Verse Lens · Concise explanation
Psalms 13:2 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 2. 2How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Psalm 13:2: Inside “How long: lament turns toward trust,” “How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow…” raises a real poetic question instead of supplying a detached answer.
Four 'how longs' with no clock attached
This verse is one part of that explanation in Psalms 13:1–6. The complete section carries the connected meaning and how it should shape life.
Read It With
- Psalms 13:1–6
Read Psalms 13:2 with 13:1–6. Read alone, “How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in…” could lose the individual voice, the parallel line or movement it develops, and the psalm's outcome. The complete movement establishes: Within Psalms 13:1–6, the individual voice carries the movement “How long: lament turns toward trust” as part of “How long: lament turns toward trust.” Its lament form and poetic parallelism hold the petitions, images, memories, or praise together before any single line is applied.
Why This Verse Appears Here
Psalms 13:1–6 opens Psalm 13 with “How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from…” and establishes the individual voice and “How long: lament turns toward trust” movement before later lines develop or answer it. Within that relationship, Psalm 13:2 poses the poem's question through “How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart…” and leaves the surrounding lines to answer, intensify, or hold it open.
What Remains True
The lasting force of “How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in…” comes through Psalms 13:1–6 and Book I, not isolation. Biblical faith can speak unresolved pain directly, remain in relationship, seek safe help, and refuse the claim that anguish proves guilt or failed faith. The local movement is “How long: lament turns toward trust.” The unit's reviewed limit is: The turn to trust does not make prolonged anguish a moral failure or impose a timetable for recovery.
How It Can Shape Life
- The practice should match “How long: lament turns toward trust” rather than an isolated slogan. Psalm 13:2 poses the poem's question through “How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart…” and leaves the surrounding lines to answer, intensify, or hold it open. Therefore, Use “How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in…” to practice honest prayer without diagnosing the sufferer, imposing a recovery deadline, or treating unresolved grief as weak faith.
Continue in Context
Read the complete section for the connected explanation and how it should shape life. This verse is a doorway into that passage, not a saying that stands alone.
Read Psalms 13:1–6 — How long: lament turns toward trustSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? strong
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete thought-unit coverage.
Exact location: Psalms 13:1–6, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Psalms
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology checked at the exact unit without treating morphology as a complete apparatus or interpretation.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Ps.xml, OSIS 13:1–6
Open the fixed Hebrew Psalms file ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible Notes: Psalms 1-150
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, current official online edition
Supports: Verse-level controls for poetic syntax, imagery, older KJV language, textual issues, headings, and alternatives in Psalms 13:1–6.
Exact location: Official NET Bible Psalm 13 HTML, translator, textual, and study notes attached to Psalms 13:1–6
Open the official NET Psalms notes ↗