Psalms 80:5 · Bible study
Psalms 80:5 Commentary: The Bread of Tears and Divine Sorrow
Hebrew · 10 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Examine the metaphor of 'bread of tears' and 'tears to drink' in Psalm 80:5, exploring how suffering under God's hand can be given voice in lament.
Research Summary
- Meaning: The psalmist complains that God has made tears the daily portion of His people, their sorrow is as constant as food and drink.
- Key words: 'Bread of tears', tears as a staple; 'in large measure', from Hebrew shalish, a third-measure, implying a full, deliberate portion.
- Main debate: Whether shalish means 'threefold' (three times the sorrow) or simply 'a full measure' (abundance).
- Theological theme: Divine providence and lament, God is sovereign even over the cup of suffering, and honest complaint is a form of faith.
- Best use: A resource for preaching or teaching on lament, suffering, and the permission to bring raw pain to God.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
You fed them with the bread of tears and made them drink the full measure of their tears.
WEB World English Bible 2000
You have fed them with the bread of tears, and given them tears to drink in large measure.
KJV King James Version 1769
Thou feedest them with the bread of tears; and givest them tears to drink in great measure.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
Thou hast fed them with the bread of tears, And given them tears to drink in large measure.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
Thou hast caused them to eat bread of tears, And causest them to drink With tears a third time.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
Thou hast fed them with the bread of tears, and given them tears to drink in large measure:
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
For it is a commandment in Israel, and a judgment to the God of Jacob.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Dísteles á comer pan de lágrimas, y dísteles á beber lágrimas en gran abundancia.
Tu os alimentas com pão de lágrimas, e lhes faz beber lágrimas com grande medida.
Éternel, Dieu des armées!
Du speisest sie mit Tränenbrot und tränkest sie mit großem Maß voll Tränen.
O HEERE, God der heirscharen! hoe lang zult Gij roken tegen het gebed Uws volks?
Tu li hai cibati di pan di pianto, e li hai abbeverati di lagrime in larga misura.
Panie, Boże zastępów! dokądże się będziesz gniewał na modlitwę ludu swego?
ибо это закон для Израиля, устав от Бога Иаковлева.
你以眼淚 當食物 給他們吃，又多量 出眼淚 給他們喝。
You have given them the bread of weeping for food; for their drink you have given them sorrow in great measure.
Verse in Context
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree this verse employs a striking metaphor to describe intense and sustained sorrow. The phrase 'bread of tears' (also found in Psalm 42:3 and 102:9) means that tears have become the people's daily food, not just occasional weeping but a constant, unavoidable part of life. Barnes notes that 'their tears seemed to moisten their bread, they flowed so copiously.' The second line, 'given them tears to drink in large measure,' uses the Hebrew noun shalish, which literally means a third part of a larger measure (likely one-third of an ephah). Keil and Delitzsch explain that this 'third' became a standard measuring vessel; here it is filled with tears, implying that the portion of sorrow served to the people is well-measured and abundant. Calvin and Matthew Henry both see this as a complaint directed to God, who is portrayed as the one who feeds and gives drink, underscoring that the affliction comes from His hand. While the metaphor is vivid, its core meaning is not disputed: the psalmist voices the community's overwhelming grief in the language of everyday sustenance.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Low
What is clear: The verse uses the metaphor of bread and drink to describe the totality of the people's sorrow, with tears replacing normal sustenance, and it attributes this affliction to God's action.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| The role of God in the people's suffering | The verse attributes the tears directly to God's action, He feeds and gives drink. This is a complaint addressed to God. | Some traditions emphasize that God's sovereignty includes allowing or ordaining suffering as discipline, while others read this as the psalmist's emotional projection, not a theological statement about God's character. |
| The meaning of 'shalish' (large measure) | The word refers to a measuring container, a third part of a larger unit (likely an ephah). | Some commentators (e.g., Gill, drawing from Jewish sources) understand it as 'threefold', a triple portion of sorrow. Others (Barnes, Keil & Delitzsch) see it as a measure full of tears, emphasizing abundance rather than a specific number. |
| The identity of 'them' (the recipients) | The 'them' refers to the people of Israel, the community praying in the psalm. | The original context likely refers to the northern tribes (Ephraim, Benjamin, Manasseh) during the Assyrian crisis, but the verse has been applied broadly to the people of God in any age of suffering. |
