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Psalm 102
A prayer of an afflicted man. When he is faint and pours out his lament before the Lord.
Hear my prayer, O Lord;
let my cry for help come to you.
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Do not hide your face from me
when I am in distress.
Turn your ear to me;
when I call, answer me quickly.
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For my days vanish like smoke;
my bones burn like glowing embers.
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My heart is blighted and withered like grass;
I forget to eat my food.
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Because of my loud groaning
I am reduced to skin and bones.
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I am like a desert owl,
like an owl among the ruins.
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I lie awake; I have become
like a bird alone on a roof.
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All day long my enemies taunt me;
those who rail against me use my name as a curse.
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For I eat ashes as my food
and mingle my drink with tears
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because of your great wrath,
for you have taken me up and thrown me aside.
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My days are like the evening shadow;
I wither away like grass.
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But you, O Lord, sit enthroned forever;
your renown endures through all generations.
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You will arise and have compassion on Zion,
for it is time to show favor to her;
the appointed time has come.
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For her stones are dear to your servants;
her very dust moves them to pity.
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The nations will fear the name of the Lord,
all the kings of the earth will revere your glory.
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For the Lord will rebuild Zion
and appear in his glory.
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He will respond to the prayer of the destitute;
he will not despise their plea.
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Let this be written for a future generation,
that a people not yet created may praise the Lord:
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“The Lord looked down from his sanctuary on high,
from heaven he viewed the earth,
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to hear the groans of the prisoners
and release those condemned to death.”
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So the name of the Lord will be declared in Zion
and his praise in Jerusalem
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when the peoples and the kingdoms
assemble to worship the Lord.
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In the course of my life he broke my strength;
he cut short my days.
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So I said:
“Do not take me away, O my God, in the midst of my days;
your years go on through all generations.
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In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
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They will perish, but you remain;
they will all wear out like a garment.
Like clothing you will change them
and they will be discarded.
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But you remain the same,
and your years will never end.
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The children of your servants will live in your presence;
their descendants will be established before you.”