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1. Psalm 102
   “The Afflicted Ruler”

   Heading
   A prayer for an afflicted person who is weary and pours out his complaints before the Lord.

   Opening Plea
   1 O Lord, hear my prayer,
   and let my cry for help come to you.
   2 Do not hide your face from me on the day when I am distressed.
   Turn your ear to me on the day I call.
   Hurry! Answer me!

   The Shortness of His Days
   3 For my days go up in smoke,
   and my bones are burned like hot coals.
   4 My heart is cut down and withered like grass,
   so I forget to eat my food.
   5 Because of the sound of my groaning, my bones stick out of my flesh.
   6 I am like an owl in the wilderness,
   like a screech owl[a] among the ruins.
   7 I lie awake.
   I have become like a lonely bird on a roof.
   8 All day long my enemies taunt me.
   Those who ridicule me use my name as a curse,
   9 because I eat ashes like bread,
   and I mix tears with my drinks.
   10 Because of your rage and your wrath,
   you have picked me up and thrown me away.
   11 My days are being stretched out like a shadow,
   and I am dried up like grass.

   God’s Endless Years
   12 But you, Lord, sit on your throne forever,
   and you will be remembered through all generations.
   13 You will rise and have compassion on Zion.
   Yes, it is time to be gracious to her,
   because the appointed time has come.
   14 Yes, your servants will show favor to her stones,
   and they will have compassion on her dust.
   15 Then the nations will fear the name of the Lord,
   and all the kings of the earth will fear your glory.
   16 For the Lord will rebuild Zion.
   He will appear in his glory.
   17 He will respond to the prayer of the naked.
   He will not despise their prayer.
   18 Let this be written till the last generation,
   so that a people not yet created may praise the Lord.[b]
   19 For the Lord looked down from his high, holy place.
   From heaven he viewed the earth
   20 to hear the groans of the prisoner,
   to release those condemned to death.
   21 So the name of the Lord will be recorded in Zion
   and his praise in Jerusalem,
   22 when the peoples and the kingdoms are gathered together
   to serve the Lord.

   The Plea Repeated
   23 He took away my strength during my lifetime.
   He cut short my days.
   24 I said, “My God, do not take me away in the middle of my days.”

   The Eternal King
   Your years go on through all generations.
   25 Long ago you laid a foundation for the earth,
   and the heavens are the work of your hands.
   26 They will perish, but you remain.
   All of them wear out like a garment.
   Like clothing you will change them,
   and they will be changed.
   27 But you are the same,
   and your years will never end.
   28 The children of your servants will dwell with you,
   and their descendants will be established before you. – Psalm 102 (EHV)

   Footnotes
   [a] Psalm 102:6 The exact identification of the birds is uncertain.
   [b] Psalm 102:18 The short form of the divine name, Yah, is used here instead of the full form, Yahweh.

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