Mazmur 88:10-12

88:10 Do you accomplish amazing things for the dead?

Do the departed spirits ¹  rise up and give you thanks? (Selah)

88:11 Is your loyal love proclaimed in the grave,

or your faithfulness in the place of the dead? ² 

88:12 Are your amazing deeds experienced ³  in the dark region, ⁴ 

or your deliverance in the land of oblivion? ⁵ 

[88:10]  ¹ tn Heb “Rephaim,” a term that refers to those who occupy the land of the dead (see Isa 14:9; 26:14, 19).

[88:11]  ² tn Heb “in Abaddon,” a name for Sheol. The noun is derived from a verbal root meaning “to perish,” “to die.”

[88:12]  ³ tn Heb “known.”

[88:12]  ⁴ tn Heb “darkness,” here a title for Sheol.

[88:12]  ⁵ tn Heb “forgetfulness.” The noun, which occurs only here in the OT, is derived from a verbal root meaning “to forget.”

[88:12]  sn The rhetorical questions in vv. 10-12 expect the answer, “Of course not!”