— Psalm 142 (Vulgate / Hebrew)
Voce mea ad Dominum clamavi
By GRAHAM JOHN
A psalm of abandonment and last appeal, spoken from confinement, where human support has vanished and only God remains as refuge.
7 verses total
VERSUS 1–7 (LATIN + LITERAL ENGLISH + WORD NOTES)
1
Voce mea ad Dominum clamavi: voce mea ad Dominum deprecatus sum.
With my voice I cried to the Lord; with my voice I made supplication to the Lord.
Word Notes
- vox, vocis (f.) — voice
- clamō, clamāre, clamāvī, clamātum — to cry out
- dēprecō, dēprecārī, dēprecātus sum — to beg, entreat
2
Effundo in conspectu ejus orationem meam, et tribulationem meam ante ipsum pronuntio.
I pour out my prayer before him, and declare my distress in his presence.
Word Notes
- effundō, effundere, effūdī, effūsum — to pour out
- cōnspectus, cōnspectūs (m.) — presence
- ōrātiō, ōrātiōnis (f.) — prayer
- tribulātiō, tribulātiōnis (f.) — distress, affliction
- prōnuntiō, prōnuntiāre, prōnuntiāvī — to declare
3
In deficiendo ex me spiritum meum, et tu cognovisti semitas meas.
When my spirit failed within me, you knew my paths.
Word Notes
- dēficiō, dēficere, dēfēcī, dēfectum — to fail
- spīritus, spīritūs (m.) — spirit, breath
- cognōscō, cognōscere, cognōvī, cognitum — to know
- semita, semitae (f.) — path
4
In via hac qua ambulabam, absconderunt laqueum mihi.
On the path where I was walking, they hid a snare for me.
Word Notes
- via, viae (f.) — way
- ambulō, ambulāre, ambulāvī, ambulātum — to walk
- abscondō, abscondere, abscondī, absconditum — to hide
- laqueus, laqueī (m.) — snare
5
Considerabam ad dexteram, et videbam: et non erat qui cognosceret me.
I looked to the right and saw: there was no one who knew me.
Word Notes
- cōnsiderō, cōnsiderāre, cōnsiderāvī — to look attentively
- dextera, dexterae (f.) — right hand / side
- videō, vidēre, vīdī, vīsum — to see
6
Periit fuga a me: et non est qui requirat animam meam.
Escape has vanished from me; there is no one who seeks my life.
Word Notes
- pereō, perīre, periī — to perish, vanish
- fuga, fugae (f.) — flight, escape
- requīrō, requīrere, requīsīvī, requīsītum — to seek
- anima, animae (f.) — life, soul
7
Clamavi ad te, Domine; dixi: Tu es spes mea, portio mea in terra viventium.
I cried to you, O Lord; I said: You are my hope, my portion in the land of the living.
Word Notes
- spēs, speī (f.) — hope
- portiō, portiōnis (f.) — portion, inheritance
- terra, terrae (f.) — land
- vīvō, vīvere, vīxī — to live
MORPHOLOGY EXERCISES (5)
Identify tense, voice, mood, and principal parts:
- clamavi
- effundo
- deficiendo
- absconderunt
- dixi
MORPHOLOGY EXERCISES — KEY
clamavi
- Verb: clamō, clamāre, clamāvī, clamātum
- Tense: perfect
- Voice: active
- Mood: indicative
- Meaning: I cried
effundo
- Verb: effundō, effundere, effūdī, effūsum
- Tense: present
- Voice: active
- Mood: indicative
- Meaning: I pour out
deficiendo
- Verb: dēficiō, dēficere, dēfēcī, dēfectum
- Form: present active gerund
- Meaning: in failing
absconderunt
- Verb: abscondō, abscondere, abscondī, absconditum
- Tense: perfect
- Voice: active
- Mood: indicative
- Meaning: they hid
dixi
- Verb: dīcō, dīcere, dīxī, dictum
- Tense: perfect
- Voice: active
- Mood: indicative
- Meaning: I said
TRANSLATION EXERCISES (5)
Translate into Latin:
- I cried to the Lord.
- I pour out my prayer.
- My spirit failed within me.
- There was no one who knew me.
- You are my hope.
TRANSLATION EXERCISES — KEY
- Clamavi ad Dominum.
- Effundo orationem meam.
- Defecit spiritus meus.
- Non erat qui cognosceret me.
- Tu es spes mea.
SUMMARY (≈120 words)
Psalm 142 is the prayer of the cornered soul. Every avenue of escape has closed; human recognition has disappeared. The psalmist does not embellish this loneliness — it is stated with almost clinical clarity. Yet precisely here, speech becomes survival. To “pour out” prayer is not to solve the crisis, but to refuse silence. God is named not as rescuer yet, but as portion — the only remaining share when all others are gone. Faith here is stripped to its minimum: not certainty, not relief, but address. As long as speech remains possible, hope has not entirely failed.
REFLECTION QUESTION
When support has vanished and no path forward is visible, what does it mean to speak anyway — and to whom?