Shared Word Translation
Psalm 102
Do Not Hide Your Face from Me
O LORD, hear my prayer,
and let my cry come to you.
Do not hide your face from me
in the day of my distress.
Incline your ear to me;
in the day I call, answer me quickly.
For my days vanish like smoke,
and my bones burn like a hearth.
My heart is struck down and withered like grass;
I forget to eat my bread.
Because of the sound of my groaning,
my bones cling to my flesh.
I am like a desert bird in the wilderness,
like an owl among ruins.
I lie awake;
I am like a lonely bird on a roof.
All day my enemies taunt me;
those who rage against me use my name as a curse.
For I eat ashes like bread
and mingle my drink with tears
because of your indignation and wrath;
for you lifted me up and threw me down.
My days are like a lengthening shadow,
and I wither away like grass.
You Will Rise and Have Compassion on Zion
But you, O LORD, are enthroned forever,
and your remembrance is from generation to generation.
You will rise and have compassion on Zion,
for it is time to show her favor;
the appointed time has come.
For your servants delight in her stones
and have compassion on her dust.
The nations will fear the name of the LORD,
and all the kings of the earth your glory.
For the LORD will build up Zion
and appear in glory.
God will regard the prayer of the destitute
and will not despise their prayer.
Let This Be Written for a Future Generation
Let this be written for a future generation,
so that a people yet to be created may praise the LORD:
The LORD looked down from the holy height;
from heaven God looked upon the earth
to hear the groaning of the prisoner,
to set free those appointed to death,
so that the name of the LORD may be declared in Zion
and God’s praise in Jerusalem,
when peoples gather together,
and kingdoms, to serve the LORD.
Your Years Have No End
God weakened my strength along the way
and shortened my days.
I said, “My God, do not take me away
at the midpoint of my days—
your years endure through all generations.”
Long ago you laid the foundation of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
They will perish, but you will endure;
all of them will wear out like a garment.
Like clothing you will change them,
and they will pass away.
But you are the same,
and your years have no end.
The children of your servants will dwell secure,
and their descendants will be established before you.