attacked by enemies. He describes himself as wasting away, just as a shadow lengthens and disappears at dusk, and as unstable and buffeted as a swarm of locusts in the wind. This verse vividly expresses his physical and emotional fragility in the face of overwhelming opposition, leading him to plead for God's intervention.
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Ask a follow-up
Ask Sola things like:
Live chat about Psalms 109:23 is available in the Sola app.
"I am gone like a shadow at evening; I am shaken off like a locust." — The Psalmist uses the image of a declining shadow not just to show disappearance, but the lengthening and fading that happens as day turns to night. He’s not just gone, but in the process of vanish…