64 Please Lord, break open the skies
    and come down to help us!
That would make the mountains shake!
² You would come like a fire that burns up wood,
    and it causes water to boil.
The nations would shake with fear.
    Your enemies would know why your name is so great.
³ In the past, you did great things,
    and they surprised us.
You came down and the mountains shook with fear.
⁴ From the beginning, nobody has heard of any God like you.
You come to help those people who trust in you.
    Nobody has ever seen or heard of a God like you!
⁵ You help people who are happy when they do what is right.
    People like that obey your commands.
But we continued to do wrong things,
    even when you were angry with us.
We have done bad things for a long time,
    so will you ever come to save us?
⁶ Our sins have made us all like unclean people,
    who cannot worship you.
Even the good things that we try to do
    are like dirty bits of cloth.
Our sins will blow us all away,
    as the wind blows away dead leaves.
⁷ Nobody prays in your name,
    or calls out to you to help them.
It seems that you have turned away from us.
    You have left us for our sins to rule us.
⁸ But Lord, you are still our Father.
We are like clay that you have used.
    You are like the potter who has made us into pots.
You made us all with your own hands.
⁹ Lord, please do not be too angry with us.
    Do not hold our sins in your mind for ever.
Do not forget us!
    We are your people, all of us!
¹⁰ Your holy cities are as empty as a desert.
    Yes, Zion has become a desert.
    Jerusalem is just a heap of stones.
¹¹ Our ancestors praised you
    here in your temple.
It was a beautiful place that we were proud of.
But now fire has destroyed it.
    All our beautiful things are completely spoiled.
¹² Lord, see what is happening and do something!
Will you continue to keep quiet?
    Will you continue to give us so much trouble?