Psalm 102:3
New International Version
For my days vanish like smoke; my bones burn like glowing embers.

New Living Translation
For my days disappear like smoke, and my bones burn like red-hot coals.

English Standard Version
For my days pass away like smoke, and my bones burn like a furnace.

Berean Standard Bible
For my days vanish like smoke, and my bones burn like glowing embers.

King James Bible
For my days are consumed like smoke, and my bones are burned as an hearth.

New King James Version
For my days are consumed like smoke, And my bones are burned like a hearth.

New American Standard Bible
For my days have ended in smoke, And my bones have been scorched like a hearth.

NASB 1995
For my days have been consumed in smoke, And my bones have been scorched like a hearth.

NASB 1977
For my days have been consumed in smoke, And my bones have been scorched like a hearth.

Legacy Standard Bible
For my days have vanished in smoke, And my bones have been scorched like a hearth.

Amplified Bible
For my days have vanished in smoke, And my bones have been scorched like a hearth.

Christian Standard Bible
For my days vanish like smoke, and my bones burn like a furnace.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
For my days vanish like smoke, and my bones burn like a furnace.

American Standard Version
For my days consume away like smoke, And my bones are burned as a firebrand.

Contemporary English Version
My days disappear like smoke, and my bones are burning as though in a furnace.

English Revised Version
For my days consume away like smoke, and my bones are burned as a firebrand.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
My days disappear like smoke. My bones burn like hot coals.

Good News Translation
My life is disappearing like smoke; my body is burning like fire.

International Standard Version
For my days are vanishing like smoke; my bones are charred as in a fireplace.

Majority Standard Bible
For my days vanish like smoke, and my bones burn like glowing embers.

NET Bible
For my days go up in smoke, and my bones are charred like a fireplace.

New Heart English Bible
For my days consume away like smoke. My bones are burned like a hearth.

Webster's Bible Translation
For my days are consumed like smoke, and my bones are burned as an hearth.

World English Bible
For my days consume away like smoke. My bones are burned as a torch.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
For my days have been consumed in smoke, "" And my bones have burned as a firebrand.

Young's Literal Translation
For consumed in smoke have been my days, And my bones as a fire-brand have burned.

Smith's Literal Translation
For my days were finished in smoke, and my bones burnt as fuel.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
For my days are vanished like smoke: and my bones are grown dry like fuel for the fire.

Catholic Public Domain Version
For my days have faded away like smoke, and my bones have dried out like firewood.

New American Bible
For my days vanish like smoke; my bones burn away as in a furnace.

New Revised Standard Version
For my days pass away like smoke, and my bones burn like a furnace.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
For my days are consumed like smoke, and my bones are whitened as if they were burned.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Because my days are finished in smoke and my bones are white as if they were burnt!
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
For my days are consumed like smoke, And my bones are burned as a hearth.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
For my days have vanished like smoke, and my bones have been parched like a stick.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Prayer of the Afflicted
2Do not hide Your face from me in my day of distress. Incline Your ear to me; answer me quickly when I call. 3For my days vanish like smoke, and my bones burn like glowing embers. 4My heart is afflicted, and withered like grass; I even forget to eat my bread.…

Cross References
Job 7:6
My days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle; they come to an end without hope.

Job 7:5
My flesh is clothed with worms and encrusted with dirt; my skin is cracked and festering.

Job 30:30
My skin grows black and peels, and my bones burn with fever.

Isaiah 50:11
Behold, all you who kindle a fire, who array yourselves with firebrands, walk in the light of your fire and of the firebrands you have lit! This is what you will receive from My hand: You will lie down in a place of torment.

Isaiah 40:6-8
A voice says, “Cry out!” And I asked, “What should I cry out?” “All flesh is like grass, and all its glory like the flowers of the field. / The grass withers and the flowers fall when the breath of the LORD blows on them; indeed, the people are grass. / The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.”

James 4:14
You do not even know what will happen tomorrow! What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

1 Peter 1:24
For, “All flesh is like grass, and all its glory like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall,

Psalm 39:11
You discipline and correct a man for his iniquity, consuming like a moth what he holds dear; surely each man is but a vapor. Selah

Psalm 90:5-6
You sweep them away in their sleep; they are like the new grass of the morning— / in the morning it springs up new, but by evening it fades and withers.

Psalm 103:15-16
As for man, his days are like grass—he blooms like a flower of the field; / when the wind passes over, it vanishes, and its place remembers it no more.

Isaiah 64:6
Each of us has become like something unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all wither like a leaf, and our iniquities carry us away like the wind.

Ecclesiastes 6:12
For who knows what is good for a man during the few days in which he passes through his fleeting life like a shadow? Who can tell a man what will come after him under the sun?

