I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The imagery here isn't just about being stuck, but about sinking into a mire so deep that even struggling makes you go down further. It’s a profound picture of being trapped in overwhelming circumstances where every attempt to gain footing only leads to deeper trouble, a feeling many can relate to when facing seemingly insurmountable challenges.
I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This psalm opens with the psalmist in a state of profound distress, feeling like he's sinking into a muddy quagmire with no solid ground and being overwhelmed by deep, rushing waters. He's crying out to God for salvation, emphasizing the intensity of his suffering, which stems from undeserved hatred and persecution from numerous enemies, as well as the failure of his pleas for help to bring immediate relief.
Ever feel like you're sinking, with no solid ground beneath your feet? This verse paints a vivid picture of utter helplessness.
The psalmist uses powerful imagery to describe his desperate situation.
Sinking in Mire
"I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold." This isn't just being stuck; it's a place that actively pulls you down. The mire represents overwhelming troubles that offer no stability, where every attempt to free yourself only makes you sink deeper. Think of a swamp or quicksand – a place of extreme danger and struggle.
Drowning in Floods
"I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me." This shifts the metaphor to a powerful, uncontrollable force of nature. Deep waters imply a loss of control, a sense of being completely submerged and unable to breathe. The flood signifies a crisis that has gone beyond the banks, overwhelming all defenses and threatening to drown.
Together, these images convey a profound sense of being trapped, powerless, and on the verge of being completely consumed by despair.
These aren't just poetic descriptions; they're the raw feelings of someone facing extreme distress, a feeling echoed throughout Scripture.
While the psalmist uses powerful metaphors, the distress he describes is profoundly real and has a profound spiritual dimension.
A Cry from the Brink
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The overwhelming nature of the troubles depicted shows a soul pushed to its absolute limit. Calvin points out that David wasn't prone to despair, so his words reveal the sheer bitterness of his affliction.
The Messiah's Experience
This psalm, like many others, is seen by Christian tradition as pointing to the suffering of Jesus Christ. The 'deep waters' and 'overflowing floods' find their ultimate fulfillment in Christ's agony as He bore the weight of sin, becoming, as Gill suggests, 'immersed in and overwhelmed with water' in a spiritual sense.
A Universal Human Experience
These images of being trapped and overwhelmed speak to the universal human experience of suffering. Whether facing personal loss, betrayal, or spiritual struggle, we can connect with the psalmist's cry from the depths.
This passage uses a very similar metaphor of sinking into a 'pit' and 'mire,' showing a long-standing theme of God's people finding themselves in desperate, inescapable situations.
Jonah 2:3Jonah's cry from 'the belly of the deep' and being 'cast into the deep' directly parallels the feeling of being overwhelmed and submerged in uncontrollable circumstances.
Jeremiah 38:6The prophet Jeremiah's experience of being cast into a muddy cistern where he sank further illustrates the physical and spiritual entanglement described in the psalm, highlighting a sense of being trapped with no escape.
Matthew 26:38-39Jesus' own words, 'My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,' and his prayer in Gethsemane, reflect a similar depth of suffering and being engulfed by immense distress, echoing the psalmist's profound despair.
pulpitPsalms 69:2: "I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing: I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me."
Verse 2. - I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing. "Mire" and "clay" are metaphors for dangers and difficulties, which entangle a man and incapacitate him from exertion (comp. Psalm 40:2). I am come into deep waters (comp. ver. 15; and see also Psalm 124:4, 5; Psalm 130:1). Where the floods overflow me; i.e. "I am utterly overwhelmed by my misfortunes."
cambridgePsalms 69:2: "I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing: I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me."
2 . He is like a man floundering in a morass or quicksand where there is no footing and his struggles only plunge him deeper, or fording a river and in imminent danger of being swept away by the current. Quagmires, ‘treacherous to the last degree,’ are common in Palestine. See Thomson’s Land and the Book , p. 360; and Dr Tristram’s description of the vast and impenetrable sw…
The imagery here isn't just about being stuck, but about sinking into a mire so deep that even struggling makes you go down further. It’s a profound picture of being trapped in overwhelming circumstances where every attempt to gain footing only leads to deeper trouble, a feeling many can relate to when facing seemingly insurmountable challenges.
This psalm opens with the psalmist in a state of profound distress, feeling like he's sinking into a muddy quagmire with no solid ground and being overwhelmed by deep, rushing waters. He's crying out to God for salvation, emphasizing the intensity of his suffering, which stems from undeserved hatred and persecution from numerous enemies, as well as the failure of his pleas for help to bring immediate relief.
This psalm opens with the psalmist in a state of profound distress, feeling like he's sinking into a muddy quagmire with no solid ground and being overwhelmed by deep, rushing waters. He's crying out to God for salvation, emphasizing the intensity of his suffering, which stems from undeserved hatred and persecution from numerous enemies, as well as the failure of his pleas for help to bring immediate relief.
"I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold; I have come into deep waters, and the flood sweeps over me." — The imagery here isn't just about being stuck, but about sinking into a mire so deep that even struggling makes you go down further. It’s a profound picture of being trapped in overwhelming circumsta…
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Last reviewed October 2026