| English Standard Version | NET Bible |
| 1Hear my prayer, O LORD; let my cry come to you! | 1The prayer of an oppressed man, as he grows faint and pours out his lament before the LORD. O LORD, hear my prayer! Pay attention to my cry for help! |
| 2Do not hide your face from me in the day of my distress! Incline your ear to me; answer me speedily in the day when I call! | 2Do not ignore me in my time of trouble! Listen to me! When I call out to you, quickly answer me! |
| 3For my days pass away like smoke, and my bones burn like a furnace. | 3For my days go up in smoke, and my bones are charred like a fireplace. |
| 4My heart is struck down like grass and has withered; I forget to eat my bread. | 4My heart is parched and withered like grass, for I am unable to eat food. |
| 5Because of my loud groaning my bones cling to my flesh. | 5Because of the anxiety that makes me groan, my bones protrude from my skin. |
| 6I am like a desert owl of the wilderness, like an owl of the waste places; | 6I am like an owl in the wilderness; I am like a screech owl among the ruins. |
| 7I lie awake; I am like a lonely sparrow on the housetop. | 7I stay awake; I am like a solitary bird on a roof. |
| 8All the day my enemies taunt me; those who deride me use my name for a curse. | 8All day long my enemies taunt me; those who mock me use my name in their curses. |
| 9For I eat ashes like bread and mingle tears with my drink, | 9For I eat ashes as if they were bread, and mix my drink with my tears, |
| 10because of your indignation and anger; for you have taken me up and thrown me down. | 10because of your anger and raging fury. Indeed, you pick me up and throw me away. |
| 11My days are like an evening shadow; I wither away like grass. | 11My days are coming to an end, and I am withered like grass. |
| 12But you, O LORD, are enthroned forever; you are remembered throughout all generations. | 12But you, O LORD, rule forever, and your reputation endures. |
| 13You will arise and have pity on Zion; it is the time to favor her; the appointed time has come. | 13You will rise up and have compassion on Zion. For it is time to have mercy on her, for the appointed time has come. |
| 14For your servants hold her stones dear and have pity on her dust. | 14Indeed, your servants take delight in her stones, and feel compassion for the dust of her ruins. |
| 15Nations will fear the name of the LORD, and all the kings of the earth will fear your glory. | 15The nations will respect the reputation of the LORD, and all the kings of the earth will respect his splendor, |
| 16For the LORD builds up Zion; he appears in his glory; | 16when the LORD rebuilds Zion, and reveals his splendor, |
| 17he regards the prayer of the destitute and does not despise their prayer. | 17when he responds to the prayer of the destitute, and does not reject their request. |
| 18Let this be recorded for a generation to come, so that a people yet to be created may praise the LORD: | 18The account of his intervention will be recorded for future generations; people yet to be born will praise the LORD. |
| 19that he looked down from his holy height; from heaven the LORD looked at the earth, | 19For he will look down from his sanctuary above; from heaven the LORD will look toward earth, |
| 20to hear the groans of the prisoners, to set free those who were doomed to die, | 20in order to hear the painful cries of the prisoners, and to set free those condemned to die, |
| 21that they may declare in Zion the name of the LORD, and in Jerusalem his praise, | 21so they may proclaim the name of the LORD in Zion, and praise him in Jerusalem, |
| 22when peoples gather together, and kingdoms, to worship the LORD. | 22when the nations gather together, and the kingdoms pay tribute to the LORD. |
| 23He has broken my strength in midcourse; he has shortened my days. | 23He has taken away my strength in the middle of life; he has cut short my days. |
| 24“O my God,” I say, “take me not away in the midst of my days— you whose years endure throughout all generations!” | 24I say, "O my God, please do not take me away in the middle of my life! You endure through all generations. |
| 25Of old you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. | 25In earlier times you established the earth; the skies are your handiwork. |
| 26They will perish, but you will remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away, | 26They will perish, but you will endure. They will wear out like a garment; like clothes you will remove them and they will disappear. |
| 27but you are the same, and your years have no end. | 27But you remain; your years do not come to an end. |
| 28The children of your servants shall dwell secure; their offspring shall be established before you. | 28The children of your servants will settle down here, and their descendants will live securely in your presence." |
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