Psalms 26

I Will Bless the Lord

Of David.

1 ^aVindicate me, O Lord,
for I have ^bwalked in my integrity,
and I have ^ctrusted in the Lord without wavering.
2 ^dProve me, O Lord, and try me;
test my heart and ^emy mind. ▼

▼Hebrew  test my kidneys and my heart

3For your ^gsteadfast love is before my eyes,
and I ^hwalk in your ⁱfaithfulness.
4 I do not ^jsit with men of ^kfalsehood,
nor do I consort with hypocrites.
5I ^lhate the assembly of evildoers,
and I will not sit with the wicked.
6 I ^mwash my hands in innocence
and go around your altar, O Lord,
7proclaiming thanksgiving aloud,
and telling all your ⁿwondrous deeds.
8 O Lord, I ^olove the habitation of your house
and the place where your glory dwells.
9 ^pDo not sweep my soul away with sinners,
nor my life with bloodthirsty men,
10in whose hands are evil devices,
and whose right hands are full of ^qbribes.
11 But as for me, I shall walk in my integrity;
redeem me, and be gracious to me.
12My foot stands on ^rlevel ground;
in ^sthe great assembly I will bless the Lord.

Psalms 102

Do Not Hide Your Face from Me

A Prayer of one afflicted, when he is ^tfaint and ^upours out his complaint before the Lord.

1 ^vHear my prayer, O Lord;
let my cry ^wcome to you!
2 ^xDo not hide your face from me
in ^ythe day of my distress!
^zIncline your ear to me;
^aaanswer me speedily ^abin the day when I call!
3 For my days ^acpass away like smoke,
and my ^adbones burn like a furnace.
4My heart is ^aestruck down like grass and ^afhas withered;
I ^agforget to eat my bread.
5Because of my loud groaning
my ^ahbones cling to my flesh.
6I am like ^aia desert owl of the wilderness,
like an owl ▼

▼The precise identity of these birds is uncertain

of the waste places;
7I ^aklie awake;
I am like a lonely sparrow on the housetop.
8All the day my enemies taunt me;
those who ^alderide me ^amuse my name for a curse.
9For I eat ashes like bread
and ^anmingle tears with my drink,
10because of your indignation and anger;
for you have ^aotaken me up and ^apthrown me down.
11My days are like ^aqan evening shadow;
I ^arwither away like grass.
12 But you, O Lord, are ^asenthroned forever;
you ^atare remembered throughout all generations.
13You will ^auarise and have ^avpity on Zion;
it is the time to favor her;
^awthe appointed time has come.
14For your servants hold her ^axstones dear
and have pity on her dust.
15Nations will ^ayfear the name of the Lord,
and all ^azthe kings of the earth will fear your glory.
16For the Lord ^babuilds up Zion;
he ^bbappears in his glory;
17he ^bcregards the prayer of the destitute
and does not despise their prayer.
18 Let this be ^bdrecorded for ^bea generation to come,
so that ^bfa people yet to be created may praise the Lord:
19that he ^bglooked down from his holy height;
from heaven the Lord looked at the earth,
20to hear ^bhthe groans of the prisoners,
to set free ^bithose who were doomed to die,
21that they may ^bjdeclare in Zion the name of the Lord,
and in Jerusalem his praise,
22when ^bkpeoples gather together,
and kingdoms, to worship the Lord.
23 He has broken my strength in midcourse;
he ^blhas shortened my days.
24“O my God,” ^bmI say, “take me not away
in the midst of my days—
^bnyou whose years endure
throughout all generations!”
25 ^boOf old you laid the foundation of the earth,
and ^bpthe heavens are the work of your hands.
26 ^bqThey will perish, but ^bryou will remain;
they will all wear out like a garment.
You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away,
27but ^bsyou are the same, and your years have no end.
28 ^btThe children of your servants ^bushall dwell secure;
^bvtheir offspring shall be established before you.

Isaiah 51:6

6 ^bwLift up your eyes to the heavens,
and look at the earth beneath;
^bxfor the heavens vanish like smoke,
the earth will wear out like a garment,
and they who dwell in it will die in like manner; ▼

▼Or  will die like gnats

^bzbut my salvation will be forever,
and my righteousness will never be dismayed.