Ecclesiastes 12:1-2
Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of adversity come and the years approach of which you will say, “I find no pleasure in them,” / before the light of the sun, moon, and stars is darkened, and the clouds return after the rain,

Matthew 6:30
If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

Luke 12:28
If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith!


Treasury of Scripture

For my days are consumed like smoke, and my bones are burned as an hearth.

my days

Psalm 37:20
But the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the LORD shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away.

Psalm 119:83
For I am become like a bottle in the smoke; yet do I not forget thy statutes.

James 4:14
Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.

like smoke.

Psalm 22:14,15
I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint: my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels…

Psalm 31:10
For my life is spent with grief, and my years with sighing: my strength faileth because of mine iniquity, and my bones are consumed.

Psalm 38:3
There is no soundness in my flesh because of thine anger; neither is there any rest in my bones because of my sin.

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Bones Burn Burned Consume Consumed Embers Fire Firebrand Fire-Brand Furnace Glowing Hearth Scorched Smoke Vanish Wasted
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Bones Burn Burned Consume Consumed Embers Fire Firebrand Fire-Brand Furnace Glowing Hearth Scorched Smoke Vanish Wasted
Psalm 102
1. The prophet in his prayer makes a grievous complaint.
12. He takes comfort in the eternity, and mercy of God
18. The mercies of God are to be recorded
23. He sustains his weakness by the unchangeableness of God.














For my days vanish like smoke
The phrase "For my days vanish like smoke" captures the ephemeral nature of human life. The Hebrew word for "vanish" (אָפַס, 'afas) conveys a sense of ceasing or coming to an end. Smoke, in its Hebrew context (עָשָׁן, 'ashan), is a powerful metaphor for transience, as it rises and dissipates quickly, leaving no trace. This imagery reflects the psalmist's deep awareness of life's brevity and fragility, a theme echoed throughout Scripture, such as in James 4:14, which compares life to a mist. Historically, this metaphor would resonate with an ancient audience familiar with the fleeting nature of smoke from sacrifices or daily fires, reminding them of the temporal nature of earthly existence and the importance of focusing on eternal truths.

and my bones burn like glowing embers
The phrase "and my bones burn like glowing embers" vividly describes intense physical and emotional suffering. The Hebrew word for "burn" (חָרַר, charar) suggests a consuming heat, while "bones" (עֶצֶם, 'etsem) often symbolize strength and the very essence of one's being. The imagery of "glowing embers" (כְּמוֹקֵד, kemoked) evokes a sense of enduring pain, as embers retain heat long after the fire has subsided. This metaphor may reflect the psalmist's experience of prolonged affliction, both physically and spiritually. In a broader scriptural context, this suffering can be seen as a refining process, akin to the purification of metals, where trials are used by God to strengthen and purify the believer's faith, as seen in passages like 1 Peter 1:7. The psalmist's lament thus becomes a poignant reminder of the hope and renewal that can emerge from enduring trials with faith.

(3) Like smoke.--Or, in smoke. (See margin. Comp. Psalm 37:20.)

Hearth.--Better, a brand or fuel; so LXX. and Vulgate, Aquila, and this meaning suits Isaiah 33:14. (For the image see Psalm 22:15; Psalm 31:10; Psalm 32:3.) . . .

Verse 3. - For my days are consumed like smoke; or, according to another reading (בעשׁר, instead of כעשׁר), "are consumed into smoke," i.e. "disappear, pass away into nothingness." And my bones are burned as an hearth. Dr. Kay translates, "My bones smoulder like a firebrand," which is better (compare the Prayer book Version, and see Leviticus 6:2 and Isaiah 33:14). (For the sentiment, see Psalm 31:10; Psalm 32:3; Psalm 42:10.)

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
For
כִּֽי־ (kî-)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

my days
יָמָ֑י (yā·māy)
Noun - masculine plural construct | first person common singular
Strong's 3117: A day

vanish
כָל֣וּ (ḵā·lū)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 3615: To be complete, at an end, finished, accomplished, or spent

like smoke,
בְעָשָׁ֣ן (ḇə·‘ā·šān)
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 6227: Smoke

and my bones
וְ֝עַצְמוֹתַ֗י (wə·‘aṣ·mō·w·ṯay)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine plural construct | first person common singular
Strong's 6106: A bone, the body, the substance, selfsame

burn
נִחָֽרוּ׃ (ni·ḥā·rū)
Verb - Nifal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 2787: To be hot or scorched, to burn

like glowing embers.
כְּמוֹ־ (kə·mōw-)
Preposition
Strong's 4168: A fire, fuel, a conflagration


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OT Poetry: Psalm 102:3 For my days consume away like smoke (Psalm Ps Psa.)
Psalm 102:2
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