| Holman Christian Standard Bible | International Standard Version |
| 1I am the man who has seen affliction under the rod of God's wrath. | 1I am a man familiar with affliction— under the rod of God's anger. |
| 2He has driven me away and forced me to walk in darkness instead of light. | 2He has led me—brought me into darkness, not into light. |
| 3Yes, He repeatedly turns His hand against me all day long. | 3He truly turned his hand against me, again and again, all day long. |
| 4He has worn away my flesh and skin; He has shattered my bones. | 4He made my flesh and skin prematurely old; he broke my bones. |
| 5He has laid siege against me, encircling me with bitterness and hardship. | 5He laid siege against me, surrounding me with bitterness and suffering. |
| 6He has made me dwell in darkness like those who have been dead for ages. | 6He has forced me to live in darkness, like those who are long dead. |
| 7He has walled me in so I cannot escape; He has weighed me down with chains. | 7He has walled me in so I cannot escape; he placed heavy chains on me. |
| 8Even when I cry out and plead for help, He rejects my prayer. | 8Indeed, when I cry out, calling for help, he shuts out my prayer. |
| 9He has walled in my ways with cut stones; He has made my paths crooked. | 9He impeded my way with blocks of stone, making my paths uneven. |
| 10He is a bear waiting in ambush, a lion in hiding. | 10He is like a bear that lies in wait for me, a lion in hiding. |
| 11He forced me off my way and tore me to pieces; He left me desolate. | 11He forced me off my path, tearing me to pieces and making me desolate. |
| 12He strung His bow and set me as the target for His arrow. | 12He bent his bow, aiming at me with his arrow. |
| 13He pierced my kidneys with His arrows. | 13He caused his war arrows to pierce my vital organs. |
| 14I am a laughingstock to all my people, mocked by their songs all day long. | 14I have become a laughingstock to all my people, the object of their taunts throughout the day. |
| 15He filled me with bitterness, satiated me with wormwood. | 15He has filled me with bitterness, making me drink wormwood. |
| 16He ground my teeth on gravel and made me cower in the dust. | 16He broke my teeth on gravel, covering me with dust. |
| 17My soul has been deprived of peace; I have forgotten what happiness is. | 17You have removed peace from my life; I have forgotten what prosperity is. |
| 18Then I thought: My future is lost, as well as my hope from the LORD. | 18So I say, "My strength is gone as is my hope in the LORD." |
| 19Remember my affliction and my homelessness, the wormwood and the poison. | 19Remember my affliction and homelessness— wormwood and gall! |
| 20I continually remember them and have become depressed. | 20My mind keeps reflecting on it, and I become depressed. |
| 21Yet I call this to mind, and therefore I have hope: | 21This is what comes to mind, and therefore I have hope: |
| 22Because of the LORD's faithful love we do not perish, for His mercies never end. | 22Because of the LORD's gracious love we are not consumed, since his compassions never end. |
| 23They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness! | 23They are new every morning— great is your faithfulness! |
| 24I say: The LORD is my portion, therefore I will put my hope in Him. | 24"The LORD is all I have," says my soul, "Therefore I will trust in him." |
| 25The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, to the person who seeks Him. | 25The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the person who searches for him. |
| 26It is good to wait quietly for deliverance from the LORD. | 26It is good to hope and wait patiently for the LORD's salvation. |
| 27It is good for a man to bear the yoke while he is still young. | 27It is good when a young man carries the yoke of discipline in his youth. |
| 28Let him sit alone and be silent, for God has disciplined him. | 28He is to sit apart and remain silent, because the LORD has laid it upon him. |
| 29Let him put his mouth in the dust-- perhaps there is still hope. | 29Let him fall face down in the dust, so there may yet be hope. |
| 30Let him offer his cheek to the one who would strike him; let him be filled with shame. | 30He will endure being slapped in the face, bringing him public disgrace. |
| 31For the Lord will not reject us forever. | 31Indeed, the Lord will not always reject us — |
| 32Even if He causes suffering, He will show compassion according to His abundant, faithful love. | 32though he causes grief, his compassion abounds according to his gracious love. |
| 33For He does not enjoy bringing affliction or suffering on mankind. | 33For he does not deliberately hurt or grieve human beings. |
