How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?
English Standard Version (ESV)
This plea isn't just about God seeming distant; it's about the feeling of being abandoned to the point of despair, where faith itself grapples with the possibility of an eternal ending. The psalmist mixes logical questions with existential dread, revealing how even deep trust can wrestle with the overwhelming sensation of God's total absence.
How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?
English Standard Version (ESV)
David is in a season of deep distress and feels abandoned by God. He cries out in anguish, questioning how long God will seemingly forget him and hide His face, implying a prolonged period of suffering and enemy oppression. This lament transitions into prayer and ultimately a declaration of trust in God's steadfast love.
Ever felt like God just isn't listening? Like you're shouting into a void? This verse dives deep into that agonizing feeling.
David starts this psalm with a raw, gut-wrenching cry: 'How long, O LORD?' He feels utterly forgotten, as if God has turned His back and isn't coming back. This isn't a logical argument; it's the cry of a heart overwhelmed by suffering.
What 'forgetting' means here:
This intense questioning isn't necessarily a lack of faith, but a sign of a deep struggle within faith. It's the feeling of being forgotten clashing with the deep-down belief that God is there and does care.
How can you hope when you feel completely abandoned? This psalm shows us the surprising way hope can coexist with despair.
Ask a follow-up
It might seem like David is on the brink of losing all hope. The questions 'How long will you forget me forever?' and 'How long will you hide your face?' sound desperate. Yet, the scholars highlight a profound paradox at play here.
The Tension of Faith:
This psalm teaches us that authentic faith isn't the absence of doubt or despair, but the persistent, even desperate, turning towards God in the midst of those feelings.
Understand the original words
YHWH · Hebrew Proper Noun
The personal, covenantal name of God, revealed to Moses, emphasizing His self-existence and faithfulness to His people. It is the name by which God is in intimate relationship with His creation.
panim · Hebrew Noun
The manifestation of God’s presence, favor, and fellowship. To have His face 'hidden' indicates a withdrawal of the experience of His blessing, while His 'face' shining upon someone signifies grace and peace.
This psalm likely arose during a period of intense personal betrayal and political turmoil, such as Absalom's rebellion, where David felt not only physically threatened but deeply abandoned by God amidst the chaos.
c. 1000 BC
David's early anointing and rise
David is secretly anointed by Samuel, marking him as the future king, but he lives as a fugitive from King Saul.
c. 1000-990 BC
David's persecution by Saul
David flees for his life, hiding in caves and wilderness areas, often surrounded by enemies and facing extreme hardship.
c. 990 BC— this verse
Absalom's rebellion
David's son Absalom leads a revolt, forcing David to flee Jerusalem, his own capital, in shame and distress.
c. 985 BC
David's reign as King of Israel
After Absalom's defeat and death, David returns to Jerusalem, consolidating his rule and facing the aftermath of rebellion and war.
This verse echoes the sentiment of Psalm 13:1, where Job cries out in anguish, 'Though I cry for help, I am not heard; though I call for justice, it comes not!' expressing a similar feeling of being unheard and ignored by God in times of deep suffering.
Isaiah 54:7-8This passage offers a profound contrast to Psalm 13:1, revealing God's heart: 'For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with great compassion I will gather you. In a burst of fury I hid my face from you for a moment, but with everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you,' showing that God's seeming abandonment is temporary and always rooted in love.
Lamentations 3:17-19Here, the prophet describes a similar state of distress, 'My soul is deprived of peace; I have forgotten what happiness is. I cry, 'My splendor is gone! My hope in the LORD is extinguished!' This resonates with the psalmist's feeling of being forgotten and the extinguishing of hope, even while still addressing God.
Romans 8:35-39This powerful New Testament passage directly confronts the fear expressed in Psalm 13:1, assuring believers that 'neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord,' offering ultimate security against the feeling of being forgotten.
calvinPsalms 13:1-2: "<> How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me?"
How long, O Jehovah, wilt thou forget me, for ever? How long wilt thou hide thy face from me? 2. How long shall I take counsel in my soul? and have sorrow in my heart daily? how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?
How long, O Jehovah. It is very true that David was so greatly hated by the generality of people, on account of the calumnies and false reports which had been cir…
poolePsalms 13:1: "To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me?"
The occasion of this Psalm was David’s deep and long-continued distresses, from which he prays for deliverance. David complaineth to God of his delay to help, Psalm 13:1 , and the enemies’ triumph, Psalm 13:2 . He, praying for preventing grace, Psalm 13:3,4 professeth his trust in God, Psalm 13:5 , and boasteth of Divine mercy, Psalm 13:6 . How long w…
This plea isn't just about God seeming distant; it's about the feeling of being abandoned to the point of despair, where faith itself grapples with the possibility of an eternal ending. The psalmist mixes logical questions with existential dread, revealing how even deep trust can wrestle with the overwhelming sensation of God's total absence.
David is in a season of deep distress and feels abandoned by God. He cries out in anguish, questioning how long God will seemingly forget him and hide His face, implying a prolonged period of suffering and enemy oppression. This lament transitions into prayer and ultimately a declaration of trust in God's steadfast love.
David is in a season of deep distress and feels abandoned by God. He cries out in anguish, questioning how long God will seemingly forget him and hide His face, implying a prolonged period of suffering and enemy oppression. This lament transitions into prayer and ultimately a declaration of trust in God's steadfast love.
"How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?" — This plea isn't just about God seeming distant; it's about the feeling of being abandoned to the point of despair, where faith itself grapples with the possibility of an eternal ending. The psalmis…
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Last reviewed October 2026