Commentaries and Other Bible Study Helps - Prayer Tents - Prayer Tents

88:10-12 Do the Dead Praise You? The mention of dying under God's wrath (vv. 3-7) leads to the question: Do you work wonders for the dead? The purpose of this question is not to deny that the OT has a hope for the afterlife (see Psalms 49; 73; cf. note on Ezek. 37:12-13) but rather to allow worshipers who feel the pain of Ps. 88:3-9 to continue expressing their fears. If one were to die under God's wrath, then he could not anticipate any experience of God's wonders, or any chance to praise him, in Abaddon (the place of destruction). The person who sings this in the worshiping congregation obviously does not want to perish in this way (an important component of faith), cut off from God's steadfast love and faithfulness (v. 11).