Psalm 39
Legacy Standard Bible
Yahweh, Make Me Know My End
For the choir director. For [a]Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
39 I said, “I will (A)keep watch over my ways
That I (B)may 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 with silence,
I even kept silent from speaking good,
And my anguish grew worse.
3 My (E)heart was hot within me,
While I meditated the fire was burning;
Then I spoke with my tongue:
4 “Yahweh, cause me to 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 as [b]handbreadths,
And my (I)lifetime as nothing before You;
Surely every man, even standing firm, is [c]altogether (J)vanity. [d]Selah.
6 Surely every man (K)walks about as [e]a shadow;
Surely they make an (L)uproar in vain;
He (M)piles up riches and does not know who will gather them.
7 “And now, Lord, what do I hope in?
My (N)expectation is in You.
8 (O)Deliver me from all my transgressions;
Make me not the (P)reproach of the wicked fool.
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 wasting away.
11 With (U)reproofs You chasten a man for iniquity;
You (V)consume as a moth what is precious to him;
Surely (W)every man is vanity. Selah.
12 “(X)Hear my prayer, O Yahweh, and give ear to my cry for help;
Do not be silent (Y)at my tears;
For I am (Z)a sojourner with You,
A (AA)foreign resident like all my fathers.
13 (AB)Turn Your gaze away from me, that I may [f]smile again
Before I go and am no more.”
Footnotes
- Psalm 39 Title 1 Chr 16:41
- Psalm 39:5 A handbreadth was approx. 3 in. or 7.6 cm
- Psalm 39:5 Or mere breath
- Psalm 39:5 Selah may mean Pause, Crescendo, Musical Interlude
- Psalm 39:6 Lit an image
- Psalm 39:13 Or become cheerful
Psalm 39
New King James Version
Prayer for Wisdom and Forgiveness
To the Chief Musician. To Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
39 I said, “I will guard my ways,
Lest I sin with my (A)tongue;
I will restrain my mouth with a muzzle,
While the wicked are before me.”
2 (B)I was mute with silence,
I held my peace even from good;
And my sorrow was stirred up.
3 My heart was hot within me;
While I was [a]musing, the fire burned.
Then I spoke with my tongue:
4 “Lord, (C)make me to know my end,
And what is the measure of my days,
That I may know how frail I am.
5 Indeed, You have made my days as handbreadths,
And my age is as nothing before You;
Certainly every man at his best state is but (D)vapor. Selah
6 Surely every man walks about like a shadow;
Surely they [b]busy themselves in vain;
He heaps up riches,
And does not know who will gather them.
7 “And now, Lord, what do I wait for?
My (E)hope is in You.
8 Deliver me from all my transgressions;
Do not make me (F)the reproach of the foolish.
9 (G)I was mute, I did not open my mouth,
Because it was (H)You who did it.
10 (I)Remove Your plague from me;
I am consumed by the blow of Your hand.
11 When with rebukes You correct man for iniquity,
You make his beauty (J)melt away like a moth;
Surely every man is vapor. Selah
12 “Hear my prayer, O Lord,
And give ear to my cry;
Do not be silent at my tears;
For I am a stranger with You,
A sojourner, (K)as all my fathers were.
13 (L)Remove Your gaze from me, that I may regain strength,
Before I go away and (M)am no more.”
Footnotes
- Psalm 39:3 meditating
- Psalm 39:6 make an uproar for nothing
Legacy Standard Bible Copyright ©2021 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org For Permission to Quote Information visit https://www.LSBible.org.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
