Single lesson
Psalm 88: I Cry Out before You
Psalms 88:1–18
Psalm 88 is a prayer from someone in deep trouble who keeps calling to Yahweh. This lesson helps children notice who is speaking, the strong images in the poem, and how the prayer moves from cry to more cry.
Before you teach
In Psalm 88, the speaker prays directly to Yahweh as “the God of my salvation” and describes trouble, grief, loneliness and nearness to death. The psalm uses repeated prayer language, dark images and urgent questions. It ends without a cheerful change, yet the speaker still addresses Yahweh throughout.
Students will identify the speaker, name at least three images from the psalm, and explain that this prayer brings deep grief honestly to Yahweh.
Welcome: What kind of prayer is this?
4 minTell students that Psalm 88 is a poem-prayer spoken to Yahweh. Read verse 1 aloud and ask them to listen for who is being addressed and what the speaker is doing. Point out that the speaker cries “day and night” and calls Yahweh “the God of my salvation”, so this is a real prayer in great need, not a casual comment.
Psalms 88:1, Psalms 88:2
Read and explain: Trouble, pit and darkness
8 minRead verses 3 to 9 slowly. Explain simple picture words: “Sheol” is the place of the dead in the poem, and “pit” and “darkest depths” are images of being brought very low. Help students notice that the speaker feels trapped, alone and overwhelmed, yet still says, “I have called on you daily” and “I have spread out my hands to you.”
Psalms 88:3, Psalms 88:4, Psalms 88:6, Psalms 88:8, Psalms 88:9
Discuss: Questions from the middle of the psalm
6 minRead verses 10 to 14. Ask students to hear the repeated questions. The speaker talks about the grave, darkness and forgetfulness, then says again, “to you, Yahweh, I have cried”. Explain that the poem does not hide pain from God. Its questions show urgency and longing for Yahweh to hear and act.
Psalms 88:10, Psalms 88:11, Psalms 88:12, Psalms 88:13, Psalms 88:14
Make and respond: Illustrated prayer image card
8 minStudents create a small card with one phrase from the psalm and a matching image, such as waves, dark depths, open hands, morning prayer or tears. Encourage them to copy the words carefully and draw only what the psalm says. Afterward, invite volunteers to explain whether their chosen line shows praise, need, grief or trust in prayer.
Psalms 88:1, Psalms 88:7, Psalms 88:9, Psalms 88:13, Psalms 88:17
Closing: The psalm ends with loneliness and darkness
4 minRead verses 15 to 18 to finish the psalm. Help students notice that the ending stays heavy: terror, water all day long, and friends far away. Then summarise the whole poem: the speaker keeps praying to Yahweh even with continued isolation, with friends gone and darkness at the end of the psalm. Close by reviewing the speaker, the images and the movement of the prayer.
Psalms 88:15, Psalms 88:16, Psalms 88:17, Psalms 88:18
Questions to explore
What words in the first two verses show that this is a prayer, and who is the prayer spoken to?
Look for direct speech to Yahweh and phrases such as “I have cried”, “my prayer” and “my cry”.
Psalms 88:1, Psalms 88:2
Which picture in the psalm best shows how overwhelmed the speaker feels: pit, darkness, waves, or water all day long? Why?
Choose one image from the poem and explain your answer using the exact wording of that verse.
Psalms 88:6, Psalms 88:7, Psalms 88:17
Does the psalm finish with the trouble solved, or with the speaker still isolated as friends are gone and darkness stands at the end of the psalm? What verse shows your answer?
Use the ending line about lover, friend and darkness to support your response.
Psalms 88:18
Make, think or respond
Illustrated Prayer Image Card
What you’ll need
- plain paper or card
- pencils or crayons
- Bible text of Psalm 88:1–18
- scissors if desired
- markers if available
Try it together
- Ask each student to choose one phrase from Psalm 88 that they can understand and copy, such as “I have cried day and night”, “I have spread out my hands”, or “they came around me like water”.
- Have students write the phrase neatly on a small card or folded piece of paper.
- Invite them to draw one matching image from the psalm, such as hands lifted in prayer, waves, darkness, or morning prayer.
- Let students share their cards in pairs and say whether their verse mainly expresses praise, need, grief or trust.
- Display the cards together and briefly review how the poem uses images to express prayer.
This activity helps students notice the poem’s exact wording and images while seeing that Psalm 88 speaks honestly to Yahweh in deep trouble.
Adapt for your group
- For younger children, pre-select three short phrases from the psalm for them to copy and draw, and model one example together first.
- For stronger readers, ask them to compare two verses on their card, such as one cry for help and one dark image, and explain how the prayer moves between them.
An optional closing prayer
Proposed words: “Yahweh, thank you that this psalm shows people can cry out to you honestly. Help us notice your words carefully and bring our needs to you in prayer. Amen.”
Read the Bible passage World English Bible Classic
Psalms 88
1 Yahweh, the God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before you.
2 Let my prayer enter into your presence. Turn your ear to my cry.
3 For my soul is full of troubles. My life draws near to Sheol.
4 I am counted among those who go down into the pit. I am like a man who has no help,
5 set apart among the dead, like the slain who lie in the grave, whom you remember no more. They are cut off from your hand.
6 You have laid me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths.
7 Your wrath lies heavily on me. You have afflicted me with all your waves. Selah.
8 You have taken my friends from me. You have made me an abomination to them. I am confined, and I can’t escape.
9 My eyes are dim from grief. I have called on you daily, Yahweh. I have spread out my hands to you.
10 Do you show wonders to the dead? Do the departed spirits rise up and praise you? Selah.
11 Is your loving kindness declared in the grave? Or your faithfulness in Destruction?
12 Are your wonders made known in the dark? Or your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?
13 But to you, Yahweh, I have cried. In the morning, my prayer comes before you.
14 Yahweh, why do you reject my soul? Why do you hide your face from me?
15 I am afflicted and ready to die from my youth up. While I suffer your terrors, I am distracted.
16 Your fierce wrath has gone over me. Your terrors have cut me off.
17 They came around me like water all day long. They completely engulfed me.
18 You have put lover and friend far from me, and my friends into darkness.
World English Bible Classic. Public domain.