| Whether the metaphor implies literal or figurative consumption | Tears are not actually consumed; the metaphor describes constant weeping that accompanies daily life. | Some (e.g., Lange) argue the bread is literally wet with tears because weeping interrupts meals; others (Keil & Delitzsch) view the tears themselves as the substance of bread and drink, the normal elements are replaced by grief. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Psalm 80 is a communal lament attributed to Asaph, set to the tune 'The Lilies of the Covenant.' The opening appeal to the 'Shepherd of Israel' and the mention of Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh point to the northern kingdom, suggesting a date after its fall to Assyria (c. 722 BC) or during the exile when both kingdoms suffered. The psalm moves from a cry for restoration (v.3) to a bitter complaint about God's anger (v.4). Verse 5 sits in the heart of that complaint. The 'bread of tears' image would have resonated with a people whose fields were destroyed and whose tables were empty, literal hunger compounded by weeping. The reference to neighbors who mock and contend (v.6) echoes the taunts heard in exile. Cross-references strengthen this picture: Psalm 42:3 ('My tears have been my food day and night') and Psalm 102:9 ('I have eaten ashes like bread') use the same metaphor of tears as a meal. Isaiah 30:20 warns of 'the bread of adversity and the water of affliction,' and Ezekiel 4:16-17 describes the siege of Jerusalem where food and water are doled out 'by weight' and 'by measure' in dismay. The word shalish (a third-measure) may also carry a hint of God's sovereign portioning, He gives sorrows as deliberately as He once gave manna and water in the wilderness. The psalmist does not hide from the theological tension: the same God who planted Israel as a vine (v.8) now feeds them with tears.
Textual Notes
The supplied commentaries note no significant textual variants in the Hebrew of Psalm 80:5 itself. The Cambridge Bible observes that the Septuagint, Syriac, and Jerome's Vulgate read 'us' instead of 'them' in the first line (so: 'You have fed us with the bread of tears'), which aligns with the first-person complaint of the surrounding verses. Additionally, Keil and Delitzsch mention that the Septuagint reads 'upon the prayer of your servants' (instead of 'against the prayer of your people') in verse 4, which may have influenced the reading of verse 5's subject. The Masoretic text is stable and the meaning is not affected by these minor variations.
Reception History
Psalm 80:5 has been read across Christian traditions as a profound expression of communal lament. In the early church, the verse was often applied to the suffering of believers under persecution, giving language to the experience of weeping while breaking bread. Medieval monastics used it in the liturgy of the hours during penitential seasons, particularly Lent, as a way of entering into Christ's own sorrow. The Reformation commentators (Calvin, Geneva Bible) saw it as a cry of the true Church when oppressed by the world or by unfaithful leaders. In modern times, the verse has been sung in hymns of lament and used in services of mourning, reminding congregations that God does not turn away from honest complaints. Its imagery of tears as a meal remains one of Scripture's most vivid pictures of sustained grief.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The metaphor of consumption: Tears become bread and drink, sorrow is not a side dish but the entire meal. The people are saturated with grief.
- The agent of affliction: God is the subject of the verbs 'fed' and 'given.' The psalm does not explain suffering away; it names God as its source, giving permission to bring honest complaint before the throne.
- The measured portion: 'In large measure' (literally 'by the third') suggests a precise amount, sorrow has limits, even when it feels endless. The same God who measures the dust (Isaiah 40:12) measures tears.
Five-point outline
- Sustenance turned sour: Bread and drink are life-giving; here they become emblems of weeping. The basics of life are poisoned by grief.
- The community's shared pain: 'You have fed them', this is not private sorrow but collective mourning for a nation under judgment.
- How long, O Lord? The context (v.4) asks 'how long will you be angry?' Verse 5 is the answer: until tears are the only menu.
- Lament as honest prayer: By attributing the tears to God, the psalm avoids false consolation and models raw, trusting complaint.
- Hope on the other side of weeping: The refrain 'Cause your face to shine, and we will be saved' (vv.3,7,19) brackets this complaint. The tears are not the last word.
Illustration hooks
- A family eating dinner in silence after a loss, pushing food around the plate, tears make the meal uneatable.
- The image of a measuring cup used to portion out grief: a nursery worker who has lost count of the funerals attended, each one filling the cup a little more.
- A drought-stricken farmer watching the rain fall too late, the 'bread of tears' for those who depend on the land.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Is it okay to be angry at God when life falls apart?
