Ps. 38.10 (impotence and social disintegration)

‘My heart palpitated / my strength / forsook me – and the light / of my eyes / even that is gone from me.’ As argued in the previous post we are beginning a new section of the psalm. And, whereas the first part focused primarily on bodily ailments attributed to sin, this section will focus on the social sickness attributed to sin. It may seem odd, then, if that is the case, that we have, apparently, another description of bodily ailment, namely the heart and the eyes. However, if we look at Deuteronomy 34.7 we find something very similar to this verse: “Moses was 120 years old when he died, yet his eyes were not weak nor his strength gone.” Commentators point out that the close association with ‘eyes’ and ‘strength’ may point to impotence, rather than to merely the fading vision; in other words, a loss of virility. If that is the case then our original premise holds that this section is initiating social deterioration: the psalmist is unable to sexually connect with his wife. He is alienated from her through the wasting of his sickness and his impotence. There is very much the sense in these verses in particular of betrayal: “my strength forsook me.” Not only will those close to him abandon him but this act of alienation and distance seems to be something that his body is itself instigating. Impotence is the betrayal by the one organ of the body that is most intimate to human connection. By alluding to this ‘failure’ the psalmist is pointing to this very deep and pervasive sense of being abandoned and of humiliation. It is a very fitting opening to the following verses as it connects with the previous section as to bodily disintegration and points forward to the loss of companionship.