| 34Crushing all the prisoners of the land beneath one's feet, | 34When any of the prisoners of the earth are crushed underfoot, |
| 35denying justice to a man in the presence of the Most High, | 35when a person's rights are perverted in defiance of the Most High. |
| 36or suppressing a person's lawsuit-- the Lord does not approve of these things. | 36When a man is thwarted in his appeal, does the Lord condone it? |
| 37Who is there who speaks and it happens, unless the Lord has ordained it? | 37Who can command, and it happens, without the Lord having ordered it? |
| 38Do not both adversity and good come from the mouth of the Most High? | 38Do not both good and evil things proceed from the mouth of the Most High? |
| 39Why should any living person complain, any man, because of the punishment for his sins? | 39Why should anyone living complain, any mortal, about being punished for sin? |
| 40Let us search out and examine our ways, and turn back to the LORD. | 40Let us examine our lifestyles, putting them to the test, and turn back to the LORD. |
| 41Let us lift up our hearts and our hands to God in heaven: | 41Let us lift up our hearts and our hands to God in heaven. |
| 42We have sinned and rebelled; You have not forgiven. | 42As for us, we have sinned and rebelled; but you have not pardoned us. |
| 43You have covered Yourself in anger and pursued us; You have killed without compassion. | 43Clothing yourself with anger, you pursued us. You killed without pity, |
| 44You have covered Yourself with a cloud so that no prayer can pass through. | 44You covered yourself with a cloud that prayer cannot pierce. |
| 45You have made us disgusting filth among the peoples. | 45You have reduced us to scum and garbage among the nations. |
| 46All our enemies open their mouths against us. | 46All our enemies jeer at us with gaping mouths. |
| 47We have experienced panic and pitfall, devastation and destruction. | 47Panic and pitfalls beset us, along with devastation and ruin. |
| 48My eyes flow with streams of tears because of the destruction of my dear people. | 48My eyes run with rivers of tears over the destruction of my cherished people. |
| 49My eyes overflow unceasingly, without end, | 49My tears pour down ceaselessly; I am far from relief |
| 50until the LORD looks down from heaven and sees. | 50until the LORD bends down to see from heaven. |
| 51My eyes bring me grief because of the fate of all the women in my city. | 51What I see grieves my soul because of all the young women of my city. |
| 52For no apparent reason, my enemies hunted me like a bird. | 52My enemies hunted me like a bird, viciously and without justification. |
| 53They dropped me alive into a pit and threw stones at me. | 53They dumped me alive into a pit, sealing me in with stone. |
| 54Water flooded over my head, and I thought: I'm going to die! | 54Water closed over my head, and I said, "I'm a dead man." |
| 55I called on Your name, Yahweh, from the depths of the Pit. | 55I called on your name, LORD, from the depths of the Pit, |
| 56You hear my plea: Do not ignore my cry for relief. | 56You heard my voice— don't close your ear to my sighs and cries. |
| 57You come near when I call on You; You say: "Do not be afraid." | 57You drew near when I called out to you. You said, "Stop being afraid" |
| 58You defend my cause, Lord; You redeem my life. | 58Lord, you have defended my cause; you have redeemed my life. |
| 59 LORD, You see the wrong done to me; judge my case. | 59LORD, you observed how I have been wronged; now make your ruling in my case. |
| 60You see all their malice, all their plots against me. | 60You examined their plans for vengeance, all of their plots against me. |
| 61 LORD, You hear their insults, all their plots against me. | 61LORD, you listened to their insults— all their plots against me, |
| 62The slander and murmuring of my opponents attack me all day long. | 62the whisperings of my opponents, their scheming against me all day long. |
| 63When they sit and when they rise, look, I am mocked by their songs. | 63Watch! Whether they sit down or stand up, they mock me with their songs. |
| 64You will pay them back what they deserve, LORD, according to the work of their hands. | 64Pay them back, LORD, according to their actions. |
| 65You will give them a heart filled with anguish. May Your curse be on them! | 65Give them an anguished heart; may your curse be upon them! |
| 66You will pursue them in anger and destroy them under Your heavens. | 66Pursue them in your anger and destroy them from under the LORD's heaven. |
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