| A Prayer of the afflicted, when he is overwhelmed and pours out his complaint before the LORD. | |
| 1 | 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.” |