- Does God cause suffering, or does He just allow it?
- How can I keep going when the pain doesn't stop?
Leading a Discussion
Psalm 80:5 gives us language for the kind of sorrow that won't stop, the kind that seeps into every meal and every moment. As you discuss this verse, notice that the psalmist does not hide from the hard question: God, why have You done this? Let the honesty of the text guide your conversation.
Discussion questions
- What does the metaphor 'bread of tears' suggest about the intensity of the people's suffering? Have you ever felt that your tears were your only food?
- Why does the psalmist accuse God of feeding tears to His people? Does this feel respectful or disrespectful? Why?
- Read Psalm 42:3 and Psalm 102:9. How do these verses echo Psalm 80:5? What does this repeated image tell us about the experience of God's people?
- The Hebrew word shalish (translated 'large measure') suggests a measured, specific portion. What comfort or discomfort does that idea bring?
- How does the refrain in verses 3, 7, and 19 change the way we read verse 5? Is there hope woven into the complaint?
- In what ways might this verse give permission to pray honestly about deep pain? What would it look like to bring 'bread of tears' prayers to God this week?
- How does Jesus' own experience of suffering (e.g., Gethsemane, the cross) address the questions this psalm raises about God and sorrow?
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Job 6:7 | My soul refuses to touch them. They are as loathsome food to me. |
| Psalms 42:3 | My tears have been my food day and night, while they continually ask me, “Where is your God?” |
| Psalms 102:9 | For I have eaten ashes like bread, and mixed my drink with tears, |
| Isaiah 30:20 | Though the Lord may give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your teachers won’t be hidden any more, but your eyes will see your teachers; |
| Ezekiel 4:16 | Moreover he said to me, “Son of man, behold, I will break the staff of bread in Jerusalem. They will eat bread by weight, and with fearfulness. They will drink water by measure, and in dismay; |
| Ezekiel 4:17 | that they may lack bread and water, be dismayed one with another, and pine away in their iniquity. |
Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
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What the Commentators Say
10 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke draws attention to the Hebrew word shalish, usually translated as "great measure." He notes that some scholars take it as a specific Chaldean container of unknown size, while others read it simply as an abundant amount. Either way, the image is one of unrelenting sorrow.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes focuses on the phrase "great measure" and argues it means "by measure" — God does not simply give abundant tears but doles them out precisely, as one would fill a measured cup. The image is not of uncontrolled weeping but of sorrow apportioned by God's own hand.
Calvin's Commentaries Reformed 1564
Calvin reads this psalm as a sorrowful prayer composed specifically for the ten northern tribes of Israel, not for Judah. He points to the mention of Joseph, Ephraim, and Manasseh as evidence that the faithful are pleading for God to restore his favor to a kingdom now wasted by calamities, contrasting their present misery with the Church's earlier blessings.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The commentator highlights the literal meaning of "in large measure" as a tierce, a third of a bath or ephah—about three gallons. This turns Israel's tears into an astonishingly large drinking portion, emphasizing the vastness of their suffering. He also notes that some ancient versions read "us" instead of "them."
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva annotators highlight the total, overwhelming nature of the affliction: tears become the people's only food and drink, given in full measure. The image stresses that God Himself sends this bitter diet, pressing sorrow upon them until they are saturated with it. No comfort remains, only the sustained, measured outpouring of grief.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill emphasizes the literal intensity of the psalmist's image: the people's tears are so constant that they mix with every meal, turning bread and drink into grief itself. He then surveys Jewish interpretations of the "great measure," ranging from a specific drinking vessel to symbolic captivities, but the core point remains the unrelenting sorrow.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
bread of tears —still an Eastern figure for affliction.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch insists the image of God's nostrils smoking with anger is deliberately bold, not a figure to be softened. They reject the Syriac reading that would make the word mean "strong" instead of "smoke," arguing the Bible's own view of wrath justifies the forceful anthropomorphism. The smoke of anger veils God from the people's prayer.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange highlights how the psalm's refrain repeats four times, each time adding new
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Matthew Henry connects two images of God that seem separate: he is the Shepherd who leads Joseph like a flock, and also the one who dwells between the cherubim on the mercy-seat. For Henry, this means prayer is grounded in both God’s guiding care and the atonement that makes his throne a place of grace.