Psalm 41 opens with a beatitude, “Blessed is he that understandeth concerning the needy and the poor: the Lord will deliver him in the evil day,” and promises God’s care in sickness: “The Lord help him on his bed of sorrow.” It also contains words Jesus applied to Judas at the Last Supper. In the Douay-Rheims it is numbered Psalm 40. Below is the full Catholic text, what the psalm means, how the Church uses it, and a prayer.
Psalm 41 in the Douay-Rheims Bible
Unto the end, a psalm for David himself.
Blessed is he that understandeth concerning the needy and the poor: the Lord will deliver him in the evil day.
The Lord preserve him and give him life, and make him blessed upon the earth: and deliver him not up to the will of his enemies.
The Lord help him on his bed of sorrow: thou hast turned all his couch in his sickness.
I said: O Lord, be thou merciful to me: heal my soul, for I have sinned against thee.
My enemies have spoken evils against me: when shall he die and his name perish?
And if he came in to see me, he spoke vain things: his heart gathered together iniquity to itself. He went out and spoke to the same purpose.
All my enemies whispered together against me: they devised evils to me.
They determined against me an unjust word: shall he that sleepeth rise again no more?
For even the man of peace, in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, hath greatly supplanted me.
But thou, O Lord, have mercy on me, and raise me up again: and I will requite them.
By this I know, that thou hast had a good will for me: because my enemy shall not rejoice over me.
But thou hast upheld me by reason of my innocence: and hast established me in thy sight for ever.
Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel from eternity to eternity. So be it. So be it.
Psalm 41 or Psalm 40?
The Douay-Rheims Bible follows the numbering of the Latin Vulgate and the Greek Septuagint, while most modern Bibles follow the Hebrew. So the Douay’s Psalm 40 is Psalm 41 in the New American Bible and other modern translations. In Latin the psalm begins Beatus qui intellegit super egenum et pauperem. See how many psalms are there?
Betrayed by a friend
The psalmist laments, “For even the man of peace, in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, hath greatly supplanted me.” At the Last Supper, Jesus applied the verse to Judas:
I speak not of you all: I know whom I have chosen. But that the scripture may be fulfilled: He that eateth bread with me, shall lift up his heel against me.
What the psalm means
- Blessed are those who care for the poor: God protects those who protect the weak. See the works of mercy.
- God at the sickbed: “The Lord help him on his bed of sorrow: thou hast turned all his couch in his sickness.”
- Healing body and soul: “Lord, be thou merciful to me: heal my soul, for I have sinned against thee.”
- False friends: enemies and even a close friend turn against the sick man.
- The end of Book One: it closes with “Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel from eternity to eternity. So be it. So be it.”
How the Church uses Psalm 41
- At Mass on the Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B), with the healing of the paralytic: “Lord, heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.”
- For the sick and those who care for them. See prayer for the sick and psalms for healing.
- In Holy Week, with the betrayal of Judas. See Holy Thursday.
- In the traditional Office of the Dead, it was one of the psalms of Matins.
A prayer with Psalm 41
Written for this page:
Lord, bless all who care for the poor and the sick.
Sustain the sick on their beds of pain and restore them to health.
Have mercy on me and heal my soul, for I have sinned against you.
When friends fail me, keep me in your presence for ever. Amen.
Frequently asked questions
What is Psalm 41 about?
God’s blessing on those who care for the poor, his help for the sick, and the pain of betrayal by a friend.
Did Jesus quote Psalm 41?
Yes. At the Last Supper he applied its verse about the friend “who ate my bread” to Judas (John 13:18).
More psalms and prayers
Texts and sources
- Scripture: Psalm 40 (41); John 13:18, Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner), public domain.
- The prayer was written for this page.