Study Desk

A prayer of an afflicted person who is weak and pours out his lament before the Lord .^(a)

Lord , hear my prayer; let my cry for help come before You.^(b)

Do not hide Your face from me in my day of trouble. Listen closely to me; answer me quickly when I call.^(c)

For my days vanish like smoke, and my bones burn like a furnace.^(d)

My heart is afflicted, withered like grass;^(e) I even forget to eat my food.^(f)

Because of the sound of my groaning, my flesh sticks to my bones.^(g)

I am like a desert owl,^[a] like an owl among the ruins.^(h)

I stay awake;⁽ⁱ⁾ I am like a solitary bird on a roof.

My enemies taunt me all day long; they ridicule and curse me.^(j)

I eat ashes like bread and mingle my drinks with tears^(k)

because of Your indignation and wrath; for You have picked me up and thrown me aside.^(l)

My days are like a lengthening shadow, and I wither away like grass.^(m)

But You, Lord , are enthroned forever;⁽ⁿ⁾ Your fame endures to all generations.^(o)

You will rise up and have compassion on Zion, for it is time to show favor to her— the appointed time has come.^(p)

For Your servants take delight in its stones and favor its dust.^(q)

Then the nations will fear the name of Yahweh, and all the kings of the earth Your glory,^(r)

for the Lord will rebuild Zion; He will appear in His glory.^(s)

He will pay attention to the prayer of the destitute and will not despise their prayer.^(t)

This will be written for a later generation, and a newly created people will praise the Lord :^(u)

He looked down from His holy heights— the Lord gazed out from heaven to earth^(v)—

to hear a prisoner's groaning, to set free those condemned to die,^[b](w)

so that they might declare the name of Yahweh in Zion and His praise in Jerusalem,^(x)

when peoples and kingdoms are assembled to serve the Lord .^(y)

He has broken my^[c] strength in midcourse; He has shortened my days.^(z)

I say: "My God, do not take me in the middle of my life!^[d] Your years continue through all generations.^(aa)

Long ago You established the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands.^(ab)

They will perish, but You will endure; all of them will wear out like clothing. You will change them like a garment, and they will pass away.^(ac)

But You are the same, and Your years will never end.^(ad)

Your servants' children will dwell securely, and their offspring will be established before You."^(ae)

Davidic.

My soul, praise Yahweh, and all that is within me, praise His holy name.^(a)

My soul, praise the Lord , and do not forget all His benefits.^(b)

He forgives all your sin;^(c) He heals all your diseases.^(d)

He redeems your life from the Pit;^(e) He crowns you with faithful love and compassion.^(f)

He satisfies you^[a] with goodness;^(g) your youth is renewed like the eagle.^(h)

The Lord executes acts of righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.⁽ⁱ⁾

He revealed His ways to Moses,^(j) His deeds to the people of Israel.^(k)

The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and rich in faithful love.^(l)

He will not always accuse us or be angry forever.^(m)

He has not dealt with us as our sins deserve or repaid us according to our offenses.⁽ⁿ⁾

For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His faithful love toward those who fear Him.^(o)

As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.^(p)

As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him.^(q)

For He knows what we are made of, remembering that we are dust.^(r)

As for man, his days are like grass— he blooms like a flower of the field;^(s)

when the wind passes over it, it vanishes, and its place is no longer known.^[b](t)

But from eternity to eternity the Lord 's faithful love is toward those who fear Him, and His righteousness toward the grandchildren^(u)

of those who keep His covenant, who remember to observe His precepts.^(v)

The Lord has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over all.^(w)

Praise the Lord , all His angels of great strength, who do His word, obedient to His command.^(x)

Praise the Lord , all His armies, His servants who do His will.^(y)

Praise the Lord , all His works in all the places where He rules.^(z) My soul, praise Yahweh!

My soul, praise Yahweh! Lord my God, You are very great; You are clothed with majesty and splendor.^(a)

He wraps Himself in light as if it were a robe, spreading out the sky like a canopy,^(b)

laying the beams of His palace on the waters above,^(c) making the clouds His chariot,^(d) walking on the wings of the wind,^(e)

and making the winds His messengers,^[a] flames of fire His servants.^(f)

He established the earth on its foundations; it will never be shaken.^(g)

You covered it with the deep as if it were a garment; the waters stood above the mountains.^(h)

At Your rebuke the waters fled; at the sound of Your thunder they hurried away⁽ⁱ⁾—

mountains rose and valleys sank^[b]— to the place You established for them.^(j)

You set a boundary they cannot cross; they will never cover the earth again.^(k)

He causes the springs to gush into the valleys; they flow between the mountains.^(l)

They supply water for every wild beast; the wild donkeys quench their thirst.^(m)

The birds of the sky live beside the springs; they sing among the foliage.⁽ⁿ⁾

He waters the mountains from His palace; the earth is satisfied by the fruit of Your labor.^(o)

He causes grass to grow for the livestock and provides crops for man to cultivate, producing food from the earth,^(p)

wine that makes man's heart glad— making his face shine with oil— and bread that sustains man's heart.^(q)

The trees of the Lord flourish,^[c] the cedars of Lebanon that He planted.^(r)

There the birds make their nests; the stork makes its home in the pine trees.^(s)

The high mountains are for the wild goats; the cliffs are a refuge for hyraxes.^(t)

He made the moon to mark the^[d] festivals;^[e] the sun knows when to set.^(u)

You bring darkness, and it becomes night, when all the forest animals stir.^(v)

The young lions roar for their prey and seek their food from God.^(w)

The sun rises; they go back and lie down in their dens.^(x)

Man goes out to his work and to his labor until evening.^(y)

How countless are Your works, Lord ! In wisdom You have made them all; the earth is full of Your creatures.^[f](z)

Here is the sea, vast and wide, teeming with creatures beyond number— living things both large and small.^(aa)

There the ships move about, and Leviathan, which You formed to play there.^(ab)

All of them wait for You to give them their food at the right time.^(ac)

When You give it to them, they gather it; when You open Your hand, they are satisfied with good things.^(ad)

When You hide Your face, they are terrified; when You take away their breath, they die and return to the dust.^(ae)

When You send Your breath,^[g] they are created, and You renew the face of the earth.^(af)

May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in His works.^(ag)

He looks at the earth, and it trembles; He touches the mountains, and they pour out smoke.^(ah)

I will sing to the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God while I live.^(ai)

May my meditation be pleasing to Him; I will rejoice in the Lord .^(aj)

May sinners vanish from the earth and wicked people be no more.^(ak) My soul, praise Yahweh! Hallelujah!