Psalm 102, side by side

¹A prayer of one who is afflicted, when he grows faint and pours out his lament before the LORD. Hear my prayer, O LORD; let my cry for help come before You.

¹Hear my prayer, O LORD, and let my cry come unto thee.

²Do not hide Your face from me in my day of distress. Incline Your ear to me; answer me quickly when I call.

²Hide not thy face from me in the day when I am in trouble; incline thine ear unto me: in the day when I call answer me speedily.

³For my days vanish like smoke, and my bones burn like glowing embers.

³For my days are consumed like smoke, and my bones are burned as an hearth.

⁴My heart is afflicted, and withered like grass; I even forget to eat my bread.

⁴My heart is smitten, and withered like grass; so that I forget to eat my bread.

⁵Through my loud groaning my flesh clings to my bones.

⁵By reason of the voice of my groaning my bones cleave to my skin.

⁶I am like a desert owl, like an owl among the ruins.

⁶I am like a pelican of the wilderness: I am like an owl of the desert.

⁷I lie awake; I am like a lone bird on a housetop.

⁷I watch, and am as a sparrow alone upon the house top.

⁸All day long my enemies taunt me; they ridicule me and curse me.

⁸Mine enemies reproach me all the day; and they that are mad against me are sworn against me.

⁹For I have eaten ashes like bread and mixed my drink with tears

⁹For I have eaten ashes like bread, and mingled my drink with weeping,

¹⁰because of Your indignation and wrath, for You have picked me up and cast me aside.

¹⁰Because of thine indignation and thy wrath: for thou hast lifted me up, and cast me down.

¹¹My days are like lengthening shadows, and I wither away like grass.

¹¹My days are like a shadow that declineth; and I am withered like grass.

¹²But You, O LORD, sit enthroned forever; Your renown endures to all generations.

¹²But thou, O LORD, shalt endure for ever; and thy remembrance unto all generations.

¹³You will rise up and have compassion on Zion, for it is time to show her favor— the appointed time has come.

¹³Thou shalt arise, and have mercy upon Zion: for the time to favour her, yea, the set time, is come.

¹⁴For Your servants delight in her stones and take pity on her dust.

¹⁴For thy servants take pleasure in her stones, and favour the dust thereof.

¹⁵So the nations will fear the name of the LORD, and all the kings of the earth will fear Your glory.

¹⁵So the heathen shall fear the name of the LORD, and all the kings of the earth thy glory.

¹⁶For the LORD will rebuild Zion; He has appeared in His glory.

¹⁶When the LORD shall build up Zion, he shall appear in his glory.

¹⁷He will turn toward the prayer of the destitute; He will not despise their prayer.

¹⁷He will regard the prayer of the destitute, and not despise their prayer.

¹⁸Let this be written for the generation to come, so that a people not yet created may praise the LORD.

¹⁸This shall be written for the generation to come: and the people which shall be created shall praise the LORD.

¹⁹For He looked down from the heights of His sanctuary; the LORD gazed out from heaven to earth

¹⁹For he hath looked down from the height of his sanctuary; from heaven did the LORD behold the earth;

²⁰to hear a prisoner’s groaning, to release those condemned to death,

²⁰To hear the groaning of the prisoner; to loose those that are appointed to death;

²¹that they may proclaim the name of the LORD in Zion and praise Him in Jerusalem,

²¹To declare the name of the LORD in Zion, and his praise in Jerusalem;

²²when peoples and kingdoms assemble to serve the LORD.

²²When the people are gathered together, and the kingdoms, to serve the LORD.

²³He has broken my strength on the way; He has cut short my days.

²³He weakened my strength in the way; he shortened my days.

²⁴I say: “O my God, do not take me in the midst of my days! Your years go on through all generations.

²⁴I said, O my God, take me not away in the midst of my days: thy years are throughout all generations.

²⁵In the beginning You laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands.

²⁵Of old hast thou laid the foundation of the earth: and the heavens are the work of thy hands.

²⁶They will perish, but You remain; they will all wear out like a garment. Like clothing You will change them, and they will be passed on.

²⁶They shall perish, but thou shalt endure: yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment; as a vesture shalt thou change them, and they shall be changed:

²⁷But You remain the same, and Your years will never end.

²⁷But thou art the same, and thy years shall have no end.

²⁸The children of Your servants will dwell securely, and their descendants will be established before You.”

²⁸The children of thy servants shall continue, and their seed shall be established before thee.