102
Prayer of an Afflicted Man for Mercy on Himself and on Zion.
A Prayer of the Afflicted when he is faint and
Apours out his complaint before the Loʀᴅ.
1 AHear my prayer, O Loʀᴅ!
And let my cry for help
Bcome to You.
2 ADo not hide Your face from me in the day of my distress;
In the day when I call
Aanswer me quickly.
3 For my days
Ahave been
1consumed in smoke,
And my
Bbones have been scorched like a hearth.
4 My heart
Ahas been smitten like
1grass and has
Bwithered away,
Indeed, I
Cforget to eat my bread.
5 Because of the
1loudness of my groaning
My
Abones
2cling to my flesh.
6 I
1resemble a
Apelican of the wilderness;
I have become like an owl of the waste places.
I have become like a lonely bird on a housetop.
8 My enemies
Ahave reproached me all day long;
Those who
1Bderide me
2have used my
name as a
Ccurse.
9 For I have eaten ashes like bread
And
Amingled my drink with weeping
10 ABecause of Your indignation and Your wrath,
For You have
Blifted me up and cast me away.
11 My days are like a
1Alengthened shadow,
And
2I
Bwither away like
3grass.
12 But You, O Loʀᴅ,
1Aabide forever,
And Your
2Bname to all generations.
13 You will
Aarise
and have
Bcompassion on Zion;
For
Cit is time to be gracious to her,
For the
Dappointed time has come.
14 Surely Your servants
1find pleasure in her stones
And feel pity for her dust.
15 1So the
2Anations will fear the name of the Loʀᴅ
And
Ball the kings of the earth Your glory.
16 For the Loʀᴅ has
Abuilt up Zion;
He has
Bappeared in His glory.
17 He has
Aregarded the prayer of the
1destitute
And has not despised their prayer.
18 1This will be
Awritten for the
Bgeneration to come,
2That
Ca people yet to be created
3may praise
4the Loʀᴅ.
19 For He
Alooked down from His holy height;
BFrom heaven the Loʀᴅ gazed
1upon the earth,
20 To hear the
Agroaning of the prisoner,
To
Bset free
1those who were doomed to death,
21 That
men may
Atell of the name of the Loʀᴅ in Zion
And His praise in Jerusalem,
22 When
Athe peoples are gathered together,
And the kingdoms, to serve the Loʀᴅ.
23 He has weakened my strength in the way;
He has
Ashortened my days.
24 I say, “O my God,
Ado not take me away in the
1midst of my days,
Your
Byears are throughout all generations.
25 “Of old You
Afounded the earth,
And the
Bheavens are the work of Your hands.
26 “
1Even they will
Aperish, but You endure;
And all of them will wear out like a garment;
Like clothing You will change them and they will be changed.
27 “But You are
1Athe same,
And Your years will not come to an end.
28 “The
Achildren of Your servants will continue,
And their
1Bdescendants will be established before You.”