Psalm 39
New American Standard Bible
The Futility of Life.
For the music director, for [a]Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
39 I said, “I will (A)keep watch over my ways
So that I (B)do not sin with my tongue;
I will keep watch over (C)my mouth as with a muzzle
While the wicked are in my presence.”
2 I was (D)mute [b]and silent,
I [c]refused to say even something good,
And my pain was stirred up.
3 My (E)heart was hot within me,
While I was musing the fire burned;
Then I spoke with my tongue:
4 “Lord, let me know (F)my end,
And what is the extent of my days;
Let me know how (G)transient I am.
5 Behold, You have made (H)my days like [d]hand widths,
And my (I)lifetime as nothing in Your sight;
Certainly all mankind standing is [e]a mere (J)breath. Selah
6 Certainly every person (K)walks around as [f]a fleeting shadow;
They certainly make an (L)uproar for nothing;
He (M)amasses riches and does not know who will gather them.
7 “And now, Lord, for what do I wait?
My (N)hope is in You.
8 (O)Save me from all my wrongdoings;
Do not make me an object of (P)reproach for the foolish.
9 I have become (Q)mute, I do not open my mouth,
Because it is (R)You who have done it.
10 (S)Remove Your plague from me;
Because of (T)the opposition of Your hand I am [g]perishing.
11 With (U)rebukes You punish a person for wrongdoing;
You (V)consume like a moth what is precious to him;
Certainly (W)all mankind is mere breath! Selah
12 “(X)Hear my prayer, Lord, and listen to my cry for help;
Do not be silent (Y)to my tears;
For I am (Z)a stranger with You,
(AA)One who lives abroad, like all my fathers.
13 (AB)Turn Your eyes away from me, that I may become cheerful again
Before I depart and am no more.”
Footnotes
- Psalm 39 Title 1 Chr 16:41
- Psalm 39:2 Lit with silence
- Psalm 39:2 Lit was silent from good
- Psalm 39:5 I.e., short
- Psalm 39:5 Or altogether breath
- Psalm 39:6 Lit an image
- Psalm 39:10 Or wasting away
Psalm 39
Amplified Bible, Classic Edition
Psalm 39
To the Chief Musician; for Jeduthun [founder of an official musical family]. A Psalm of David.
1 I said, I will take heed and guard my ways, that I may sin not with my tongue; I will muzzle my mouth as with a bridle while the wicked are before me.
2 I was dumb with silence, I held my peace without profit and had no comfort away from good, while my distress was renewed.
3 My heart was hot within me. While I was musing, the fire burned; then I spoke with my tongue:
4 Lord, make me to know my end and [to appreciate] the measure of my days—what it is; let me know and realize how frail I am [how transient is my stay here].
5 Behold, You have made my days as [short as] handbreadths, and my lifetime is as nothing in Your sight. Truly every man at his best is merely a breath! Selah [pause, and think calmly of that]!
6 Surely every man walks to and fro—like a shadow in a pantomime; surely for futility and emptiness he is in turmoil; each one heaps up riches, not knowing who will gather them.(A)
7 And now, Lord, what do I wait for and expect? My hope and expectation are in You.
8 Deliver me from all my transgressions; make me not the scorn and reproach of the [self-confident] fool!
9 I am dumb, I open not my mouth, for it is You Who has done it.
10 Remove Your stroke away from me; I am consumed by the conflict and the blow of Your hand.
11 When with rebukes You correct and chasten man for sin, You waste his beauty like a moth and what is dear to him consumes away; surely every man is a mere breath. Selah [pause, and think calmly of that]!
12 Hear my prayer, O Lord, and give ear to my cry; hold not Your peace at my tears! For I am Your passing guest, a temporary resident, as all my fathers were.
13 O look away from me and spare me, that I may recover cheerfulness and encouraging strength and know gladness before I go and am no more!
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