Look away from me, that I may smile again, before I depart and am no more!”
English Standard Version (ESV)
This isn't just a plea to God to stop afflicting him; it's a desperate request for God to look away. David wants God's gaze to shift so his own countenance can brighten again, finding restored strength and cheer before his life is over.
Look away from me, that I may smile again, before I depart and am no more!”
English Standard Version (ESV)
The Psalmist has been deeply troubled, reflecting on the brevity and suffering of life, and wrestling with how to pray amidst his pain. He has just confessed his sin and acknowledged God’s knowledge of his frailty, feeling like a sojourner under God’s gaze. Now, at the end of the psalm, he pleads for a temporary reprieve from God's intense scrutiny and afflictions so he can regain some peace before his imminent death.
Have you ever felt like God's attention is fixed on your struggles, magnifying every issue? David does, and his prayer is raw and honest.
The verse begins with a powerful plea: 'Look away from me.' This isn't a casual request; it's a desperate cry from someone feeling overwhelmed by God's focused attention on their pain.
A Divine Scrutiny
Imagine God's gaze, not as distant observation, but as an intense scrutiny that feels heavy and oppressive. The psalmist feels as though God's eyes are fixed upon him, perhaps highlighting his sin, his suffering, or both. This intense focus, while ultimately for his good, feels unbearable in his current state.
The Cry to Cease Afflicting
The original language suggests more than just 'looking away'; it's a plea for God to 'cease from me' or 'desist from me.' He's not asking to escape God's presence entirely, but to be released from the immediate pressure of affliction and divine displeasure. It’s a prayer born from weakness, a desire for a moment's respite from the weight of his troubles.
What does it mean to 'recover strength' when you're facing the end of life? It’s about more than just physical health.
David's request to 'recover strength' is deeply layered. It's not just about regaining physical stamina, but about finding spiritual renewal and a hopeful perspective before he departs from this life.
Inner Refreshment
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This 'strength' is often understood as inner fortitude and peace. It's the ability to face the unknown with courage and faith. The psalmist desires to be 'refreshed' or 'cheered up,' to have his spiritual vitality restored, and his countenance brighten. This implies finding comfort and relief from the burden of sin and God's perceived displeasure.
Preparing for Eternity
The ultimate goal of this recovered strength is preparation for his impending departure. He doesn't want to 'go hence and be no more' in a state of despair or gloom. He longs for a peaceful and hopeful transition, a 'comfortable and happy dissolution,' allowing him to face eternity with confidence in God's favor.
David faces the end, saying 'be no more.' Does this mean he believed in annihilation? The ancient text reveals a profound hope.
The phrase 'and be no more' can sound like a statement of despair, hinting at annihilation. However, understanding the context and similar phrases in Scripture reveals a more hopeful reality.
Not Annihilation, But Absence
The commentators point out that 'be no more' refers to ceasing to exist in this world or among the living. It's about the end of earthly life, not the end of existence itself. David, like other faithful Israelites, believed in an afterlife, even if the details were less clear than they are for us today.
A Hope Beyond the Grave
This plea acknowledges the finality of death in this life while holding onto an implicit hope of continued existence. It’s a desire to leave this world not in despair, but with restored strength and peace, trusting in God’s ultimate plan. The psalmist's words, while born from deep suffering, do not extinguish the flame of hope in God's eternal promises.
This verse directly parallels the sentiment of Psalm 39:13, as Job also pleads with God to 'let me alone' and 'take comfort' before his life ends, highlighting a shared human cry for respite in the face of mortality.
Job 7:19Job's question, 'Will you not look away from me for a moment and let me taste that I may find my relief,' echoes the plea in Psalm 39:13 for God to 'look away' so the psalmist can 'smile again' and recover strength, showing a consistent theme of seeking God's withdrawal of judgment to find solace.
Ecclesiastes 9:10This verse speaks to the urgency of life and work because of the finality of death ('for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going'). It resonates with the psalmist's awareness of his impending end ('before I depart and am no more') and his desire to 'recover strength' in the time he has left.
Romans 8:38-39While Psalm 39:13 expresses a longing for relief before death, Romans 8 powerfully assures believers that nothing, not even death, can separate them from God's love. This offers a contrasting perspective of ultimate security, even in the face of mortality.
clarkePsalms 39:13: "O spare me, that I may recover strength, before I go hence, and be no more."
O spare me - Take me not from this state of probation till I have a thorough preparation for a state of blessedness. This he terms recovering his strength - being restored to the favor and image of God, from which he had fallen. This should be the daily cry of every human spirit: Restore me to thine image, guide me by thy counsel, and then reeeive me to thy glory!
bensonPsalms 39:13: "O spare me, that I may recover strength, before I go hence, and be no more."
Psalm 39:13 . O spare me — Hebrew, השׁע ממני , hashang, memenni — Desiste a me, desist, or cease from me, that is, from afflicting me: do not destroy me; my life at best is short, and full of trouble, and thou knowest sufficient for it is the evil thereof: do not add affliction to the afflicted. That I may recover strength — Both in my outward and inward man, both which are much weakened and oppressed. H…
This isn't just a plea to God to stop afflicting him; it's a desperate request for God to look away. David wants God's gaze to shift so his own countenance can brighten again, finding restored strength and cheer before his life is over.
The Psalmist has been deeply troubled, reflecting on the brevity and suffering of life, and wrestling with how to pray amidst his pain. He has just confessed his sin and acknowledged God’s knowledge of his frailty, feeling like a sojourner under God’s gaze. Now, at the end of the psalm, he pleads for a temporary reprieve from God's intense scrutiny and afflictions so he can regain some peace before his imminent death.
The Psalmist has been deeply troubled, reflecting on the brevity and suffering of life, and wrestling with how to pray amidst his pain. He has just confessed his sin and acknowledged God’s knowledge of his frailty, feeling like a sojourner under God’s gaze. Now, at the end of the psalm, he pleads for a temporary reprieve from God's intense scrutiny and afflictions so he can regain some peace before his imminent death.
"Look away from me, that I may smile again, before I depart and am no more!”" — This isn't just a plea to God to stop afflicting him; it's a desperate request for God to look away. David wants God's gaze to shift so his own countenance can brighten again, finding restored stre…
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Last reviewed October 2026