1 A Prayer of the afflicted, when he is overwhelmed and purs out his complaint before the LORD. Hear my prayer, O LORD, And let my cry come to You. |
2 Do not hide Your face from me in the day of my trouble; Incline Your ear to me; In the day that I call, answer me speedily. |
3 For my days are consumed like smoke, And my bones are burned like a hearth. |
4 My heart is stricken and withered like grass, So that I forget to eat my bread. |
5 Because of the sound of my groaning My bones cling to my skin. |
6 I am like a pelican of the wilderness; I am like an owl of the desert. |
7 I lie awake, And am like a sparrow alone on the housetop. |
8 My enemies reproach me all day long, Those who deride me swear an oath against me. |
9 For I have eaten ashes like bread, And mingled my drink with weeping, |
10 Because of Your indignation and Your wrath; For You have lifted me up and cast me away. |
11 My days are like a shadow that lengthens, And I wither away like grass. |
12 But You, O LORD, shall endure forever, And the remembrance of Your name to all generations. |
13 You will arise and have mercy on Zion; For the time to favor her, Yes, the set time, has come. |
14 For Your servants take pleasure in her stones, And show favor to her dust. |
15 So the nations shall fear the name of the LORD, And all the kings of the earth Your glory. |
16 For the LORD shall build up Zion; He shall appear in His glory. |
17 He shall regard the prayer of the destitute, And shall not despise their prayer. |
18 This will be written for the generation to come, That a people yet to be created may praise the LORD. |
19 For He looked down from the height of His sanctuary; From heaven the LORD viewed the earth, |
20 To hear the groaning of the prisoner, To release those appointed to death, |
21 To declare the name of the LORD in Zion, And His praise in Jerusalem, |
22 When the peoples are gathered together, And the kingdoms, to serve the LORD. |
23 He weakened my strength in the way; He shortened my days. |
24 I said, "O my God, Do not take me away in the midst of my days; Your years are throughout all generations. |
25 Of old You laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. |
26 They will perish, but You will endure; Yes, they will all grow old like a garment; Like a cloak You will change them, And they will be changed. |
27 But You are the same, And Your years will have no end. |
28 The children of Your servants will continue, And their descendants will be established before You." |